Nurse Education, Practice, Quality and Retention (NEPQR) – Veteran Nurses in Primary Care (VNPC) Training Program

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In FY 2018, HRSA implemented the Nurse Education, Practice, Quality and Retention (NEPQR)-Registered Nurses in Primary Care (RNPC) Program to recruit and train nursing students and current registered nurses (RNs) to practice to the full scope of their license in community-based primary care teams.  This program aims to increase access to care, with an emphasis on chronic disease prevention and control, including mental health and substance use disorders.  The NEPQR- VNPC Training Program is an expansion of the NEPQR-RNPC investment specifically targeting undergraduate nursing students who are veterans and current primary care RNs.  The NEPQR-VNPC Training Program objectives are to: recruit primary care-oriented veteran undergraduate nursing students committed to practicing in non-institutional settings to provide primary health care in medically underserved communities; provide longitudinal clinical training experiences for veteran undergraduate nursing students in community-based primary care; offer continuing professional development in primary care for practicing RNs, clinical preceptors, and faculty aimed at developing primary care expertise and skillsets to provide high-quality care that addresses the unique needs of veterans with an emphasis on chronic disease prevention and control, including mental health and substance use disorders; enhance didactic and clinical training curricula to integrate primary care, population health, and interprofessional education (IPE) with an emphasis on chronic disease prevention and control, including mental health and substance use disorders;  facilitate partnerships between veteran, academia, and clinical partners via a partnership liaison; and address physical, emotional, and environmental issues that may be unique to veterans that could potentially impact learning, negatively interfere with program completion, and deter gainful employment in nursing after graduation. Like the NEPQR-RNPC Program, the NEPQR-VNPC Training Program aims to achieve a sustainable primary care nursing workforce equipped with the competencies necessary to deliver value-based primary care, improve the distribution of the nursing workforce, increase access to care, and improve population health outcomes by strengthening the capacity for basic nurse education and practice.

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