Mission

To provide newly graduated Psychiatric/Mental Health Nurse Practitioners veteran-centric clinical and didactic training to further develop the confidence, competence, knowledge and skills in order to become well-prepared to practice independently and provide care to the veteran population.

About the Program

This is a federally funded cohort-based 12-month training program, totaling 2080 hours, that offers a stipend and limited benefits. The residency provides a supportive interprofessional learning environment for providing evidence-based clinical care to our nation’s Veterans.

The program offers 100% protected training time for the resident and clinical supervision throughout the program, a robust curriculum, profession-specific rotations in various clinical settings, and opportunities for residents to create their unique career paths.

80% (32 hours) of the resident’s time will be spent in experiential activities applying academic concepts into practice and 20% (8 hours) in didactic activities that build upon academic learning. The curriculum includes rotations in a variety of clinical settings including inpatient, outpatient, and specialty programs comprised of clinical and didactic experiences.

The program ensures that graduates are well prepared to practice with confidence and expertise in treating patients recovering from complex mental health issues by providing new graduates the opportunity to expand and accelerate their growth beyond entry-level professional competence in patient-centered care, operational services and further the development of leadership skills that can be applied to address the complex needs of the Veteran population in any practice setting.

Upon successful completion of the residency, a certificate of completion is awarded that is recognized throughout the Veterans Health Administration.

PMHNP Stipend and Benefits

• Residents in our program are considered federal trainees with a competitive stipend
• A comprehensive benefits package that includes in part:
  • Paid vacation and sick leave that accrues at a rate of 4/4 hours per pay period.
  • paid holidays
  • Optional enrollment for federal health, vision, and dental insurance.
  • Access to KC VA online library with subscriptions to UpToDate, PubMed, and more.

The resident stipend is based on the current year’s allocation rate for the local area. Resident is not vested and does not have a 401K or matching fund benefit during their residency year. Though this program is designed to help with the recruitment and retention of high-quality PMHNP’s, completion of the program does not guarantee employment.

Eligibility

• Applicants must meet the following program requirements:
• United States Citizenship    
• Must hold a Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner Certification
• Nurse practitioner state licensure with prescriptive/furnishing license and DEA number
• Possess a current, full, active, and unrestricted registration as a graduate professional nurse AND nurse practitioner in a state, commonwealth or territory of the United States, or the District of Columbia, prior the start of the NPR program
• Current Nursing license active and in good standing
• Recent graduate (within 12 months) of a master’s or doctoral PMHNP accredited program
• No previous work experience as a licensed advanced practice nurse.
• Proficient in written and spoken English

Application Requirements

• Curriculum Vitae, including but not limited to:
  • Education and Awards/Honors
  • Work Experience
  • Research and Publication
  • Leadership Service
  • Life Experience/Professional membership
• Undergraduate and graduate school level nursing school transcripts
• A copy of RN license, BLS certification,  ANCC PMHNP certification,  APRN license and a copy of DEA licensure, if obtained by  application deadline. 
• Three professional Letters of Recommendation, two of which must be from 1) an academic instructor AND 2) a preceptor-requires direct observation of your clinical skills as a PMHNP student.  Letters  must  be submitted on company letterhead and the professionals must  be available for verbal confirmation of the information below:
  • Relationships with team members such as nurses, physicians, social workers, RT etc.
  • Professional PMHNP ability, including application of theory, independent judgment where appropriate, and quality of patient care
  • Communication skills
  • Leadership skills
  • Capacity to complete a scholarly quality improvement project related to psychiatry on the PMHNP level
  • Responsibility and initiative
• Personal Statement, including outlining your:
  • Your commitment to begin and complete the one year program requirement
  • Your interest in this specific residency
  • Commitment to furthering the profession
  • How your career goals align with the PMHNP role and furthering the profession
  • Identify a tentative subject of your quality improvement project,  addressing veterans’ mental health & psychiatric needs
• Background & Security Investigation required
• Completion of required lab work (a random drug screen may be required), pre-trainee physical examination and immunizations, if indicated

The preference for selected trainees, will be those who have already passed the ANCC certification boards and have PMHNP licensure, however, there is a non-negotiable 90-day grace period from the start of the cohort to obtain NP licensure. We recommend ANCC testing as soon as possible.

Successful participants will be eligible, and encouraged, to apply for nurse practitioner vacancies in the Veterans Health System.

*All documents must be submitted together in one electronic PDF packet by email. Applications that are not sent as one PDF will not be considered. Louisville VA will not be responsible for documents, references and transcripts sent separately.

Application Dates

Application deadline: June 1st, 2023

Interviews: June 2023

Fall 2023 start date: Mid-late September 2023

Please submit completed one PDF of PMHNP Residency Application with all supplemental materials (via hardcopy or email) and/or any questions to:

Mischa R. Endicott, MSN, APRN, PMHNP-BC

Mental Health Services Mental Health-Nurse Practitioner Residency (MH-NPR) Program Director

Mental Health Services PMHNP Discipline Education Coordinator

Mental Health Services PMHNP Discipline Lead

VAMC Newburg CBOC Mental Health BHIP Clinic Team Lead

800 Zorn Ave.

Louisville, Ky., 40206

Mischa.endicott@va.gov

502-287-4000, ext. 4482

Please periodically check this page for updates to program information

Updated 2/2/2023