Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner Residency Program

Our Mission

To develop competent, confident, practice-ready NPs equipped with the knowledge and skills to address the specific needs of our nation's Veterans served by the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) and community.

Salary and Benefits

• Generous stipend paid over 12 months, plus benefits including federal health insurance
• Accrual of 4 hours of Annual Leave and 4 hours of Sick Leave per pay period
• Eleven Paid Federal Holidays
• Eligibility for Health Insurance Benefits

Eligibility

To be eligible for the program, applicants must meet the following criteria:

• US Citizen by birth or naturalization
• Fluent in Written and Spoken English
• Graduated from an NLN or CCNE accredited Nurse Practitioner Program between July 1, of previous year - June 15, of start date year. Can not have held a position as a NP previously.
• Certification as a Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner
• Hold a current, full, and unrestricted license as an NP (may start without this however MUST have within 90 days of residency start date)
• Submit to background check, physical exam, and random drug testing
• Am I Eligible? Checklist for VA HPTs

Residency Details

The residency offers new graduates the opportunity to strengthen clinical competence and confidence as a psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner. Nurse practitioner residents will collaborate with medicine, pharmacy, social work, and various other mental health providers as members of an interdisciplinary team. Together, they will attend didactics, work on a quality improvement project, and provide care for Veterans using a patient centered approach. Clinical rotations will be within the Western Slope VA Healthcare system, inclusive of its surrounding Community Based Out-Patient Clinics (CBOCs).

How to Apply

Application Process

To apply for this residency program, you must submit the following documents to:
PMHNP Residency Director
Kari Weirath, PhD, RN, PMHNP-BC at Kari.Weirath@va.gov

Place in the subject line: Applicant's Last then First Name - Applicant NPR (start date year)
Example: Smith, John - Applicant NPR 2024

1. Current Curriculum Vitae or Resume
    
2. A one-page narrative describing why you are interested in postgraduate training in the VA Health Care System, and your future career goals within VHA
    
3. Three letters of recommendation, at least one from a current or past professional peer, and at least one from your graduate academic program
    
4. All applicants must submit to a background screening, physical exam, drug testing and credentialing verification of education and employment to be a part of the VA Federal System
    

Timeline

Application period: October 1 to January 1.

Interviews scheduled: To Be Decided.

Residency Period: July of current year to the July of the following year (e.g., July 2027-July 2028).

Documents must be received by the first of January to be considered. Please send an email request to Kari.Weirath@va.gov if requesting to apply after this timeframe.

Selection Process

Applicants will be reviewed and rated. An offer for an interview will be extended to the strongest applicants. Three offers will be extended by email as soon as committee consensus is reached and references have been contacted, ideally no later than March 1. Those candidates that are not ranked in the top three may be waitlisted. Once an email offer is made, applicants will be asked to accept or decline. Positions may be held for 72 hours but we ask you notify us of a decision as soon as feasible. These applicants then must complete federal application documents and undergo eligibility verification.

Program Goals and Expected Outcomes

1. Provide a twelve-month long supervised training program for new graduate nurse practitioners during their first year of practice and enhance the recruitment and retention of new graduate nurse practitioners.
   
   Expected outcome: 66% (2/3 in each cohort) of nurse practitioner residents will complete the full duration of the twelve-month long program, excluding health or family emergencies.
    
2. Promote confidence in the role of a MH or PC nurse practitioner and the development of both core and specialty competency areas in advanced practice nursing through a combination of structured didactics, learning activities and diverse clinical rotations.
   
   Expected outcome: Confidence in practice scores will increase for all enrolled residents from month one to month twelve of the program.
   
   Expected outcome: Nurse practitioner residents will meet competency benchmarks (receipt of at least an “advanced beginner” rating) in 75% of the performance criteria within each competency domain by the end of the program.
    
3. Provide a training program that is enriched with opportunity for scholarly inquiry through mentorship of an evidence-based quality improvement project.
   
   Expected outcome: Nurse practitioner residents will successfully develop and complete an evidence-based practice (EBP) improvement project (individually, or as team with other trainees) and present recommendations to the interprofessional faculty committee, interprofessional trainee cohorts, and key stakeholders by the end of the program.
   
   Expected outcome: Nurse practitioner residents will successfully demonstrate understanding of nursing as both a practice and scientific discipline driven by the need for emerging knowledge gained through scholarly inquiry by successful completion of the EBP.