A Case Example of a Transitional Education Program for Internationally Educated Nurses from Mexico.

Abstract

Internationally educated nurses migrating for work in other countries help address short and long-term staffing shortage issues. A transitional educational program was designed and implemented to prepare Mexican nurses with the competencies needed to work in any clinical setting in the United States. Through an intensive, full-time, 6-month transitional education program that included a living stipend during program participation, 30 out of 67 Mexican nurse candidates passed the NCLEX-RN, an English-language competency test, and were successfully placed in a hospital setting. Several salient lessons emerged from program implementation that have implications for transitions and capacity building among internationally educated nurses.