Initial pathway offerings focus on nurses at novice and competent skill levels

SCHAUMBURG, Ill. (Oct. 12, 2021) – ENA University, the Emergency Nurses Association’s center of emergency nursing education excellence, expanded its innovative offerings Tuesday with the debut of the new ENA University Pathways.

This career-centered pathway program includes clinical, professional and well-being education with courses that are broken down into core and specialty areas. The Clinical Practice-Novice Pathway and Clinical Practice-Competent Pathway were released Tuesday, with future pathway options planned for release in 2022.

Nurses who register for an ENA University Pathway have three years to complete courses and receive accredited continuing education credits. Pathways also give nurses access to the ENA Mentoring Program where they are matched up with an experienced colleague.

“ENA University Pathways are a dynamic guided journey for nurses who want to further their career through clinical skill and professional development,” said ENA President Ron Kraus, MSN, RN, EMT, CEN, ACNS-BC, TCRN. “This one-of-a-kind approach truly sets nurses on a path to success in the emergency department.”

ENA University Provost Patti Kunz Howard, PhD, RN, CEN, CPEN, TCRN, NE-BC, FAEN, FAAN, agreed that the pathways provide emergency nurses a unique opportunity to enhance their knowledge and guide career development like never before.

“The pathways truly give an ED nurse the courses they need, when they need them, to build upon their knowledge base and real-life experiences to help their career grow,” Howard said. “I wish something like the pathway program was around when I started, so I’m excited to champion it now – and as it expands – to ED nurses at all levels who are looking for a roadmap to excel in emergency nursing.”

Howard also encouraged hospital leaders to explore how ENA University Pathways can support their ED nurses by creating a consistent journey with career development benchmarks.

The pathway program is an exciting cornerstone of ENA University, which brings together in one place online the association’s robust portfolio of education courses and resources with new skill and career development opportunities. This new center for excellence also features the Industry Learning Lab presented by ENA’s strategic partners, enhanced mentoring and peer engagement and a design that allows emergency nurses of all experience levels to tailor their continuing education to their needs.

Additional pathways and an 18-week residency program are scheduled to debut in 2022.

For more information on ENA University Pathways, visit ena.org/ENAU/pathways.