The Veterans Affairs Nursing Academic Partnership in Graduate Education (VANAP-GE), a joint effort between the UAB School of Nursing and the Birmingham VA Medical Center (BVAMC), offers psychiatric nurse practitioner students focused didactic and clinical experience in the psychiatric care of Veterans. This nursing graduate education program was the first of its kind in the United States. The goal of this partnership between the UAB School of Nursing and the Birmingham VA Medical Center is to create better access to mental health care for America’s Veterans.

Over the course of three semesters, psychiatric nurse practitioner students complete rotations in areas such as general mental health, inpatient psychiatric consults, and substance use disorders at the BVAMC and its associated clinics, working in close collaboration with their preceptors who are experienced psychiatric nurse practitioners or psychiatrists. They also participate in a team of nurse practitioners, physicians, social workers, psychologists, and support staff providing interdisciplinary care for Veterans. In addition to this veteran-centric clinical experience, the psychiatric-mental health nurse practitioner specialty track delivers content on mental health issues of the Veteran population throughout the curriculum, educating nurse practitioner students on the special needs of this group.

Applicants must: be admitted to the Psychiatric Nurse Practitioner specialty track in the UAB School of Nursing, live in the Birmingham area and/or willing to travel to BVAMC and its associated clinics and have a background in psychiatric nursing. Applications are accepted each year in February/March for students beginning their clinicals the following August.

Read the Fall 2014 UAB Nursing magazine story about the Veterans Affairs Nursing Academic Partnership in Graduate Education (VANAP-GE).

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