RN Refresher Program

Dear Prospective RN Refresher Student,

Welcome!

The RN Refresher Program is a collaborative professional development program offered through each of North Carolina's nine regional AHECs and The University of North Carolina School of Nursing at Chapel Hill.

The Nurse Refresher Program consists of two components: 1) a self-paced online theory course of 24 modules and 2) a regionally based clinical practicum. The North Carolina Board of Nursing requires the completion of these two program components for nurses who have not held an active license for at least five years. If your NC license has been inactive, expired or retired for less than five years, you may elect to complete this program. Nurses with currently active licenses, and who have either been away from direct patient care for an extended time or are considering a change of practice area, may choose to enroll in the program to update their knowledge and clinical skills.

The self-paced theory course, "Medical-Surgical Nursing Review," includes 24 recently updated and enhanced modules on all aspects of adult medical surgical nursing. The Friday Center at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill enrolls the RN Refresher student and monitors course progress through their distance education program services. Upon program completion, the Friday Center awards 14 continuing education units, which is equivalent to 140 Contact Hours, with the student's certificate of completion.

The clinical practicum is individually arranged by the regional AHEC nurse coordinator following the student's successful completion of the online theory course component. As required by the NC Board of Nursing, it consists of a total 140 hours including up to 60 hours of simulation-based education. As clinical placements are subject to availability, facility contract and available preceptor; therefore, advanced planning is required. RN Refresher students with an inactive nursing license are given priority to facilitate their license renewal/reinstatement process. MAHEC awards a certificate of completion for the 140 clinical activity hours.

Upon successful completion of both the didactic and clinical portion of the course, RN refresher students with an inactive/expired license must apply for renewal/reinstatement of his/her nursing license through the North Carolina Board of Nursing. This is a separate state regulatory process and not under the regional AHEC program jurisdiction. More than 67% of nurses who completed the full program over the past five years have returned to work in nursing in North Carolina.

Timeline for completion:

• 9 months for completion of adult medical-surgical modules
• 3 month average for completion of 140 clinical hours

Costs for this program include:

• $125.00 MAHEC enrollment fee
• $1,000.00 Friday Center Modules
• $250.00 MAHEC Clinical Fee (background check/drug screen and simulation-based education)
• Additional items: Malpractice insurance, scrubs and Shadowhealth module