CHC Nurse Practitioner Residency Program Receives Full Accreditation

CHC Nurse Practitioner Residency Program Receives Full Accreditation

MIDDLETOWN, Conn., January 16, 2017: The postgraduate family nurse practitioner residency program at Community Health Center, Inc. (CHC) has received its initial three-year accreditation from the National Nurse Practitioner Residency and Fellowship Training Program Consortium (NNPRFTC), an indication of the highest levels of programmatic rigor and best practices.

 “This is an important milestone,” says Margaret Flinter, APRN, PhD., senior vice president and clinical director for CHC. “Full accreditation means that our postgraduate residency training program has been carefully reviewed by peers and leaders in the field and meets objective and rigorous standards. Our program is particularly focused on new nurse practitioners who are committed to practice careers as primary care providers and seek an additional year of training specific to that challenging role.”

“CHC has been a leader in providing excellent education and training for healthcare professionals, and we are delighted the quality of our nurse practitioner residency program is recognized by experts in the field,” says Mark Masselli, president and CEO of CHC.

The NNPRFTC was established as a non-profit organization in 2015 to develop an accreditation service for postgraduate training programs. CHC’s postgraduate nurse practitioner residency program is the second program in the country to be accredited by the NNPRFTC. The International Community Health Services nurse practitioner residency program in Seattle, Wash., was awarded full accreditation by the NNPRFTC earlier the same day.

“Our goal is to ensure that postgraduate training programs for nurse practitioners have the rigor and quality to support new nurse practitioners and those transitioning between specialties and provide the depth, breadth, and intensity of training they seek in preparing for new roles,” says Candice Rettie, PhD., executive director of NNPRFTC. “We are delighted to give our seal of approval to the CHC program.”

The accreditation process, which is voluntary, involves extensive analysis and documentation of the residency program’s operations. It also involves an on-site visit for verification and inspection of the program and its facilities by professionals with nationally recognized expertise in postgraduate training for nurse practitioners.

CHC established the nation’s first postgraduate nurse practitioner residency program in 2007. 

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About Community Health Center, Inc. 
Since 1972, Community Health Center, Inc. has been one of the leading healthcare providers in the state of Connecticut, building a world-class primary healthcare system committed to caring for uninsured and underserved populations. CHC is focused on improving health outcomes for its more than 145,000 patients as well as building healthy communities. Recognized as both a Level 3 Patient-Centered Medical Home by the National Committee for Quality Assurance and a Primary Care Medical Home by The Joint Commission, CHC delivers service in more than 200 locations statewide, offering primary care in medical, dental and behavioral health services. For more information, visit www.chc1.com.

About The national Nurse Practitioner Residency and Fellowship Training Program
The National Nurse Practitioner Residency and Fellowship Training Program (NNPRFTC) is an independent, nonprofit accrediting body whose mission is to support new and ongoing postgraduate training programs for nurse practitioners in the achievement and maintenance of the highest standards of rigor and quality, consistent with achieving the goal of an expert healthcare workforce prepared to meet the needs of patients and the society as a whole.  Our approach to accreditation is a rigorous yet collegial accreditation process.  For more information, visit:  http://www.nppostgradtraining.com.