Purpose: This program is designed to prepare selected students to qualify as contributing members of the healthcare team, rendering direct patient care as beginning practitioners of practical nursing in a variety of health service facilities. Upon successful completion of the curriculum, students will be eligible to take the National Council Licensure Examination leading to licensure as a practical nurse (LPN).

Program Outcomes: At the completion of this certificate program, the graduates will:

Outcomes for Practical Nursing Program

1. Provide client centered care promoting therapeutic relationships, caring behaviors, and self-determination across the lifespan for diverse populations.
2. Practice safe nursing care that minimizes risk of harm across systems and client populations.
3. Demonstrate nursing judgment through the use of clinical reasoning, the nursing process, and evidence-based practice in the provision of safe, quality care.
4. Demonstrate accountability for personal and professional development and work within their scope of practice and legal boundaries.
5. Use cognitive, psychomotor, and affective skills in providing direct and/or indirect care for clients to facilitate optimal wellness safely.
6. Demonstrate collaboration within the nursing and interdisciplinary teams and respect for boundaries.

Program Approval: The Nursing Program is approved by the Virginia State Board of Nursing, Perimeter Center, 9960 Mayland Drive, Suite 300, Richmond, VA 23233- 1463, (804) 367-4515.

Nursing Performance Standards: Students admitted to the Germanna Community College nursing program can be expected to complete course requirements that prepare students to perform essential job functions as a licensed practical nurse. Those functions or skills that are deemed essential to the profession must be performed with or without accommodations. Any student who thinks he/she does not possess one or more of these functions should contact the Special Needs Counselor in the Office of Student Development Services. Provisions for accommodations will be made in compliance with Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990.

Occupational Objectives: Through comprehensive educational experiences, students will emerge as motivated health care providers in their field and possess the potential for lifelong learning. Upon licensure graduates of the program will be eligible for employment in nursing homes, clinics, schools, physician’s offices, and other community health settings.

Admission Requirements:

• Official high school transcripts validating completion of high school, home school, or official documentation of GED on file in the Office of Admissions and Records.
• Official college transcripts for all secondary and postsecondary courses attempted or completed, joint services transcripts if applicable, and a completed request for transcript analysis form must be on file in the Germanna Community College Office of Admissions and Records.
• Applicants must have a Virginia certification as a Nurse Aid.
• All students will be required to demonstrate college readiness through assessment and/or transcript review and may be required to take placement tests in math, writing, and reading to aid in placing students in the appropriate courses. Students who do not meet required placement levels must enroll in developmental studies courses.
• A 2.0 cumulative average in academic work is required.
• Applicants must subscribe to a Division of Nursing and Health Technologies approved online criminal history report. The summary report results will be communicated to the Nursing Office by the report vendor. Applicants convicted of committing a felony/misdemeanor may not be offered admission. The Board of Nursing may deny any applicant licensure if the applicant has willfully committed a felony/misdemeanor under laws of the Commonwealth of Virginia or of the United States.
• Applicants must have a signed student/advisor worksheet on file in the Nursing Office prior to applying to the nursing program. Copies of the worksheet may be downloaded from www.germanna.edu/nursing.
• Applicants will be disqualified if submission does not include all of these. Applicants are to electronically submit the completed Nursing Program application online by the established deadline through the nursing portal. A completed application includes the application itself, evidence of the criminal history report, and non-VCCS transcripts.
• Requirements for admission into the nursing program are specific and admission is selective and competitive.
• Residents of Germanna’s service region (Caroline, Culpeper, King George, Madison, Orange, Spotsylvania, Stafford, and the City of Fredericksburg) will be offered priority consideration for offers of admission.
• Applicants who have completed all prerequisite courses will receive priority consideration for offers of admission.
• Applicants are expected to have earned “C”or better in the prerequisite semester courses leading to the Certificate in Practical Nursing. Nursing students must earn at least “C” in the PNE courses to remain in the program. The minimum passing grade is 80 (C) in the nursing program.

Applications for the practical nursing program are due by July 1st for fall admission on the GCC Locust Grove Campus. Applicants’ transcripts and nursing pre-admission test scores will be evaluated and ranked according to the priorities listed above. Final decisions regarding admission are made by a Nursing Admissions Committee. 

The number of qualified applicants offered admission to the nursing program is contingent upon the number of faculty and space available in the classrooms, nursing laboratories, and clinical sites needed to meet the program’s learning outcomes.

An applicant seeking readmission into the nursing program after having left the practical nursing major courses for either academic or personal reasons may apply for readmission at either the June 1 - July 1 dates dependent upon which of the semesters the readmission applicant left the program. If an applicant has been out of the program more than one (1) year, the applicant must demonstrate current proficiencies by testing. A readmission applicant who has been admitted to the nursing program a total of two times and fails to complete the program following the second offer of admission will not be readmitted to the program unless extenuating circumstances can be demonstrated by the applicant and which are deemed valid by the Nursing Program Admission Committee. The offer of admission to a qualified readmission applicant will be contingent upon space available in the classrooms and nursing laboratories, the program’s access to sufficient clinical spaces, and the number of nursing faculty.

A transferring nursing student applicant must be currently enrolled in an approved practical nursing program or equivalent whose graduates are candidates for licensure. A transferring nursing student must have already successfully completed laboratory and clinical nursing major course(s) and meet the GCC requirements for admission to the nursing program. Transferring nursing students must present copies of the course syllabi for completed practical nursing major courses to the Dean of Nursing or designee prior to applying for transfer. Decisions on admission offers to transferring applicants will be determined by the Nursing Program Admissions Committee pending official transcript analysis, review of completed nursing course syllabi, and space and faculty availability. The transferring applicant may have to repeat courses.

A transferring nursing student must present a letter of recommendation that indicates good standing from the administrator of the program from which the student wishes to transfer. Application deadlines for transferring applicants are June 1 and July 1 dependent upon when the course into which the applicant is seeking transfer is offered.

If the number of applicants exceeds the number of available faculty and the amount of enrollment space available in the program, some applicants may not be accepted even if the minimum requirements for admission are met.

All students will be required to demonstrate college readiness through transcript review or informed self-placement.  Based on this review students may request or be required to enroll in prerequisite or corequisite math and/or English courses.

Program Information:
Prospective applicants without previous college courses completed should contact the Counseling Office to begin taking pre-nursing courses. Prospective applicants who have completed at least one college semester should contact the nursing office to begin taking pre-nursing courses.

A current working knowledge of the principles of biology, math, chemistry, and computer literacy is expected. Math, science, and computer literacy prerequisite courses should have been successfully completed within the previous five years. Equivalent prerequisite courses are available at Germanna and may be taken prior to admission to the program.

Students will be responsible for transportation to and from the College and health agencies utilized for clinical experiences. Information on scholarships and financial assistance is available in the Financial Aid Office.

Prior to the onset of the first clinical nursing course, the nursing student must provide documentation of:

• Certification of American Heart Association cardiopulmonary resuscitation for healthcare professionals.
• Tetanus Vaccine
• Measles/mumps/rubella/varicella vaccines or titer/Seasonal flu vaccine
• Hepatitis B vaccines or waiver.
• PPD or Chest X-ray.
• Current professional liability insurance as nursing student
• Urine drug screen
• Other mandatory clinical facility requirements including professional responsibilities and patient confidentiality.
• Personal Health insurance
• Current Physical and Dental Examinations.

When a student progresses from one semester of nursing major courses into another semester of nursing major courses, the student is accountable for providing documentation of completed Hep B series vaccination, current CPR certification, liability insurance, health insurance and PPD skin test result.

A transferring or readmitted nursing student must provide current copies of all credentials. In addition, a transferring or readmitted student must complete a new drug screen.