Create, Launch or Improve an APP Training Structure
This guide is designed to help departments formalize and improve their process for training APPs that are new to their role. Specific guidance for supervising MDs who are learning how to work with a new APP day-to-day can be found here. In this guide, we aim to provide a general framework outlining the key components of a successful onboarding and training program. The needs of each department and each APP are different, however, and some sections may be less applicable to each setting and each new hire. This guide is best used as a starting point for directed brainstorming to customize a program best suited to your department’s needs.
Notably, this guide is designed with a novice APP in mind - someone that has no prior work experience practicing in the clinical setting they are being hired into. It therefore offers a comprehensive, multi-faceted series of educational tools and clinical checklists to ensure a well-supported graded increase to their full intended scope of practice. The onboarding plan will likely need to be altered significantly if an experienced APP is hired.
There is undoubtedly a lot to learn when an APP is starting their new role. An APP is hired to fill a specific clinical need, and a well-designed onboarding plan should allow them to meet that need as quickly and as safely as possible. Creating a well-structured onboarding plan for a new APP is also critical for promoting retention. Hiring and training an APP requires a lot of time and money; an APP that feels well supported and comfortable in their role will be more likely to stay!
Examples of Comprehensive Onboarding Programs
On the following pages, we have outlined a list of options to consider when designing your onboarding program. We will take you through these step-by-step in the pages that follow, but if you prefer you can use the hyperlinks in the menu to jump to a specific section.
As you develop your own program, it can be helpful to know what a finished product looks like! For reference, we have included three examples of comprehensive onboarding programs designed by departments throughout Brigham and Women’s Hospital. These can accessed to the left:
Dept clinical leaders, looking to launch or improve our educational efforts surrounding APP clinical skill development & growth. Understanding optimal frameworks for this, and also to see what other successful Departments have done.
Supervising MD, looking for additional information and resources about working with APPs and advancing them educationally to practice at the top of their license.
APP, looking for a roadmap to set and achieve the next goals on career trajectory.
Department administrator, looking for resources to help with the logistical & administrative onboarding of newly hired APPs (e.g. salary rules, credentialing, MGB policies on supervision, regulatory requirements, IT help).