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SUNY Downstate Medical Center
College of Nursing
Graduate Program
MS and Advanced Certificate Nurse Practitioner (NP) Degree Programs
Clinical Requirements
Accepted applicants into the Women’s Health and Family Nurse Practitioner Programs are
required to complete a total of 720 clinical hours in a variety of settings under the direct
supervision of a clinical preceptor. Each clinical course requires 120 clinical hours. Preceptors
for nurse practitioner students must be either physicians, nurse practitioners or nurse midwives.
Students are encouraged to identify clinical sites and preceptors that may be uniquely compatible
to their needs. For example, students should consider trying to secure a preceptor at their current
workplace or someone with whom they have a professional relationship. This responsibility is
shared with the clinical coordinator of the NP programs, graduate faculty and the students. If the
student is unable to obtain a clinical site and/or preceptor, the clinical coordinator and the faculty
will assist in the placement of the student. Students are required to comply with the clinical days
and times set by the preceptors, should they be assigned to one.
Clinical Requirements
I. Required Documents:
To be able to register for a clinical course you must submit the following documents to Mr.
Thomas Chambers in the Academic Programming Office, Room 840, weekdays between 9AM
and 5 PM:
1. Obtain a Malpractice Insurance policy indicating that you are a NP student. You will
need to contact a malpractice insurance carrier and they will be able to direct you to the
appropriate coverage. Your current RN or any other type of malpractice insurance is
unacceptable when practicing as a graduate Nurse Practitioner student.
2. Place one copy of your current RN license, current NYS Registration, CPR certificate and
student NP malpractice insurance, Health Clearance from Student Health Department of SUNYDownstate including proof of a flu-shot or declination of the flu-shot in an 8X10 envelope
clearly labeled with your name in the upper left corner. Although you submitted these documents
in support of your application, these documents are also required for all clinical placements.
Periodically, additional documents may be required /requested depending on the clinical
site/preceptor's needs.
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The above documents must be submitted by October 1, 2015 or prior to the pre-registration
period which ever comes first. Failure to meet this deadline will result in students’ inability to
pre register for clinical courses.
3. Remember it is the students’ responsibility to update / renew the above documents so
they are always current. Students cannot attend any clinical rotations if any of the
required documents have expired and have not been updated.
II. Clinical Placement:
Choice of preceptor and clinical placement is a shared responsibility between the graduate
faculty, clinical coordinator and the student. Students are expected to complete the Clinical
Placement Information Form (attached) for each clinical course three to four weeks prior to preregistration.
The College of Nursing has established official contracts with multiple clinical agencies;
however we welcome students to seek out new sites that will provide appropriate learning
experiences. The following process is the means to initiate your clinical experience each
semester prior to the early registration period for the following semester:

Check the list of clinical agencies (see attached Excel File). If a clinical agency is not on the
list:
● Complete the Request for New Clinical Agency Form and submit it to Ms. Marcel Kennedy,
Clinical Coordinator by the specified deadline date which will be communicated via email.
Please keep in mind that the establishment of a new contact with a new clinical agency can
take approximately 3- 6 months to complete the legal processing before a student may
begin.
III. Clinical Preceptors:
Clinical preceptors are an integral component of the NP student education. The preceptor plays a
vital role in guiding and facilitating the education of the NP student.
Whether the student is being assigned to a preceptor or choosing a preceptor, the students should
be aware of the following:
1. The student/faculty may identify an appropriate preceptor.
2. The preceptor must be either a NP, CNM, or a MD.
3. The student and preceptor should negotiate a mutually agreed time to complete the required
clinical hours.
4. Every student receives a Preceptor Packet from the course faculty, which includes, Course
Description, Clinical Objectives, Clinical Evaluation Form, and Expected Responsibilities of the
Student, Clinical Faculty and Preceptor.
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5. Preceptors are responsible for clinical evaluations. The preceptor will discuss the evaluation
with the student and the College of Nursing faculty.
6. The College of Nursing faculty will visit the student at the clinical site and will discuss the
evaluation with the student. Faculty will document evaluation of Nurse Practitioner clinical site
visits with the student on the Typhon System.
7. It is the student’s responsibility to alert the faculty to any occurrences that might interfere with
completion of clinical hours.
8. At the completion of the clinical experience students are expected to send a personal “thank
you” letter to each preceptor and submit a copy of this letter to the course faculty.
9. Students are required to complete the Agency Evaluation Form and submit it to Dr.RosarioSim, NP program director or her designee at the completion of each clinical rotation.
Dress Code for Clinical Experiences
NP Students are expected to dress in a professional manner at all times. Failure to adhere to this
policy will result in dismissal from the clinical site and the clinical hours will have to be
repeated. Denim jeans, sloppy T-shirts, jogging attire, open toed shoes, etc. will not be tolerated
in the clinical area or when arriving/leaving the clinical site.
Proper attire for clinical experiences consists of
1. Lab coats (that are clean and freshly ironed) should be worn by all students when in a
clinical setting.
2. Clearly displayed student’s ID must be worn in the clinical setting. Students are
responsible for replacing ID if it should be lost or broken.
3. Fingernails are to be short and clean. Nail polish and acrylic (or otherwise artificial)
nails are not acceptable.
4. Hair must be well groomed and worn in a controlled style. Moustaches and beards must
be clean and trimmed.
5. A wedding ring is the only acceptable ring to be worn in the clinical area.
6. Large Dangling earrings, wrist, ankle bracelets and necklaces are not acceptable. Nose,
tongue, and any other facial jewelry are not acceptable.
7. Tattoos must be covered.
8. At no time, is unsuitable clothing or footwear to be worn in the Clinical setting. This
includes jeans and sneakers or tennis shoes.
9. The dress code for clinical is business casual. This includes modest clothing. Hemlines
for a skirt should be at the knee or below. Blouse necklines should not be too revealing.
Slacks that are not too tight may be worn. T-shirts are not permitted.
10. Scrubs are not acceptable clinical attire and may not be worn.
11. All students are expected to come to all clinical experiences with all of the necessary
equipment, such as a stethoscope and the necessary references.
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Typhon
Typhon is the official online logging system you will use to document, track and validate your
clinical experiences throughout your enrollment in the NP program.
● A onetime fee of $80.00 must be paid to the Typhon Group prior to registering for the first
clinical course CNNP 5230.
●There are three video tutorials on the homepage of the Typhon system. They are very
informative and provide detailed information that would answer almost all questions regarding
Typhon.
●The Typhon record of your clinical experience is the official document of your clinical
education.
●It is your responsibility to maintain an accurate and up-to-date record of your clinical
experiences throughout every course in the program.
●Logs must be kept current. Failure to enter clinical cases ontoTyphoon within 72 hours of
clinical will result in the need to repeat the clinical hours in which the cases were
conducted.
●If clinical hours are not entered to reflect completion of the clinical requirements for any course
a grade of "F' will be assigned.
Once you have paid your Typhon fee and your account is activated, it alerts you of upcoming
expirations of your mandatory documents in red. Please act to update your documents when
alerted.
Punctuality
Students are required to report to clinical, appropriately attired at the assigned time.
1. If a student finds that he/she is unavoidably detained, the clinical preceptor must be notified as
soon as possible.
2. Repeated patterns of lateness or absences will NOT be tolerated. Students who are consistently
late will be scheduled for a conference with the Program Director and/or Associate Dean and
placed on a clinical notice. If this behavior continues, the student will be subject to disciplinary
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actions. Failure to demonstrate improvement will result in “F” grade for that clinical practicum
and dismissal. Refer to Appendix III – Disciplinary Procedures, in the current Student
Handbook.
3. Students are to return from lunch and/or breaks at the appropriate time.
4 Students are expected to conduct themselves in a professional manner at all times during the
clinical experience, which includes speech and demeanor. The use of cell phones should be on
an emergency basis only.
I have read, understand and accept the clinical responsibilities of NP students. Please return the
signed and dated clinical responsibilities with your acceptance letter.
Print Name:__________________
Date:____________________
LS:1/22/14, 12/7/2014
Signature: ____________