*This program is under a course revision process and will be updated soon.

Dr. Paula Allocca, PMHNP-BC, Assistant Professor and Director of Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner Program
Health & Life Sciences Building, (540) 665-5502, paula.allocca@su.edu

The Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner (PMHNP) Program is designed to provide the nurse with the necessary knowledge, skills, values and experiences to assume the advanced practice role of a PMHNP in a variety of clinical settings.  The program consists of didactic and clinical course content including psychotherapy, differential diagnoses, health promotion and psychotropic medication management for individuals, families and groups within hospitals and community settings across the lifespan.  The MSN PMHNP student will complete approximately 600 clinical hours during this program of study.  A variety of clinical settings will be offered that are faculty or preceptor-supervised to assure competency-based learning and support throughout the program. Admission to this program occurs in the fall. Graduates are eligible to take the national certification exam given by either the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC).

Shenandoah University’s PMHNP program also has an initiative (collaborative) relationship with other schools of nursing. Through this formal arrangement graduate nursing students attending collaborative agreement schools will receive a graduate degree from the home university and a post-graduate certificate from Shenandoah University. The PMHNP program is offered in an online synchronous format.

In addition to credits of required MSN core courses, the PMHNP program requires additional speciality credit hours.

Graduates of the PMH program will be able to: 

• Synthesize evidence-based practice, clinical guidelines and clinical judgment to improve the quality of behavioral and psychiatric mental health practice in diverse populations with consideration for social determinants of health.
• Apply ethical, cultural, legal and social factors that influence access, equity, quality and cost effectiveness to advance mental health nursing practice.
• Demonstrate, through competency based evaluation, the delivery, management, health policy process and leadership of advanced practice nursing and population health in mental health care settings.
• Create interprofessional dialogues and utilize healthcare technologies to optimize clinical decision making and evidence-based practice to support and strengthen patient outcomes in behavioral and mental health.
• Construct a sustainable professional psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner identity and practice that reflects compassionate, holistic and wellness-focused patient-centered care for diverse populations.