Veterans Affairs Training Experiences During the COVID-19 Pandemic-Trainee Satisfaction and Interest in Future Veterans Affairs Employment: A National Survey

Abstract

Introduction: The emergence of COVID-19 caused a sudden, unexpected disruption in the clinical training experiences of nurse trainees at the US Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), the largest clinical training setting in the US for nurses. Purpose: To understand associations between COVID-19 and nurse trainees’ satisfaction with their training experiences and the likelihood that they would consider future VA employment. Methods: A cross-sectional design was used to assess 7,890 nurse responses from the VA's Trainee Satisfaction Survey for academic years 2018–2021. Results: After the pandemic, trainees reported decreased training satisfaction (95.06% vs. 93.46%; P =.0028). Willingness to consider future VA employment was unchanged. Patient case mix, the onboarding process, and challenges with other staff were the most common reasons for dissatisfaction. Conclusion: Nurse trainees expressed a small but statistically significant degree of dissatisfaction with their clinical learning environment during this study period but their willingness to seek employment with the VA remained high.