Top 10 Registered Nurse First Assistant (RNFA) Programs

Colorado's National Institute of First Assisting (NIFA) is the nation’s most extensive RN first assistant training program for RNs and nurse practitioners (NPs) in surgery.  

This program offers three-course options depending on the depth of training each student desires:

1. Online program (without workshops)
2. Online RNFA program with a 3-Day SutureStar workshop
3. Online RNFA program with a 5-Day SutureStar workshop

The NIFA program takes about 1.5 years to complete. However, many students can complete the coursework more quickly. 

The UCLA Extension RN First Assistant program is a 6-day course for RNs and APRNs. This program comprises 52 hours of lecture and laboratory, plus a required 120-hour independent preceptorship. 

Educators for the program include practicing surgeons, clinical professionals, and perioperative nurse specialists who aim to provide students with essential RNFA knowledge and technical skills. 

This program emphasizes thorough education of principles of complex skills such as suturing, scrubbing, retracting, draping,  exposing, clamping, and ligating.

The best RNFA programs accommodate the needs of the nursing workforce. UABM offers RNFA  courses in a distance-accessible format that combines online classes with on-campus intensives. This hybrid program allows students to participate in hands-on laboratory and simulation experiences to learn essential RNFA skill sets.

This RNFA program in Panama City, Florida, prepares RNs to assist the surgeon during surgery.  It is the only RNFA program in Florida and meets all ARON and NASC requirements for its core curriculum.

The program consists of 9 college credits (3 classes). Upon successful completion of all courses with a C or better, students earn an advanced technical certificate (ATC). CNOR certified or CNOR eligible students can submit their CNOR certification for external credit for the first class.

The University of Rochester offers a six-week intensive course with weekly online sessions. The course also encompasses online learning activities, active discussion boards, and other resources and activities.

This course also includes an in-person simulation and lab day where students work in small groups to learn:

• Instrumentation identification and usage
• Suture skills
• Scrubbing, gloving, and gowning
• Robotic surgery simulation
• Laparoscopic simulation

Students are required to complete a 200-hour clinical internship with a board-certified preceptor. Fifty hours of this internship can be pre- or post-operative. The remainder must be intraoperative.

This course is for students who already hold a degree in nursing. 

The RNFA course requirements in this program include completion of three classes, including:

• Surgical Techniques - Online, but includes a one-week on-campus immersion
• Advanced Perioperative Nursing 1 - Online, taken during the spring semester
• Advanced Perioperative Nursing 2 - 180-hour practicum completed in the fall, spring, or summer semesters

Students must also complete one week (40 hours) of on-campus simulation workshops offered during the Fall term. In addition, students must have 180 clinical hours of perioperative preceptorship with a board-certified surgeon.

The program, located in Edgewood, KY, consists of:

1. A didactic online course
2. A three-day intensive face-to-face experience
3. A 130-hour clinical internship

The three-day course combines classroom instruction, emphasizing surgical anatomy and procedures, with laboratory experience specific to the role of the RNFA - tissue handling, providing exposure, suturing techniques, and instrument handling. 

The clinical internship requires 130 hours of direct intraoperative care under the supervision of a surgeon preceptor. 

Delaware County Community College offers a six-credit RNFA certificate program for perioperative registered nurses. 

This hybrid long-distance learning program includes a five-day session at the College's Marple Campus. The faculty includes board-certified surgeons and master' s-prepared certified nurses with experience in perioperative nursing and first-aid assistance.