As a leader in nursing education, Duke University School of Nursing is committed to advancing the care of those who have served our country.
Our pioneering Veterans Healthcare Specialty equips you with the expertise to excel in veteran-centric healthcare. With a curriculum focused on the specific needs of military service members, veterans and their families, this specialty prepares you to address complex health issues while fostering a deep understanding of the unique challenges faced by veterans.
Our Veterans Healthcare Specialty empowers you to make a meaningful impact, whether in the veterans health system or the broader healthcare community. You’ll engage in hands-on learning with clinical hours at Veterans Affairs medical centers, allowing you to apply your knowledge in real-world settings. These valuable experiences prepare you to provide exceptional care for veterans, not just within VA nursing but across a wide range of other healthcare environments.
While ideal for advanced practice nursing majors and working NPs, our Veterans Healthcare Specialty courses are also open to other healthcare and nursing majors with MSN Program Office approval.
Veterans Healthcare Specialty Highlights
Our Veterans Healthcare Specialty is uniquely crafted to provide an in-depth understanding of the healthcare challenges faced by veterans and their families. Whether you’re a current Duke student or a practicing nurse, you’ll gain practical skills and specialized knowledge essential for delivering high-quality, veteran-centric care:
Faculty with extensive veteran nursing experience:
Veterans Healthcare program is led by faculty who bring their deep knowledge and expertise from their experience within the VA healthcare system. Some are veterans themselves or have dedicated their careers to caring for veterans. This unique perspective enriches the learning experience and provides students with insights into the complexities of veterans healthcare.
Hands-on learning in veteran-centric settings:
The specialty includes 168 clinical hours in the veterans health system. These hands-on experiences at VA medical centers allow you to apply theoretical knowledge in real-world veteran nursing settings, preparing you to deliver high-quality care to veterans and their families. The clinical course may be waived for clinicians with prior experience in veterans healthcare, potentially shortening the program to two semesters.
Focused curriculum on veteran health needs:
Courses are designed to address the specific physical and mental health needs of veterans, a population that often requires specialized care. The three-course curriculum is carefully crafted to ensure you’re well-prepared to handle the unique challenges of providing exceptional care to veterans and their families.
Open to aspiring and current professionals:
The Veterans Healthcare Specialty is available to nursing students and professionals who meet program requirements, have related experience and/or receive prior approval from Duke’s MSN Program Office. This flexibility ensures that a broad range of providers gain the skills to advance veterans healthcare.
Veterans Healthcare Specialty Courses
The Veterans Healthcare Specialty offers a focused curriculum that covers essential aspects of veteran healthcare while integrating hands-on experience to reinforce learning. Through these courses, you’ll gain specialized knowledge vital for addressing the unique healthcare needs of veterans and their families in VA nursing and other settings.
For the Veterans Healthcare certificate, you’ll complete three essential courses, each designed to build your expertise in veteran-centric care:
- NUR 771: Delivering Evidence-Based Mental Healthcare to Vulnerable and Underserved Populations (Spring Only): This course focuses on the mental health challenges faced by vulnerable and underserved groups, including veterans. You’ll learn to assess community mental health needs, identify barriers to care and apply evidence-based strategies to improve veterans healthcare outcomes.
- NUR 806: Foundations in Veterans Healthcare (Summer Only): This Veterans Healthcare Specialty course provides an in-depth understanding of the military culture, common health issues related to military service, and the social and cultural factors that influence the care of veterans and their families.
- NUR 807: Advanced Practice Nursing – Veterans Healthcare Specialty Synthesis (Fall Only): In this capstone course, you’ll apply the knowledge from previous courses in real-world veteran nursing settings, working alongside VA healthcare professionals to deliver comprehensive care to veterans.
Learn More About the Veterans Healthcare Specialty
Enrollment Options
The Veterans Healthcare Specialty is available to Duke University School of Nursing students and nurse practitioners with a Master of Science in Nursing degree or higher from a regionally accredited institution. Duke students interested in adding this specialty to their academic plan must complete the Add a Specialty Form and submit it to the MSN Program Office via email at least one semester before starting their first clinical rotation.
For those enrolled in Duke’s MSN or DNP programs, the Veterans Healthcare Specialty can be integrated into their degree plan and typically does not add additional time to their course of study. Completing this specialty program as a standalone certificate typically takes three semesters. However, if you have relevant experience in a VA nursing setting or in caring for veterans, you may apply to waive the clinical rotation, potentially reducing the program duration to two semesters.
Nurse practitioners from other accredited institutions interested in earning a certificate in this specialty should follow the instructions for the specialty certificate application process. Acceptance and enrollment decisions regarding the Veterans Healthcare Specialty are made on a space-available basis.
Specialty Director
Michael Zychowicz
DNP, ANP, ONP, FAAN, FAANP, FNAON
Dr. Zychowicz is a Clinical Professor of Nursing. Since 2009, he has held several leadership positions within the school. Dr. Zychowicz is currently Co-Director for the Duke-Durham VA post-graduate primary care NP residency. He also leads the graduate level Veterans Healthcare Specialty and the Orthopedic NP Specialty Program.
Learn more about Michael Zychowicz: Scholars@Duke
Q&A With Lead Faculty Michael Zychowicz
I am passionate about ensuring that all individuals and populations receive healthcare based on the highest standards. Military service members and veterans sacrifice and deserve specialized care to meet their unique healthcare needs.
The Veterans Health Specialty is unique in that no other specialty is dedicated to explicitly highlighting the additional healthcare needs of veterans and service members. Students can receive specialized didactic and clinical training to equip them better to meet those needs and improve health outcomes for service members and veterans.
All who are interested in learning about and advancing healthcare delivery for the veteran population.
Any nurse passionate about excellence in healthcare, compassion for service members and veterans, and a commitment to supporting equitable health outcomes.
This specialty can enhance a nurse’s career because they will have unique knowledge and skills that qualify them to care for veterans and service members beyond foundational healthcare skills. It allows them to expand access to care for service members and families beyond the veterans health system, making them more attractive/marketable to all healthcare organizations.