A
new grad nurse residency program increases the skill and competence, eases transition from being a student to a graduate nurse, and promotes job satisfaction. This transition offers opportunities for greater professional growth. However, job turnover frequency is a bit high with 30-69% reporting voluntary resignation from their positions within a year of their employment. Subsequently, to battle this attrition challenge
new grad nurse residency programs are designed to help students transition smoothly. State nursing boards, federal government, healthcare establishments, and accrediting bodies support these programs to improve the quality of health care and address the alarming turnover rates.
What is a Nurse Residency Program?
Nurse Residency Program (NRP) is a program aimed at facilitating a nurse graduate transition into clinical practice. Duration of the program is 6 to 12 months and provides an opportunity for graduates to improve their data-driven decision-making and critical-thinking skills. This program is paid by the hospitals where the graduate is employed.
Characteristics of Nurse Residency Programs
The objective of the program is to facilitate graduates’ transition into licensed professionals. With support from the mentors, nurse preceptors, and other staff members, the graduates are guided into clinical practice. Learning opportunities include in-house training and seminars that help improve the competence and confidence among the students for safe patient care. Improvement in skills leads to higher job satisfaction and reduced turnover among the new graduate nurses.
Implications for Nurses Due to Nurse Residency Programs
The
New Grad Nurse Residency Programs minimize the dissatisfaction of nurses and increase retention in future. It strongly supports engagement of capable mentors, facilitators, and preceptors within the program. Opportunities to interact with the other new grad nurses give support and a sense of belongingness that enhances their job satisfaction level. New grad nurses now have greater confidence when communicating with the physicians that leads to recognition and praise, and an increased sense of competence. It emphasizes the importance of educational opportunity to build and strengthen clinical care skills and seamlessly promotes academic progression. A qualified nurse receives better and sooner clinical care opportunities from the hospital upon doctors and nursing staff recommendations.The support requirement for new grad nurses is a global one. Structured programs support both social and clinical needs of the nurses along with professional development and lifelong learning.
How do Nurse Residency Programs work?
The
new grad nurse residency programs are post-graduate hospital-based education programs designed to take the student nurse and mold them into working new graduate nurses. It is a paid, full-time job, with benefits. Programs vary with regard to schedule, but if you are a new grad, you can bet you will be working night shift. You might start off working during the day with classroom and educational seminars, with a few days spent in clinical, but once you are done with that, you will be transferred to nights. Again, every program is different, but this is a basic rundown that involves the new nurses to meet and discuss experiences by using fresh eyes for identifying broken systems and fixing them. By being a part of such a prestigious program new graduates can communicate with other new nurses who are experiencing similar work stages that involve triumphs, failures, and a steep learning curve. Thus, this program offers an opportunity to examine the professional life with a microscope and learn from it. It enables new clinical nurses to understand hospital system, workings behind the scenes, and processes involved. This all without stress of getting back to the patients. It is a chance for the new nurses to start making changes in the institution and get the process running that was not possible before. Hence, the ball is in your court and you need to gear up to win the game.
Additional Read
How to Become a Certified Nurse MidwifeConclusion
Where once, new grad nurse residency programs were few and far between, they are becoming more of the norm. With an increased need for nurses over the coming decade, it is imperative that hospitals continue to train more and more new grad nurses. Although they are not required to enter the workforce, they are highly recommended as they provide the new grad with the training and additional education necessary to succeed.More control over scheduling of the
new grad nurse residency programs along with awareness of increased recognition and praise is necessary. It is important to create more opportunities for new grad nurses to blossom into healthcare professionals. This might help determine a more positive impact on job satisfaction levels. Such efforts help to support, retain grad nurses to promote efficient, high-quality care, and to ensure consequent positive nurse and patient outcomes.
