Title : Mentoring of the new graduate nurse: Can it aid in retention?
Abstract:
Retention of nurses in the hospital setting is a pervasive issue. Currently there appears to be even greater issues retaining new graduate nurses in the first year to two years off of orientation. This lack of retention so soon after becoming a functional member of the healthcare team is a multifaceted issue. Not only does it create issues with staffing and therefore potential unsafe patient ratios, it also can be a large financial strain due to the resources it takes to orient a new graduate nurse. This lack of retention can also cause staff burnout of those who are repetitively training new graduate nurse after new graduate nurse in order to obtain a fully staffed and safe unit. In order to combat this issue, strategies must be implemented to increase retention of new graduate nurses. One strategy is the implementation of unit-based mentoring programs. Implementation of mentoring programs focused on the new graduate nurse have been shown to increase staff retention and job satisfaction, both of the new graduate nurse and of the mentors. From the data reviewed in the literature, it seemed prudent to develop and implement a new graduate mentoring program in order to increase nurse retention, improve the socialization of new graduate nurses, and increase job satisfaction among nurses. Therefore, a unit-based mentoring program was developed and implemented on a Pediatric Cardiac Intensive Care Unit. This mentoring program currently supports all new graduate nurses that are hired, in hopes to aid in their retention and integration. The retention and integration developed through the mentoring program creates both stronger nurses and safer patient care.
Audience Take Away:
- Learners will leave the presentation with an understanding of the purpose and benefits of mentoring the new graduate nurse.
- Learners will be exposed to how to create and implement a unit-based mentoring program.
- Learners will be provided retention data from past mentoring cohorts.
- Learners will be able to model unit-based mentoring programs off of current PCICU program.
