Veterans Health Administration mentoring model for new nurse executives

Area of Science:

• Healthcare Leadership
• Nursing Administration
• Professional Development

Background:

• The Veterans Health Administration (VHA) faces a significant impending retirement wave among its 154 nurse executives, with 74% eligible.
• Standardized orientation and retention strategies are crucial for maintaining leadership continuity in the VHA nursing service.

Purpose of the Study:

• To implement and evaluate a mentoring program for VHA nurse executives.
• To standardize the orientation process for new nurse executive appointees.
• To enhance retention rates within the nurse executive role.

Main Methods:

• Development and implementation of a nurse executive mentoring program within the VHA Office of Nursing Service.
• Creation of a written resource guide for effective role functioning.
• Inclusion of a leader skills self-assessment tool for leadership style evaluation and team integration.

Main Results:

• The program successfully produced a comprehensive written resource to aid nurse executives.
• A leader skills self-assessment tool was developed to facilitate self-evaluation and integration.
• The mentoring program is designed to support the smooth transition of new appointees into the nurse executive role.

Conclusions:

• The VHA nurse executive mentoring program provides a structured approach to onboarding and development.
• The program aims to mitigate the impact of executive retirements by fostering leadership readiness.
• Standardized resources and self-assessment tools are key components for successful nurse executive integration and retention.