Perceptions of acute care nurse residencies: Perspectives from one state

To describe how new nurses transition into practice in acute care settings.

The Institute of Medicine (2010) landmark report, Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health recommends implementing nurse residency programs. However, not all organizations in the state have offered them. Evaluation of the effectiveness of them has been weak.

A qualitative study using content analysis was conducted. Six focus groups were held 19 educators, 21 nurse residents and 10 chief nursing officers. Co-investigators reviewed the data separately and then met to analyse common categories to gain consensus.

Five major categories were identified: pre-residency, program structure, preceptor, resident support and evaluation with additional sub-categories. Although the participants agreed that a residency program was important, the results showed an incongruence between what was needed and what was provided.

An adequate supply of nurses for the future in health care systems is needed. Addressing transition to practice models can be one strategy that assists with retention of the new graduate.

Nurse leaders need to evaluate the effectiveness of their current nurse residency programs. Standardizing curricula and data collection can improve measurement of outcomes.