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Updated: Oct 29, 2025
Assessment and Evaluation of the High Risk Neonate: The NICU Network Neurobehavioral Scale
Published on: August 25, 2014
Transition experiences of newly qualified registered graduate nurses employed in a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit
Renee McKenzie1, Susan Miller2, Vicki Cope3
1Discipline of Nursing, College of Science, Health, Engineering and Education, Murdoch University, Western Australia, Australia.
Objective:
To explore the experiences of newly qualified registered graduate nurses' clinical and professional learning experiences, during their first six-months of post registration employment within a graduate nurse transition program in a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU).
Method:
Narrative inquiry with thematic analysis was used to explore the newly qualified registered graduate nurses' accounts via semi-structured interviews, conducted between January 2018 - January 2019, of their clinical and professional learning during their employment in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit.
Setting:
In total, eight newly qualified registered graduate nurses employed at two Western Australian Hospitals sites were recruited.
Findings:
Themes identified included: feeling unprepared; experiences of horizontal violence; the need for a supportive structural environment and seeking feedback. Participants reported overwhelming feelings of stress, emotional exhaustion, concerns for patient safety and for some, fear of early career burnout.
Conclusion:
In this study, newly qualified registered graduate nurses were clinically underprepared for entering a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit with all participants reporting high levels of psychosocial distress. This was further compounded by a lack of structured support, horizontal violence, and inadequate or no regular feedback from preceptors, resulting from a negative workplace culture and poor educator behaviours. Recommendations for improving the experiences of newly qualified registered graduate nurses employed in the Neonatal Intensive Care are discussed.
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