Nurse Residency Program - Essay Example

"Nurse Residency Program" is a wonderful example of a paper on care. According to Madjar et al. (1997), and Pearsall (2002) (cited in Malouf & West, 2011), the transition is defined as bridging “two environments or states of being” (p. 429). New graduates going into the nursing workforce tend to feel anxious about fitting into their new roles. There is a sense of alienation and inadequacy that makes new graduates wonder if they would be able to integrate themselves into the flow of the workplace. This anxiety would usually stem from a sense of worry about their performance, which they feel is connected with their ability to “make friends” and become part of the team (Malouf & West, 2011, p. 490). These concerns are regarded as important by these newly graduated nurses. Feelings of inadequacy and isolation lead to a failure to reach their potential as a nurse and can even affect the longevity of their careers in the long run (Malouf & West, 2011).

In the year 2000, the UHC conducted a study that showed that additional training and support would lead to improving job satisfaction, reduced turnover, and better nursing skills which would contribute to patient safety (University HealthSystem Consortium, 2001). From this study, the nurse residency program was created. There are many different kinds of residency programs available in different places. One notable residency program is from the University Health System Consortium (UHC) and the American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN). The UHC/AACN Nurse Residency Program is a one year program built on an evidence-based curriculum which exposes newly graduate nurse to learn and experience work that would allow for a smoother transition to being a professional nurse. This program boasts a retention rate of 94.3% in the newly graduated nurses’ first year of employment, with reports of improved confidence, competence, time management, communication skills, leadership skills, and reduced stress (UHC, 2001).

I believe a program such as this would greatly benefit newly graduate nurses. It allows them to interact with the workplace in a way greater than a student nurse, while still being provided guidance to help them cope with the transition. These sources of guidance or coordinators are an invaluable part of the program as they will be the ones working with the newly graduated nurse, allowing them to benefit from their own experiences in the field to put them up to speed with the acute care environment (UHC, 2001). This program is successful due to its utilization of a curriculum that enhances critical thinking and the usage of outcome data to create highly skilled workers that would enhance patient safety. The foundation of this curriculum is the development and enhancement of the newly graduated nurses’ critical thinking. The activities are geared toward transitioning the resident to becoming a competent, professional nurse. Cases used are based on real, complex clinical situations from the actual participating hospitals, allowing the resident to be a part of actual nursing care under the program. By increasing the residents’ critical thinking skills, this program will be able to produce well-educated nurses who can readily function in the acute care environment (UHC, 2001).

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