Extended Training Supports Recently-Licensed Nurses; Boosts BWH Retention Rate

The Newly Licensed Nurse Primer Program, part of Nursing Professional Development (NPD), started three years ago. The program, which focuses on “up front” new-nurse education and training, was implemented to increase nurse satisfaction, and improve retention, as the market for skilled and experienced nurses grows more competitive.

Since inception, more than 300 nurses have participated in the Primer Program, and in that time, the hospital has averaged a 94 percent new nurse retention rate at the one-year mark and an 80 percent retention rate at the three-year mark. “The national average retention for newly-licensed nurses is 40 percent at one year, so our retention is very high compared with the national average,” said Martha Griffin, RN, CS, PhD, program coordinator, who added that prior to the Primer Program, BWH had a retention rate of about 50 percent after the second year.

The program requires newly-licensed medical and surgical nurses to go through not only the hospital and nursing orientation, but also the Primer Program for four weeks on specially-identified orientation pods before they go to their own home pods. “Managing integration is the most important piece of the program,” said Griffin.

The Primer Program provides the following orientation structure:
• Two weeks working days alongside a co-assigned nurse and a faculty advisor from NPD on a designated orientation pod
• Two weeks working more independently, but also as a team, on the 3 – 11 p.m. shift
• At the end of the four-week training period, nurses graduate to their home pod to begin working with an identified preceptor

“We have taken our cues from pro-active and successful private industry’s efforts to attract and retain highly-skilled professionals. We focus not only on orientation, but also the socialization and integration of newly-hired nurses. This program provides a vehicle to introduce them to the hospital in a practical sense,” added Griffin.

For information about the Primer Program, call 617-732-7952.