2011 Nursing Annual Report - UNM Hospitals - University of New ...

ANNUAL NURSING REPORT 2011 — PEOPLE
Nurse Residency Program
The Nurse Residency Program provides first year nurses with the tools required to adjust to the high
pressure of working as a hospital nurse. Newly graduated nurses often experience a difficult transition
from nursing school to real world practice. We offer a one-year, post-baccalaureate nurse residency
program and a six-month transition into practice program for new graduate associate degree nurses.
The post-baccalaureate program was created to assist the new graduates’ transition into their first
professional role. The program includes seminars based on a standardized curriculum, evidence-based
practice classes, clinical experiences under the guidance of a preceptor and access to nurse resident
educators who provide support and guidance in role development. Essential elements of the program
include a core curriculum used throughout the residency year.
New nurses who participate in the residency program benefit from the guidance and dedication of their
preceptors, unit-based educators and nurse residency educators throughout their first year. They
participate in structured educational experiences designed to develop competence in clinical practice
and professional growth. The conceptual framework of the program is based on Dreyfus’ model of skill
acquisition. This model provides the underlying conceptual framework for describing the development of
competency in clinical nursing practice as originally outlined by Patricia Benner in From Novice to Expert
and by Benner, Tanner and Chelsa in Expertise in Nursing Practice.
Benner identified five levels of competency in clinical practice: novice, beginner, competent, proficient
and expert. The post baccalaureate graduate nurse enters into practice at the beginner level with
theoretical knowledge but lacks the clinical and situational experience to apply intuition, clinical
judgment, and contextual knowledge of situations to nursing practice and care delivery. Graduate nurse
residents move to the next stage of practice, advanced beginner, when they can demonstrate acceptable
performance and have sufficient experience to begin to detect patterns of patient response.
The graduate nurse moves to competent level as he or she progress through the year. Competent nurses
are those who feel they have mastered the skill and have the ability to cope with the various possibilities
of care delivery. The goals of the program are to assist the new graduate nurse in the progression from
advanced beginner to competent professional nurse, develop effective decisionmaking
skills related to clinical judgment and performance, provide clinical leadership
at the bedside, strengthen commitment to nursing as a professional career choice,
incorporating research-based evidence into practice and formulation of an individual
development plan related to their clinical role.
In October 2010 we applied for accreditation through the Commission of Collegiate
Nursing Education and were granted accreditation in June 2011. We also offer a
transition program for new graduate Associate Degree Nurses. This program is
designed to supplement their competency-based orientation and support the
transition from student to RN. Components of the program include working within
the organizational structures, factors that influence care delivery, tools that support
opportunities to develop a proactive work environment and career advancement.
We strongly encourage associate degree nurses to begin their RN-BSN education after
they complete the first six months of employment. We support their education through
tuition reimbursement and the opportunity to participate in the Career Advancement
Program while attending school.
8
Top to bottom:
Mary Blessing, RN,
Nicole Weimer, RN.
Not pictured:
Donna Winn, RN
and Andrea
de Chadenedes.