Transition to Practice Nurse Residency Program
Supporting new nurse graduates in professional practice
Supporting New Registered Nurses
New England Baptist Hospital (NEBH) is proud to offer a Transition to Practice (TTP) Nurse Residency program in Boston. This innovative program provides a new registered nurse (RN) with a structured, supportive and interactive environment that bridges the gap from the academic setting to the professional practice environment. We’ve designed the Transition to Practice program to support nurses with less than one year of practice experience.
We offer two tracks in our Transition to Practice program:
- Inpatient surgical
- Operating room
During the 12-month program, these and other professionals will give you guidance and support:
- Clinical nursing staff
- Nurse educators
- Nurse leaders
- Program facilitators
The program includes didactic (classroom) and simulated (lab) learning combined with hands-on training in the clinical practice environment. The Transition to Practice curriculum is based on the latest evidence and supports our Journey of Excellence and Magnet Re-Designation. You will benefit from these and other experiences:
- Dedicated classroom instruction
- Hands-on skill training
- Patient simulation activities
- Professional development content
The program also helps you create a supportive social network. A strong social and professional network fosters the following:
- A sense of community
- Lifelong learning and professional development
- Resiliency
- Support
Throughout the program, you are challenged to know, own and practice these and other responsibilities:
- Peer feedback
- Reflection
- Self-direction
- Self-management
We measure the success of the Transition to Practice program by setting and assessing goals in four key areas.
1. Nursing Professional Development
Goal: 90% of the nurse residents present an evidence-based case review during their residency.
New England Baptist Hospital Outcome: 100% completed
2. Practice-Based Knowledge, Skills and Attitudes
Goal: 90% of the nurse residents finish all orientation competencies by the completion of preceptor-led orientation.
New England Baptist Hospital Outcome: 100% completed
3. Casey Fink Readiness to Practice Survey
Goal: At least 90% of nurse residents, using the Casey Fink Readiness to Practice Survey, report an increase in readiness to practice at the completion of preceptor-led orientation.
New England Baptist Hospital Outcome: 100% reported increase
4. Staffing Retention
Goal: 90% year-one retention rate of nurse residents who entered into the program between November 2020 and January 2021.
New England Baptist Hospital Outcome: 89% year-one retention rate
To apply to the program, you must:
- Have graduated from an accredited school of nursing program.
- Have a Massachusetts RN license prior to your employment start date.
- Have less than one year of nursing work experience. If you attended nursing school outside the United States, you must have less than one year of nursing work experience in the United States.
You will be paired with a preceptor on your unit. The preceptor will provide the education, clinical experiences and professional development you need to develop safe, competent and professional nursing care.
In addition, you’ll meet monthly for nine months. During this time, you are engaged in multiple types of activities:
- Critical thinking exercises
- Group problem-solving activities
- Hands-on skill practice
- Simulation
These activities help you develop the communication skills needed as you transition to professional nursing practice. You must successfully complete the comprehensive program.
New Employee Orientation (NEO)
You will attend an eight-hour day of New England Baptist Hospital organizational orientation. New Employee Orientation includes a warm welcome and introduction to “the Baptist Way” and our legendary service. New Employee Orientation provides information on these and other topics:
- Compliance
- Employee health
- Infection prevention and control
- Information technology (IT) security
- Quality and patient safety
- Security and environmental safety
Nursing Orientation
You also will attend four full days of nursing orientation. This consists of instruction in the following areas:
- American Nurses Association (ANA) principles and the Massachusetts RN Practice Act
- Basic arrhythmia I & II
- Citizenship
- Classroom didactic on our department, its culture, vision and values
- Communication
- Electronic medical records (EMRs) and documentation
- Emergent care
- Medication management
- Orthopedic surgery
- Pain management
- Patient education and teach-back
- Patient experience
- Quality, safety and infection prevention
- Respiratory care
- Safe patient handling
- Skin management
- Well-being
- Workplace safety
We offer an additional skills training day for those who would like to participate.
Preceptor-Led, Competency-Based Orientation & Unit-Based Orientation
Preceptorship is at least three months. You receive training in the art and science of teaching and competency validation. Regular meetings with the unit nurse manager, clinical leader and clinical educator occur within the orientation period for these and other issues:
- Address any potential remediation
- Assess learning needs
- Evaluate progress
Professional Development
At month four, we begin a monthly, four-hour classroom session on the following topics:
- Communication and feedback
- Complications of orthopedic surgery
- Critical thinking
- Ethical decision-making, advocacy and essential elements of documentation, including risk mitigation strategies
- Fostering well-being and workplace safety
- Journey of excellence and professional governance
- Professional advancement program and mentorship
- Regulatory readiness, continuous improvement and patient experience
- Time management, delegation and prioritization
Program Completion Requirements
You will graduate from the program after successful completion of the following:
- New Employee Orientation (NEO)
- Nurse case review presentation
- Nursing orientation
- Unit/practice area competency attainment
- Professional development classroom series content