Development of a new graduate public health nurse residency program using the core competencies of public health nursing

AbstractBackgroundDue to the continued shortage of public health nurses, some local public health agencies have begun hiring new graduate baccalaureate nurses into the public health nurse role. These new graduates require an increased level of support for transition to practice.AimsThe goal of this project was creation of a transition to practice program designed specifically to meet the needs of new graduates hired in public health settings.MethodsThe core competencies of public health nursing were used as a framework to develop this residency program. A group of public health staff, supervisors, and faculty met monthly for three years to develop this program. Key features include general orientation, preceptors, looping experiences, case studies and peer support.ResultsThe program is available as a web resource beginning spring 2018. In order to evaluate this program, data on job satisfaction, employee retention and level of competence in the core competencies of public health will occur using instruments administered prior to beginning and immediately following completion of the new graduate residency.DiscussionThe components of the program mirror best practices for new graduate