An innovative residency program at All Children’s Hospital not only improves nurses’ knowledge of pediatric care but also helps to retain them as employees, according to Michelle Cook, coordinator of the yearlong training program.

Begun in 2009 to boost newly minted nurses’ skills and support their transition to practice, the program enrolls new groups two or three times each year. The nurse residents work with a preceptor on their unit, complete 10 weeks of classes and simulation training, and continue with monthly classes, clinical debriefings and support sessions. Each resident also works with a mentor.

Cook says that nurse residents’ satisfaction with training topics, such as communication, prioritization, safety, and time and task management, has increased from 80 to 100 percent during the past two years. At the same time, the retention rate at 18 months has risen from 89 to 94 percent. So far, 185 residents have been hired into the program.

“There is nothing sweeter than watching a new graduate nurse successfully complete orientation and become an integral part of our team,” Cook says.

In addition to attracting B.S.N. graduates from around the country, employees who work as patient care technicians at All Children’s while completing their B.S.N. degrees can also apply to the program.