Mentoring novice APRNs in health care organizations in the central United States

Mentoring is imperative to successful nursing practice, professional development, and transfer of discipline-specific knowledge. Mentoring is an effective approach to assist Advanced Practice Registered Nurses (APRNs) to transition professionally from novice to expert. The findings of this study research filled a gap in existing literature involving processes and procedures used by APRNs to mentor newly employed APRNs in health care organizations in the Central United States. The social significance of the study includes potential development of a program framework to train, retain, and enhance the transition of APRNs from novice to expert. A purposeful sample of 10 APRNs from the largest community health center in Kansas and members of a statewide APRN organization were selected to participate in semi-structured interviews. Data collection entailed the use of a reflective journal, individual audio-taped face- to-face interviews, and review of organizational policies. Pen and paper as well as a computer-assisted qualitative data analysis software program (NVivo(c)10) were used to code the interviews after transcription. Three major themes emerged: (a) competency, (b) experiences of training, and (c) challenges. Results of this research may be used to improve APRN retention as well as facilitating smooth transition from novice to expert. Formal mentoring programs could address issues of competency raised in this research as well as retention. Participants made multiple suggestions to develop successful mentoring programs. While additional research on mentoring should be conducted, the results of this study may be applied to hiring, training, and professional development of novice APRNs.