The challenge

Just as new nurse graduates can face a daunting transition to practice, so too do new nurse managers face a challenging transition from frontline practice to leadership. This transition to practice as a nurse manager requires training and support equal to the unique challenges of being a leader within health care: running a clinical budget of millions of dollars per annum, overseeing a span of control that can be well over 100 FTEs, and maintaining 24/7 accountability for staff performance and engagement.

The organisation

Atrium Health is a 45-hospital health system headquartered in North Carolina, with roughly 65,000 employees. It inaugurated its New Nurse Manager Fellowship program in July 2018.

The approach

Use a residency-style training program to supplement the on-the-job experiences of new nurse managers. Blended learning, both experiential and classroom, is designed to anticipate and reflect annual management processes (ex. budget season).

The results

In its first year of operation, the Fellowship has received a very positive response from new nurse managers who appreciated the timely repetition and application of knowledge relevant to their new roles. Additionally, nurses appreciated the communal-learning environment that the Fellowship created, allowing new nurse managers to create a cohort of peers across various units.