Date of Doctor of Nursing Practice Project Completion

Fall 12-13-2024

Faculty Advisor

Dr. Susan Stafford

Abstract

PURPOSE: The purpose of this scholarly project was to implement a peer mentorship program within an inpatient labor and delivery nurse fellowship program. This program was intended to increase the job satisfaction of experienced nurses transitioning into an inpatient labor and delivery unit.

BACKGROUND: The project was implemented within a large healthcare organization in Houston, Texas, in an established nursing fellowship program in the Labor & Delivery inpatient practice area.

METHODOLOGY: A nursing workplace satisfaction questionnaire was administered to access job satisfaction using the Microsoft Forms platform. This method was chosen as it allowed for easy access, at any time, and would store data in a secure site. Mentees were educated on the use of the tool prior to implementation and cyclically during the project. Changes to the program were employed according to the Plan-Do-Study-Act quality improvement method.

RESULTS: Eight nursing fellows completed the questionnaire pre-implementation and four completed it post-implementation, showing an increase in job satisfaction.

Mentors were surveyed post-implementation on the overall mentorship program, two mentors ranked engagement with mentees “somewhat to quite a bit”, the importance in the relationships with mentees “little to very much" and ranked communication with mentees as- “very much.”

IMPLICATIONS: Mentorship provides nurses with a unique opportunity to enhance the professional development of its newest members and can serve as a model to contribute to a positive work environment while aiding in retaining and easing the transition to practice for nurses new to a specialty area, while advancing the profession.

Keywords

Peer Mentorship, Nurse Fellow, Labor and Delivery

Included in

Nursing Commons

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