Nurse residency program: a 5-year evaluation from the participants' perspective.

The Nurse Residency Program (NRP) at New York University Hospitals Center is predicated on the idea that acute care settings are facing continued challenges in recruiting and retaining nurses in the face of cyclical nursing shortages, increased opportunities in ambulatory and community-based nursing, and an increasingly complex and demanding hospital environment. Baccalaureate education is the required preparation for such a setting; however, a transition for the new graduate is imperative. The authors present the findings of a follow-up survey of completers of the NRP between 1996 and 2001 focusing on the strengths and weaknesses of the program, as well as suggestions for future programming.