The transition to practice of Direct Entry Clinical Nurse Leader graduates

• Smooth transition to practice is critical to decrease costs and retain new nurses.
• The majority of nursing students are Millennials.
• Millennials have unique learning characteristics.
• Direct Entry Clinical Nurse Leader students transition more smoothly than traditional graduates.
• Direct Entry Clinical Nurse Leader graduates are trained for leadership roles.

This study looks at Direct Entry Clinical Nurse Leader graduates and how their transition to practice experiences develops over time as well as factors influencing their transition. Graduates were surveyed at graduation, three, six and 12 months. Seventeen participated; eight completed all surveys. Most were from the Millennial generation. The survey consisted of two parts: school satisfaction and the Casey-Fink Graduate Nurse Experience Scale. The results showed the Casey-Fink total score at 12 months was 0.75 points higher than at three months; suggesting a positive transition. The highest score occurred at six months which conversely had the lowest levels of satisfaction with both educational experience and intent to stay in their current role. Despite having 850 precepted/mentored clinical hours, 57.1% of these graduates stated they felt unprepared for the reality of nursing after 12 months. Regardless of feeling unprepared, the results suggest these students displayed a positive transition to practice. At 12 months, 88.2% were still with their first employers which contrasted the results of Casey-Fink and other studies of Millennial gradate nurses, which showed higher actual and intent to leave results. This study suggests that Direct Entry Clinical Nurse Leader students do indeed transition to practice more positively than traditional nursing graduates.