Hospital has 50% Retention of New Nurses???

sunnycalifRN · Nov 19, 2009

Well, 50% retention is nothing to brag about. Have they implemented a new grad retention program? Do they even care? You might want to do a little research to find out why the 50% left.

However, given the current job market, if you have no other offers . . .

jjjoy, LPN · Nov 19, 2009

For many, the key to making a successful transition is the support of the unit they work on.

Have you had the chance to spend a little time on the unit you'd be working on? To meet some of the nurses you'd be working with? What vibes did you get from the nurse manager? What's the turnover like on that specific unit? Has that floor had any new grads recently? Are there possibly any fairly new nurses there you could talk to about what their experience has been?

As another noted, though, any job offer may be hard to come by depending on where you are applying. In that case, it might be worth it to give it a go even if you ended up disliking the unit/hospital. It would give you great experience and personal insight to apply to the next job hunt. And it might even turn out that it's a good unit for you!

Best wishes!

military spouse · Nov 19, 2009

For many, the key to making a successful transition is the support of the unit they work on.
Have you had the chance to spend a little time on the unit you'd be working on? To meet some of the nurses you'd be working with? What vibes did you get from the nurse manager? What's the turnover like on that specific unit? Has that floor had any new grads recently? Are there possibly any fairly new nurses there you could talk to about what their experience has been?
As another noted, though, any job offer may be hard to come by depending on where you are applying. In that case, it might be worth it to give it a go even if you ended up disliking the unit/hospital. It would give you great experience and personal insight to apply to the next job hunt. And it might even turn out that it's a good unit for you!
Best wishes!

That sounds like good advice.

llg, PhD, RN · Nov 19, 2009

Also ... how are you (and they) defining "stay"? Stay for more than 6 months? Stay for more than 1 year? 2 years? 5 years?

It's very common for new grads to leave their first job within 2 or 3 years even if they have a very positive experience at that job. They leave because they decide to go to graduate school ... or get married to someone who lives in another geographic area ... or seek employment in a more specialized setting ... etc. . It just reflects their stage of life. I live in a military community and a lot of nurses leave jobs because their husbands/boyfriends get transferred. That doesn't mean there is anything wrong with their original hospital of employment

So, as others have said ... you'll need to do some more investigation to find out WHY and WHEN people leave before you can make any informed decisions.

classicdame, MSN, EdD · Nov 19, 2009

Research shows that only about 50% of new grads remain at their first employment for more than 2 years - a big percentage leave the first year. My opinion is that once they see how hard nursing really is, they believe the grass may be greener somewhere else. Isn't of course, but you don't know till you try.

mamamerlee, LPN · Nov 19, 2009

This is an unusual bit of info. Did the interviewer tell you that, or someone else? Just curious....!

carriebarton59 · Nov 20, 2009

A nurse manager on one of the units told me that. She said they train lots of people but that 50% of them end up leaving!