The untapped potential of graduate nurses and midwives

Overview

Initiative type

Education and Training

Status

Deliver

Published

21 August 2019

Summary

Insight stands for “new eyes, enhanced vision”. Metro south values a graduate’s perspective on how we, as an organisation can improve our care delivery and experience. We recognise that our graduates were an untapped potential when it came to innovation and were eager to provide them with a platform to showcase their visions. The insight program is an initiative, establish at Logan Bayside health network, so that all Metro South graduates get to participate in a quality initiative during their first year of practice.

The program was selected for a poster presentation at the Pathway to excellence conference at Florida in April 2019 where it has had strong interest by hospitals in both Florida and Texas. Elsevier has recently been in contact to see how they can collaborate with the insight program. The Insight program commenced in 2017 and is currently in it's 3rd iteration.

The project has successfully navigated healthcare system challenges to deliver change, improvement and innovation in the health service and has presented at the Clinical Excellence Queensland Showcase 2019.

Key dates

Jun 2017

Implementation sites

Metro South Hospital and Health Service

Partnerships

Griffith University

Aim

The aim of the insight program is to provide graduate nurses and midwives with the opportunity to implement a quality initiative that has been self-identified as a result of an experience in their graduate year.

Benefits

Promotes the development of leadership skills, peer mentoring, attainment of collegial multidisciplinary relationships, project work and a deeper understanding of organisational initiatives and governance.

Background

Each year the graduates continue to raise the bar promoting initiatives that not only align with the values of the hospital and the profession but revolutionise the way we go about our business. The insight program provides graduates with the opportunity not only to initiate, implement and evaluate a quality initiative projects but to also gain a deeper understanding of organisational initiatives, participate in shared decision making and have a voice within the organisation.

Solutions implemented

  • The Insight program connects with Graduates in their first year of practice. It supports them to implement a quality initiative
  • that has been self-identified and a result of an experience in their graduate year.
  • Initiatives can be completed by an individual or in groups. Mentoring and guidance is provided throughout the quality
  • initiative process during study days and scheduled drop in sessions. The Graduates present their quality initiatives and
  • findings to an audience of their peers and leaders at one of a number final study days, via a three-minute ‘elevator pitch’.
  • Time is allocated at the end of the presentations for face to face engagement and collaboration. Audience members and
  • graduates are invited to vote for the initiative that they would like to see implemented in their unit. Each winner of the final
  • study day is then required to present at graduation where an overall winner is established.
  • The Insight program has been embedded into a graduate program consisting of four paid study days that are designed to
  • unleash the potential of our future leaders and enhance organizational engagement.

Evaluation and results

Quantitative results

To date over 50 graduate driven quality initiatives have been implemented across Logan Bayside using the insight program.

98.6 per cent of participants believe that insight empowers graduates to question work practices.

95.2 per cent of participants believe that insight empowers graduates to implement change.

95.2 per cent of participants believe that insight provided opportunities for graduates to engage with key stakeholders and multidisciplinary teams.

97.2 per cent of participants agreed that insight enhanced a graduates understanding of organisational initiatives.

95.7 per cent agreed that insight enhanced a graduates leadership skills.

89 per cent of participants agreed that the insight program enhanced a graduates feeling of worth in the organisation.

Qualitative results

“I have been struck with admiration for our team through witnessing these initiatives. “Insight” gives our fresh nurses opportunities to develop professionally whilst also changing our practice. How empowering is it that as an organization we value every nurse and are willing to embrace and listen to our junior team as equals who can teach us. I can’t think of a better way for them to see the difference that they make in our hospital” ~ 2018 Nursing Unit Manager

“ I really liked the feeling of knowing I have the ability to make a change” ~ 2018 Graduate Nurse

“Learning how to conduct a quality initiative was incredible. I felt a sense of purpose in helping deliver and develop our insight quality initiative” ~ 2017 Graduate Nurse

“An amazing program that improved my learning, developed my research skills, forced me to network and improved my job satisfaction” ~ 2018 Graduate Nurse

Lessons learnt

As the insight program connects with graduates the organisation identified that due to the successful outcomes of the program there was a significant risk that it may not be sustainable and engagement needed to continue post the graduate year. In 2019 Insight mentors have been established to ensure that capacity and capability has been built into the program so that innovation and the insight program is sustainable and provides a pathway were staff can continue to be engaged in quality initiatives post their graduate year.

References

  1. Halsey, C.S. (2016, January 21). How do you solve a problem like millennials? Retrieved from: https://www.reflectionsonnursingleadership.org/features/more-features/Vol42_1_how-do-you-solve-a-problem-like-millennials.
  2. Gregory, J. (2017, October 2). Millennials will dominate nursing profession by 2020. Health Exec. Retrieved from: https://www.healthexec.com/topics/care-delivery/millennials-will-dominate-nursing-profession-2020.
  3. American Nurse Credentialing Centre (ANCC). (2012). Pathway to Excellence Application Manual. ANCC.
  4. Healthcare Foundation (2012). Evidence scan: Quality improvement training for healthcare professionals. The Health Foundation
  5. Walton, M.M., & Elliott, S.L. (2006). Improving safety and quality: how can education help? Medical Journal of Australia, 184(10), S60 – S64.Boonyasai, R.T., Windish, D.M., Chakraborti, C., Feldman, L.S., Rubin, H.R., Bass, E.B. (2007). Effectiveness of teaching quality improvement to clinicians. Journal of American Medical Association, 298(9), 1023 – 1037.

Key contact

Helen Maney

Nurse Educator - Organisational learning Programs

Metro South Hospital and Health Service

Email:  helen.maney@health.qld.gov.au

Last updated: April 2025

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