Mentoring partnerships as the wave of the future for new graduates.

Vacancy rates for registered nurses in the health care arena currently average 14 percent nationwide and are predicted to rise to 20 percent by 2010. The turnover of newly hired nurse graduates is of particular concern, as many leave their positions within the first year of employment. This article reports on an innovative course made available to new graduates employed at a hospital that is part of a large heath care system. A university faculty member was paid by the agency to provide one-on-one support for new graduates during their first five weeks of employment. Retention was 100 percent after the first year of the program and remained at that rate after the second year of employment.