There is global recognition that mental health nursing can be stressful and have detrimental effects on nurses\' well-being and retention. With substantial nursing shortages, there is an urgent need to attract and retain nurses to sustain this workforce and provide effective mental healthcare. Mental health transition programs provide vital recruitment pathways and support novice registered nurses, enrolled nurses and experienced registered generalist nurses moving into this field. There is little evidence, however, on the well-being, resilience, and retention of nurses transitioning into mental health. The primary aims for this cross-sectional study were to describe demographic characteristics, perceived stress, well-being, resilience, mental illness stigma attitudes, work satisfaction, and turnover intention of four nurse cohorts entering mental health transition programs: generalist registered nurses, graduate and post-graduate registered nurses, and enrolled nurses; to explore relationships between these variables; and explore differences between these four nurse cohorts. Findings (n = 87) included overall moderate perceived stress, moderate well-being and resilience, high work satisfaction, low stigma, and low turnover intention. Higher turnover intention was associated with lower age and work satisfaction, and higher perceived stress. Generalist RNs had significantly higher stress and stigmatizing attitudes than Enrolled Nurses. Secondary analysis of well-being scores identified 14 nurses with scores indicating depression, with significantly lower resilience and work satisfaction, and significantly higher stress than the rest of the sample. To help prevent attrition, it is vital that mental health services provide tailored well-being initiatives during transition and intervene early to provide support for nurses with mental distress.

OBJECTIVE: To examine the relationships between self-efficacy, uncertainty and anxiety among nursing graduates waiting for a mandatory nursing licensing test that was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
METHODS: A total of 352 graduates of nursing education programs participated in this mixed-methods study. The data were collected using an online questionnaire in June 2020.
RESULTS: The participants demonstrated high uncertainty and anxiety and low self-efficacy towards the ability to succeed in the licensing exam. Graduates, who started working, reported lower uncertainty. Self-efficacy, uncertainty, gender and family status contributed significantly to the explanation of 24% of the variance of the anxiety. The qualitative analysis revealed three themes: (a) emotional distress, cognitive challenge and social implications, (b) consequences for significant others and (c) strengthening of professional values and norms.
CONCLUSIONS: A significant crisis like a pandemic is accompanied by acute cognitive burden and stressful emotional experiences and creates an unconventional situation that requires unusual solutions. Granting a temporary permit for employment as a nurse following the postponement of a licensing test contributed to the ability of nursing graduates to cope with the situation. Policies to deal with similar situations in the future emergencies should be developed and implemented.

Introduction: The period of transition from nursing student to professional nurse is demanding. Most often the challenges among the novice nurses are attributed to the number of patients with complex illness and co-morbidities, inaccessible mentors, performance anxiety, communication difficulties, and blame/complaint culture. Transitional challenges could result in work dissatisfaction forcing novice nursing graduates to quit their jobs that result in a high turnover rate. The study aimed to identify the transitional challenges among new nursing graduates and the role of preceptor in various transitional challenges. Methods: The study adopted descriptive correlational design. The data were collected from 314 participants working in six different tertiary level public hospitals situated in six states of India. Casey-Fink graduate nurse experience survey-revised was used to collect the data and methods of this study were in line with the guidelines of Strengthening the Reporting of Observational studies in Epidemiology (STROBE). Descriptive and Inferential statistics were calculated using SPSS software version 16. Results: The study found that new nursing graduates are uncomfortable in performing numerous procedures independently and in accordance with them increased support would help them feel more supported or integrated into the unit. The study also found positive relationship between preceptor support and organizing and prioritizing, communication/leadership, professional satisfaction, and job satisfaction. Conclusion: New nursing graduates experience various challenges during their transition period in the areas of role expectation, confidence, workload, orientation, and fears. The preceptors and the nursing administrators needs to bring forth significant strategies to address these challenges.

BACKGROUND: Transitioning from education to practice is stressful for new nurses and those entering new roles and can lead to workforce attrition and burnout. This dynamic is likely complicated when graduates are transitioning to practice during a pandemic.
OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to describe recent nurse graduates\' perceptions of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on their transition from education to practice.
METHODS: We conducted an online survey of BSN, RN-BSN, and DNP students who graduated between December 2019 and April 2020 (n = 82), including demographics, employment information, and free-response questions about the impact of the pandemic on their transition experiences, post-graduation plans, and perceptions of nursing. We used a qualitative descriptive approach to content analysis to synthesize and summarize the data.
RESULTS: Participants expressed three overarching concerns: 1) altered plans such as difficulty finding employment; 2) logistical, system-related stressors including licensing delays and chaotic onboarding; and 3) feeling pride in profession despite perceiving ambivalence in public discourse.
CONCLUSIONS: COVID-19 exacerbated challenges often experienced by new graduates. Common stressors, intensified during the pandemic, could exert long-term effects on the workforce. Educators and healthcare organizations must work to ensure nursing graduates receive the necessary support for a successful transition.

BACKGROUND: The long-standing underachievement in the Indonesian national nursing competency examination (NNCE) has been a common concern, and there is limited information on the preparation program for this licensure examination.
OBJECTIVE: To develop an NNCE preparation program model and evaluate its effectiveness in increasing competency among nursing graduates.
METHODS: A quasi-experimental study using participatory action research (PAR).
METHODS: Faculty of nursing of a full-boarding private university in Indonesia.
METHODS: The participants were selected with the purposive sampling method. The 23 course coordinators and clinical instructors met the inclusion criteria of having worked for at least five years as classroom teachers and at least one year as course coordinators or clinical instructors. The 85 nursing graduates met the inclusion criteria of having finished the internship program and planned to take the NNCE.
METHODS: The model was developed using PAR and the evaluation done to measure the increase in the competency level and the level of perceived readiness and satisfaction of both the participant educators and nursing graduates.
RESULTS: The proposed model consists of core components and essential concepts. The core components are a holistic preparation process, active involvement and participation, knowledge and skill specialty, sharp examination-taking and skills, motivation to join the program and self-confidence to pass the NNCE, and time commitment for the preparation program. The essential concepts consist of awareness and trust, desire to change, sense of responsibility, mutual collaboration, equipped and empowered to act, definite direction and goals, mentoring. The model\'s evaluation indicated a significant increase in competency level, overall perceived readiness for the national nursing competency examination, and degree of satisfaction with the preparation program.
CONCLUSIONS: The implementation of the preparation model effectively increased the nursing graduates\' competency level, and both the participating educators and nursing graduates were satisfied with its effectiveness.

OBJECTIVE: To develop a competency assessment instrument for nurses who have completed an outcome-based educational program based on national standards and to assess the content-, construct-, and criterion-related validity of that instrument.
METHODS: In the development stage, the competencies of nurses with 1-3 years\' clinical experience after the completion of nursing education and training programs, based on national standards, were identified. A systematic literature review was conducted to derive the competencies in addition to the 12 national standard competencies. In the evaluation stage, the content-, construct-, and criterion-related validity of the developed tool were verified. For verification of the content validity at each stage, the participants were 10 nurse managers of general hospitals and 10 nurse professors. A factor analysis was conducted to assess the construct validity and the Cronbach\'s alpha coefficients and item-total correlation were used to assess the reliability of the developed scale. For the factor analysis, the participants were 141 nurses with 1-3 years\' clinical experience who were recruited from four general hospitals. In order to evaluate the construct- and criterion-related validity, the correlations between a nursing performance measurement scale, a self-leadership tool, and the developed scale were examined.
RESULTS: A competency assessment instrument, consisting of 19 items on a 4-point scale, was developed and validated for assessing the competencies among nurses with 1-3 years\' experience.
CONCLUSIONS: Nursing research, policy awareness, and leadership competencies were required by the Korean Accreditation Board of Nursing Education for nursing college graduates, but were removed due to poor content validity, indicating a need for nursing professionals to bridge the gap between educational standards in nursing colleges and clinical settings.

BACKGROUND: Despite the fact that public and private nursing schools have contributed significantly to the Thai health system, it is not clear whether and to what extent there was difference in job preferences between types of training institutions. This study aimed to examine attitudes towards rural practice, intention to work in public service after graduation, and factors affecting workplace selection among nursing students in both public and private institutions.
METHODS: A descriptive comparative cross-sectional survey was conducted among 3349 students from 36 nursing schools (26 public and 10 private) during February-March 2012, using a questionnaire to assess the association between training institution characteristics and students\' attitudes, job choices, and intention to work in the public sector upon graduation. Comparisons between school types were done using ANOVA, and Bonferroni-adjusted multiple comparisons tests. Principal component analysis (PCA) was used to construct a composite rural attitude index (14 questions). Cronbach\'s alpha was used to examine the internal consistency of the scales, and ANOVA was then used to determine the differences. These relationships were further investigated through multiple regression.
RESULTS: A higher proportion of public nursing students (86.4% from the Ministry of Public Health and 74.1% from the Ministry of Education) preferred working in the public sector, compared to 32.4% of students from the private sector (p = <0.001). Rural upbringing and entering a nursing education program by local recruitment were positively associated with rural attitude. Students who were trained in public nursing schools were less motivated by financial incentive regarding workplace choices relative to students trained by private institutions.
CONCLUSIONS: To increase nursing workforce in the public sector, the following policy options should be promoted: 1) recruiting more students with a rural upbringing, 2) nurturing good attitudes towards working in rural areas through appropriate training at schools, 3) providing government scholarships for private students in exchange for compulsory work in rural areas, and 4) providing a non-financial incentive package (e.g. increased social benefits) in addition to financial incentives for subsequent years of work.