Comprehensive orientation: the road to retention.

This study evaluated the relationship between the type of orientation received by registered nurse employees in the hospital and the turnover behavior of these employees within the first 12 months of employment. The comprehensiveness of the orientation programs of six major metropolitan hospitals was evaluated using a structure evaluation tool. The records of registered nurses who attended the September 1988 orientation programs at these hospitals were examined to identify their employment status and pertinent demographic data one year from the date of participation in orientation. Data were analyzed to determine if an association existed between the comprehensiveness of orientation and employment status. The data revealed no significant difference between "stayers" and "leavers" after participation in orientation programs meeting greater than 80 percent of the criteria for program comprehensiveness. Significantly more "leavers" than "stayers" resulted from participation in programs meeting greater than 90 percent of the criteria for program comprehensiveness.