The first 90 days of a new job can be the hardest, especially for nursing assistants. A Peer Mentor program has helped Grand Village in Grand Rapids increase their 90-day retention rate to 86 percent and decrease nursing assistant turnover by 20 percent in one year.  

Click here to read more about Grand Village and four additional Peer Mentor programs. The booklet Solving the Workforce Puzzle: Lesson Learned from 42 Workforce Solutions Grants: Year One describes these and other projects funded by the LeadingAge Minnesota Foundation. 

The Project Showcase webpage also features tools that can help you build your own program including a sample application, job description, and team lead checklists. Click Peer Mentor Tools to download customizable documents. 

If you are considering a peer mentor program, here are some tips:

Start planning well in advance of your desired launch date. Create a project plan that allows at least 3-4 months to prepare the policies, job descriptions, training, and materials needed.

Program design should address these key questions: How many mentors? What shifts? Which locations? Who will supervise the mentors? Who will train them? How will new hires be assigned to mentees? How will you evaluate and revise the program?

Talk with leaders, manager, and supervisors to get buy-in and for potential mentor candidates.

Build pay incentives that can entice staff that may be reluctant to take on the additional work. 

Training of mentors is a key to success. An important aspect of Peer Mentor training is helping them polish their soft skills of listening, asking open-ended questions, and establishing a trusting relationship with their mentees.

The five projects worked with grant budgets of up to $25,000 that were supplemented with staff and leadership support. A majority of the cost was staff time to coordinate the project, develop the materials, and support mentors and mentees.

To see one-page descriptions of Workforce Solutions Grants, visit the Project Showcase page.