LAUSR

Background: Psychiatric nursing graduates face many challenges when entering the work setting. Transition programs can be influential as a potential way to help maintain and improve nursing performance and the quality of health care. Objectives: This study explained the nurses’ process of transition in psychiatric wards. Methods: This grounded theory study was conducted with 27 nurses who had the experience of a transition to psychiatric wards of two referral hospitals in Mazandaran province in the north of Iran and a psychiatric referral hospital in Tehran during the years 2016 to 2018. The sampling began purposively and continued theoretically. The data were collected through semi-structured interviews and analyzed using Strauss and Corbin’s approach (2008). Results: The analysis showed that nurses transitioning to their new roles in psychiatric wards face all-around threats and insecurities as the main problem. Nurses used the strategy of “responsible and resourceful coping” for dealing with these problems. Conclusions: The findings of the study can help mental nurses prepare for the performance role and promote their quality of health care.