Mentorship and Work Empowerment Among Newly Hired Nurses In a Selected Provincial Hospital System In Rizal: Basis for Onboard Program Enhancement

This study aimed to determine the extent of mentorship and work empowerment among newly hired nurses in a selected Provincial Hospital System in Rizal and to develop an onboarding enhancement program based on the findings. It employed a quantitative descriptive-correlational research design involving 80 newly hired nurses. Data were gathered using a structured survey questionnaire. The findings showed that most respondents were female, single, Bachelor of Science in Nursing graduates, and within their first year of clinical practice. Mentorship was generally rated highly for mentorship interactions, scope of guidance, progress monitoring, and the provision of learning opportunities. Work empowerment was also rated highly for autonomy in decision-making, leadership opportunities, work recognition, and performance feedback, while access to resources received a comparatively lower rating. A significant positive relationship was found between all dimensions of mentorship and work empowerment, indicating that stronger mentorship was associated with greater autonomy, leadership participation, recognition, access to resources, and constructive feedback. The study concluded that mentorship is an important organizational mechanism for strengthening the empowerment, confidence, competence, and professional adjustment of newly hired nurses. It recommended implementing a structured onboarding enhancement program that includes formal mentor assignment, competency monitoring, regular feedback, expanded training opportunities, improved access to resources, guided autonomy, leadership development, and recognition.