DESCRIBE Your IDEAL Nursing Instructor

[VickyRN, MSN, DNP, RN]

As a new ADN instructor, I am very interested in hearing about GOOD QUALITIES that you students desire in instructors. SOOOO, describe to me the NURSING INSTRUCTOR of YOUR DREAMS.

Let me break this down into 2 parts:

#1--LECTURES--what sorts of lectures are most appealing to you (straight lecture, PP, reading out of the book, shooting off from the hip, etc., etc..)??? What do you NOT like in a lecture?

#2--CLINICALS--what sorts of behaviors do you LIKE in a clinical instructor? What sorts of clinical settings do you most enjoy??? What sorts of behaviors do you most DETEST in clinical instructors?

Thanx for the input:kiss !!!

"Vicky"

[VickyRN, MSN, DNP, RN]

As a new ADN instructor, I am very interested in hearing about GOOD QUALITIES that you students desire in instructors. SOOOO, describe to me the NURSING INSTRUCTOR of YOUR DREAMS.

Let me break this down into 2 parts:

#1--LECTURES--what sorts of lectures are most appealing to you (straight lecture, PP, reading out of the book, shooting off from the hip, etc., etc..)??? What do you NOT like in a lecture?

#2--CLINICALS--what sorts of behaviors do you LIKE in a clinical instructor? What sorts of clinical settings do you most enjoy??? What sorts of behaviors do you most DETEST in clinical instructors?

Thanx for the input:kiss !!!

"Vicky"

[memphispanda, RN]

In lecture, I like an instructor who expects us to be prepared, but doesn't expect us to already know it all. Teach the information, take a few questions but not so many that you can't finish the content and get sidetracked, etc. If someone doesn't *get it* and is holding up class, tell them to come to your office later so you can help them one on one. Make it fun--have some group things going on, play a game or two that helps teach the content. One thing that really helps too is stories about patients that had whatever problem, or demonstration of a specific problem. For example if you are talking about asterixis, DO it, don't just talk about it.

For clinical...it's a bit harder. Expect preparation. Don't try to trip up the unsure student by picking out the most obscure unimportant thing from the chart to quiz them on. During skills, guide, but don't hover nervously. Remind students to recheck their policy manual (or whatever they use to know how to do their skills) if they are unsure of themselves--BEFORE they go in the patients room. If someone is about to fail, let them know they are in trouble. (That may sound dumb, but I know a few people who were never told they were even close to failing that failed). Also during clinical, if you have a few minutes here or there take the time to teach what you know about the content that is being taught during lecture. If it is CHF, tell the group (or the 2 or 3 that happen to be there) to check in on the patient in 532 to listen to his lung sounds, etc. Try to get your students in on as many procdures as possible.

My first clinical day in med/surg our instructor told us "everyone will give an injection today whether it's their assigned patient or not". And sure enough we all did. Mostly insulin. But it got us over that hump. If there was a catheter to be done, one of us was hunted down to do it. We had more experiences than any of the other groups because she took the time to do that for us. It was great.

Best of luck in your new position!

[memphispanda, RN]

In lecture, I like an instructor who expects us to be prepared, but doesn't expect us to already know it all. Teach the information, take a few questions but not so many that you can't finish the content and get sidetracked, etc. If someone doesn't *get it* and is holding up class, tell them to come to your office later so you can help them one on one. Make it fun--have some group things going on, play a game or two that helps teach the content. One thing that really helps too is stories about patients that had whatever problem, or demonstration of a specific problem. For example if you are talking about asterixis, DO it, don't just talk about it.

For clinical...it's a bit harder. Expect preparation. Don't try to trip up the unsure student by picking out the most obscure unimportant thing from the chart to quiz them on. During skills, guide, but don't hover nervously. Remind students to recheck their policy manual (or whatever they use to know how to do their skills) if they are unsure of themselves--BEFORE they go in the patients room. If someone is about to fail, let them know they are in trouble. (That may sound dumb, but I know a few people who were never told they were even close to failing that failed). Also during clinical, if you have a few minutes here or there take the time to teach what you know about the content that is being taught during lecture. If it is CHF, tell the group (or the 2 or 3 that happen to be there) to check in on the patient in 532 to listen to his lung sounds, etc. Try to get your students in on as many procdures as possible.

My first clinical day in med/surg our instructor told us "everyone will give an injection today whether it's their assigned patient or not". And sure enough we all did. Mostly insulin. But it got us over that hump. If there was a catheter to be done, one of us was hunted down to do it. We had more experiences than any of the other groups because she took the time to do that for us. It was great.

Best of luck in your new position!

[hoolahan, ASN, RN]

Aaaahh, I knew you would be a great instructor!! As you know everyone learns differently, some are visual learners, some are audio, some hands-on, so I think , for lectures a combo of all is good.

Lectures

1. Do NOT BS me, I can see right thru when you are not sure of the answer. Say you will check the latest information and get back to me, and do it

2. Do NOT read from the book!!!! Makes me want to pull my hair out, and warning, that thump you hear is my head drooping onto my desk followed by roof-trembling snoring!!!

3. Update your lectures to the most current info, use evidence based research, teach the students how to find this info as well.

4. Do start w a brief lecture, preferably associated w picture slides (yes I'm a visual learner!) Give them a detailed outline, so they won't miss the important stuff while madly scribbling notes. Follow that w a case study and group discussion. I like a break in the monotomy of lectures when the room breaks into small groups for discussions, then the lecture ends w interactive discussions.

Clinical

1. #1 Golden rule, please please do at least one shift a month in the field, just one a month. This says to your students you are not just an academic who is incapable of truly lost touch with what is happening in the real world.

2. Be present. Be sure the students feel prepared. Know which nurses hate being preceptors and which ones are great preceptors. Remember even great preceptors need a break from time to time.

3. NEVER humiliate a student publically. Develop a signal, like, why don't you check on the pharmay or some little phrase so that if you feel a student is in the wrong, they will know to stop what they are doing, and won't loose face w their pt. When I was an ICU preceptor, I would tell my orientee "I'll finish this for you so you can have enough time to do your notes." It was just a little way of them knowing I could see they were in over their heads, and every nurse in our open unit didn't have to watch them drown or know they were doing something incorrectly. (Sharks can smell that ya know?) Then I would explain things as i did them so they would not be left out of the loop. I would address any learning deficits privately.

4. Don't forget to show a sense of humor, and encg students to talk about how things like a death made them feel.

5. Gives lots of positive reinforcement.

[hoolahan, ASN, RN]

Aaaahh, I knew you would be a great instructor!! As you know everyone learns differently, some are visual learners, some are audio, some hands-on, so I think , for lectures a combo of all is good.

Lectures

1. Do NOT BS me, I can see right thru when you are not sure of the answer. Say you will check the latest information and get back to me, and do it

2. Do NOT read from the book!!!! Makes me want to pull my hair out, and warning, that thump you hear is my head drooping onto my desk followed by roof-trembling snoring!!!

3. Update your lectures to the most current info, use evidence based research, teach the students how to find this info as well.

4. Do start w a brief lecture, preferably associated w picture slides (yes I'm a visual learner!) Give them a detailed outline, so they won't miss the important stuff while madly scribbling notes. Follow that w a case study and group discussion. I like a break in the monotomy of lectures when the room breaks into small groups for discussions, then the lecture ends w interactive discussions.

Clinical

1. #1 Golden rule, please please do at least one shift a month in the field, just one a month. This says to your students you are not just an academic who is incapable of truly lost touch with what is happening in the real world.

2. Be present. Be sure the students feel prepared. Know which nurses hate being preceptors and which ones are great preceptors. Remember even great preceptors need a break from time to time.

3. NEVER humiliate a student publically. Develop a signal, like, why don't you check on the pharmay or some little phrase so that if you feel a student is in the wrong, they will know to stop what they are doing, and won't loose face w their pt. When I was an ICU preceptor, I would tell my orientee "I'll finish this for you so you can have enough time to do your notes." It was just a little way of them knowing I could see they were in over their heads, and every nurse in our open unit didn't have to watch them drown or know they were doing something incorrectly. (Sharks can smell that ya know?) Then I would explain things as i did them so they would not be left out of the loop. I would address any learning deficits privately.

4. Don't forget to show a sense of humor, and encg students to talk about how things like a death made them feel.

5. Gives lots of positive reinforcement.

[Hellllllo Nurse, BSN, RN]

My dream nursing instructor (a fictional character, to be sure!)

Does not play favorites. All assignments from all students have the same due date and are judged by the same standards, no matter how the instructor feels about an individual student.

Have high standards, but be a kind person. Remember that the students are there to learn.

If a student is very smart or actually knows some things about a subject that the instructor does not, do not be threatened by this person.

Include in your curriculum something about the nursing crisis, real reasons behind the nursing shortage (per studies), working conditions in nursing, and some things that are current, and reflect was nurses are going through.

My " Nursing Trends and Issues" classes had stuff about nurse practice acts, laws, history of nursing, but no actual "trends" or "issues."

Be available to your students, but not too available, or to just certain ones.

Correct students respectfully and in private. Do not embarrass or "make an example" of a student.

AND.... as another poster said, work the floor of a hospital at LEAST once a month. I had instructors who'd been away from pt care for decades and were completely clueless. I was working as an LPN at the time, going for my RN.

These instructors had no idea of actual nurse to pt ratios, modern charting, actual work-loads, working conditons, etc.

[Hellllllo Nurse, BSN, RN]

My dream nursing instructor (a fictional character, to be sure!)

Does not play favorites. All assignments from all students have the same due date and are judged by the same standards, no matter how the instructor feels about an individual student.

Have high standards, but be a kind person. Remember that the students are there to learn.

If a student is very smart or actually knows some things about a subject that the instructor does not, do not be threatened by this person.

Include in your curriculum something about the nursing crisis, real reasons behind the nursing shortage (per studies), working conditions in nursing, and some things that are current, and reflect was nurses are going through.

My " Nursing Trends and Issues" classes had stuff about nurse practice acts, laws, history of nursing, but no actual "trends" or "issues."

Be available to your students, but not too available, or to just certain ones.

Correct students respectfully and in private. Do not embarrass or "make an example" of a student.

AND.... as another poster said, work the floor of a hospital at LEAST once a month. I had instructors who'd been away from pt care for decades and were completely clueless. I was working as an LPN at the time, going for my RN.

These instructors had no idea of actual nurse to pt ratios, modern charting, actual work-loads, working conditons, etc.

[kimmicoobug]

lectures--my biggest peeve, getting way off subject with student's personal stories about whatever disease their cousin's neighbor's dog's cat had. We are there to learn and want to learn what is important for test, clinical...etc...It really sucks when we get told to read about it and study the notes hard because they are going to be on the test and not go over that material in class. It is way harder to try to understand a difficult concept by reading only.

Clinicals--understand the students are NERVOUS. They are new to the setting, new to different ways of thinking, and new to certain procedures. Also, if the student forgets something about a med, it may be because she is nervous. Don't say you learned about that in September (when it is August--had this happen to me). Everyone is human and sometimes us students become traumatized by certain instructors. I had one instructor that traumatized me that I hated clinicals. I carried this over to this year, but on day one, my new instructor came up to me, told me it was ok to be nervous, but to understand that he was there to guide us and help build our confidence. I have not been nervous with an instructor since. I also agree with positive reinforcement.

Good luck!

[kimmicoobug]

lectures--my biggest peeve, getting way off subject with student's personal stories about whatever disease their cousin's neighbor's dog's cat had. We are there to learn and want to learn what is important for test, clinical...etc...It really sucks when we get told to read about it and study the notes hard because they are going to be on the test and not go over that material in class. It is way harder to try to understand a difficult concept by reading only.

Clinicals--understand the students are NERVOUS. They are new to the setting, new to different ways of thinking, and new to certain procedures. Also, if the student forgets something about a med, it may be because she is nervous. Don't say you learned about that in September (when it is August--had this happen to me). Everyone is human and sometimes us students become traumatized by certain instructors. I had one instructor that traumatized me that I hated clinicals. I carried this over to this year, but on day one, my new instructor came up to me, told me it was ok to be nervous, but to understand that he was there to guide us and help build our confidence. I have not been nervous with an instructor since. I also agree with positive reinforcement.

Good luck!

[Bonnie Blue]

Lecture: Powerpoint and case studies. Example patient and then review the patho and nursing interventions for that patient.

Clinical: help students think their way through problems. You can ask why is this patient recieving this med, and walk through the patho etc together.

[Bonnie Blue]

Lecture: Powerpoint and case studies. Example patient and then review the patho and nursing interventions for that patient.

Clinical: help students think their way through problems. You can ask why is this patient recieving this med, and walk through the patho etc together.