Advice for preceptorship in CCU

[gaspasser2b]

Hi everyone! I am a nursing student in my last semester of school. (I'm graduating in May 2011). I will be starting a preceptorship in my unit of choice - which is obviously CCU! I'm very excited. I loved studying the cardiac/pulmonary systems during my last semester. I just wanted to ask the experienced CCU nurses for some advice. How can I prepare before hand? I'm a good student. Clinically, my instructors give positive feedback. However, I will be going into CCU alone, with no other students and a preceptor from the hospital (not my college). I'm nervous they may misjudge my clinical skills as I'm a last semester nursing student. I am not afraid to speak up, ask questions, and say I don't know how to do such & such. However, I really want to do well and become as proficient as possible for a student. So I would really appreciate any pointers on what to review and how to prepare. Thank you in advance!

[MemorialCCRN-CSC]

I would recommend studying up on your hemodynamic parameters and treatment related to abnormals values. Also definately don't be affraid to say you don't know something but you are very willing to listen and learn. If you are familiar with something and your preceptor is doing it a different way, try to not jump to conclusions and say they are doing it incorrectly cause many things taught in school are not the way they might be done in actual clinical setting.

[meandragonbrett]

Definitely check out http://www.icufaqs.org . They have great information for new grads and new nurses to critical care. It's a pretty comprehensive run down of the basics of critical care.