Final Semester Preceptorship?

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We spend our final semester with an RN preceptor, working alongside him/her for 12 full hours. I was wondering if other programs do this as well. If so, I'd love to hear some experiences, tips or survival skills!

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At the end of our final semester we do a 72 hour preceptorship. It's something our program has only been doing for the past year. I'm really enjoying it. It feels strange not to be at the hospital for "clinicals" on my regular Tuesdays and Wednesdays, but it's wonderful working with the same nurse and working an entire shift. I think it's a great idea to show us more what it will be like when we graduate and find a job. :)

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Specializes in Telemetry.

I cannot wait to start my preceptorship. I know I will learn a lot. At our school preceptorship is 80 hours. This is will be in october for me. Time seems to be going so slow.

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The senior perceptorship at my school was 225 hours and was called our "capstone" experience. We stayed the entire 12 hour shift working alongside our preceptors. I had a wonderful as well as humbling time - learned where I was weak as well as where my strengths were. One thing I will caution other students as they go into their final clinicals. At the hospital where I was, the ICU and the ED required a senior preceptorship in their unit (or some other hospital's ICU/ED) as a minimum qualification for hiring. Because I had not done mine in either of those areas my resume was not looked at - I was told by the nurse managers in both these areas. I was disappointed, because I saw other students get hired into the ED from my graduating class while I was not considered. Don't know if this is true in other hospitals or not, but wanted to share what happened with me!

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I really appreciate everyone's input. I believe our total required hours are 72, but I might be wrong. I'm looking forward to seeing the whole picture. Right now we're just getting bits and pieces of a typical day. :)

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My whole program is like that (one on one RN preceptorships for clinicals). I think it's fabulous! You learn SO much more this way!

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Specializes in neurology, cardiology, ED.

I just finished up a 144 hour preceptorship in March. It was an invaluable experience. I worked one on one with a nurse who does neuro ICU, which is also where I'll be working when I graduate. I really felt spoiled for the entire time, because any time there was something cool going on anywhere on the floor, the nurse manager would grab me, and say "Come here and experience this!"

Among other things, I got to (help) manage a patient who was to be an organ donor, working with the CDT nurse to basically keep his heart pumping while we got the tests completed to be able to match him up with a recipient. It's the kind of thing that may happen to me when I am a nurse, but I got to experience it without the responsibility of a full patient assignment to boot! Can't say enough good things about it, do it if you get the opportunity.

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I just came home from the last day of my preceptorship, which has been quite an experience. This is the time it will all come together. My only advice is this is the time to transition from student to nurse. It may feel strange delegating and taking on roles that are not typical student roles, but this is what the instructors are looking for (in my program anyways). Good luck and enjoy. You will feel like a real nurse:yeah:

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