Preceptor Class Goals

llg, PhD, RN · Jan 17, 2010

One place to start is to think about, "What do I want to learn about precepting?" If you were to suddenly be asked to precept an orientee next month, what questions would you have? Make a list of those questions. Pretty them up a bit to turn them into objectives.

For example:

1. Do you know how to establish appropriate learning objectives for your orientee? If not, then one of your objectives could be to learn how to do that.

2. Do you know how to assess an orient to determine their learning needs? Learning that would be a good goal for you.

3. Do you know how to establish a good working relationship with an orientee?

4. How to evaluate the orientee's progress?

5. How to give constructive feedback?

6. What documentation is required?

7. What resources are available should you, as a preceptor, have questions or problems with an orientee?

8. What are some tips for teaching different types of content (technical skills, physiology, policies and procedures, teamwork and other "attitude" type topics), etc.

etc. etc. etc. I could go on all day. Pick the ones the matter to you the most. Maybe you can group some together into one objective.

Don't worry so much about writing your objective in some special format unless they gave you a specific format to use. Usually, with assignments like this, the teachers just want you to think about what you want to learn before the class -- so that you can share those learning needs with them in the class and be sure to get them met. It's not like a graded assignment for school.

HeadcaseRN · Jan 18, 2010

Thank you so much! Thinking about it that way makes it easier for me to think about questions I would like answered before I precept someone. :yeah:

shoegalRN, RN · Jan 18, 2010

As someone who has 2 weeks left on orientation, this is what I think:

I think preceptors should be taught how to give constructive criticism without damaging confidence in the process.

There should be a well thought out plan for reachable goals EVERY week, not 6 weeks into orientation. Every shift should have goals that the orientee should work on, such as time management, charting, tasks, critical thinking, etc.

If the goals are not reached, then a plan of action should be made and put into writing with a reasonable amount of time to reach said goal.

A professional relationship and rapport should be established with preceptor and orientee prior to orientation. This means both orientee and preceptor should have an opportunity to meet prior to working together. It could be something as simple as an introduction the day before the shift starts. I noticed the ones who had a personal relationship with their preceptor (i.e. talking about their personal lives, giving personal advice, etc) are the ones who made it off orientation because their preceptor "liked" them. To me, if I am here to be oriented, I don't need to know your personal business and you don't need to know mine. We are in a professional relationship during orientation and I would prefer to keep it like that, but in some way, I feel being professional can be held against you while in orientation.

Take into consideration the orientee's learning style and the preceptor's teaching style. If an orientee is a hands on learner and learn by repetition, then it makes no sense for the preceptor to TELL the orientee how to do something. Let the orientee do it while the preceptor is walking them through the skill/task.

If the preceptor feel their job is to sit back and jump in to save the orientee if they are drowning, then maybe they shouldnt precept new grads but experienced nurses. A lot of new grads don't have hospital experience and need to be given the basics FIRST before they are allowed to sink or swim.

If you are not a good teacher and you are forced to precept, please don't take it out on the new grad. It's a learning experience for both of you.

If the new grad is making a mistake, it's best to catch it early on, nip it in the bud and give the new grad time to work on it.

Please don't micromanage! This can make a new nurse extremely nervous and then cause them to make more mistakes. It's ok to go behind them and follow up on their work, but to sit and watch them like a hawk is not productive.

Again, it's ok to give constructive criticism, but please balance it out and give a few positives as well. And it's all in how you say things, not what you say in a way a person will preceive the message.

HeadcaseRN · Jan 18, 2010

afrocentricrn,

thanks for the post. i remember my very first orientation expierence on the surgical floor. i orientated on all three shifts. i did well on first shift with the rn following me while i passed meds and did exams. then the second shift rn just let me do my own thing while she sat and talked with her peers. then i got to third shift. that rn watched me like a hawk and had me in tears by the end of the shift. while giving report she told me i was scatter brained and needed to get my "sh@@" together. to this day however me and her are good friends. she even uses our orientation expierence as a story she tells other new orienties she precepts. i can laugh about it now but i think her toughness made me a better nurse today. sometimes we need to be tough on the ones we orientate to make sure they can do the job at hand.

i am looking forward to precepting a new grad so i hope i can do a good job. i'm just not looking forward to this class :)

shoegalRN, RN · Jan 18, 2010

afrocentricrn,
thanks for the post. i remember my very first orientation expierence on the surgical floor. i orientated on all three shifts. i did well on first shift with the rn following me while i passed meds and did exams. then the second shift rn just let me do my own thing while she sat and talked with her peers. then i got to third shift. that rn watched me like a hawk and had me in tears by the end of the shift. while giving report she told me i was scatter brained and needed to get my "sh@@" together. to this day however me and her are good friends. she even uses our orientation expierence as a story she tells other new orienties she precepts. i can laugh about it now but i think her toughness made me a better nurse today. sometimes we need to be tough on the ones we orientate to make sure they can do the job at hand.
i am looking forward to precepting a new grad so i hope i can do a good job. i'm just not looking forward to this class :)

i'm all for being tough. one of my preceptors in the icu is very tough on me. but in the end, i told myself she is making me a better nurse, and teaching me to pay attention to very fine details.

however, i consider myself very teachable as i have no habits to break, and i go with the flow. it would be very nice to get a preceptor who is excited about teaching as i am about learning. it makes the experience so much better.

HeadcaseRN · Jan 18, 2010

I remember my first orientation as a fresh grad on the Surgical Unit. I was orientated on all three shifts because I was going to work both second and third shifts. The day RN did great giving me room to make mistakes and learn but watched over me carefully. The second RN just let me do the work while she sat and chatted with our coworkers. The third RN watched me like a hawk. We did our assessments at the same time..stethoscopes side by side on the patient...anytime I entered a patients room she was right there no matter what I was going to do. While taping report she informed me that I needed to "get your sh@@ straight and get organized". I thought I was doing good. She informed me that my reports sucked and I didn't know what I was talking about. Needless to say I went home crying. Later I told her about this and we can laugh about it now as we are now good friends. She even tells new orienties our story so if she comes across harsh to them she doesn't mean it. I think we need to be hard (to a point) on our new orienties to make sure they can get the work at hand done. Nursing in the hospital is not an easy job and should not be treated as such when orientation comes about. I'm not saying we need to beat down the spirit of new orienties but they do need to realize what they have to do.

I am looking forward to being able to orientate someone into the hospital. I'm just not looking forward to this class. I recently changed units at the hospital and am still considered a newbie so for me to be taking this class over someone who has been there for years is kinda hard for me to figure out (however the majority of the ladies I work with are almost retirement age so I figure its because I'll be around longer and have to orientate their replacements). So I hope I can do a good job and not be to hard but hard enough for someone new.