Ideas on a thank you for my mentor/preceptor

[Kaysmom8]

Hello,

So I only have a few shifts left until I graduate :) and I must say that my preceptor is absolutely amazing!!! I love working with her, she is so helpful and I'm grateful for having her to teach me before I graduate. Any creative ideas on how I can show my appreciation on my last day with her? I was thinking of doing something for her and the rest of the staff as they were all so helpful and welcoming to me? A thank you card and maybe a cake for all to enjoy?

[krisiepoo]

Did you guys have any time to talk about what her interests might be? I find that people REALLY appreciate small things that reflect something personal about them (for example, my friend advocates for pit bulls and is getting married in NOLA so I got her a calendar for a pit bull rescue from NOLA - we are in MN... she cried and talks about it all the time about how thoughtful it was)... I'm a nontraditional gift giver that way

I think food is always welcome on a nursing floor :)

[nurseprnRN, BSN, RN]

A long thank you letter about your experience, well-larded with examples of how well she taught you and how you intend to use it in your career-- including how you learned to teach, for when your time comes to pay it forward-- along with a beautiful keepsake ornament (not necessarily "nursey" in nature), sun catcher, small work of art she can have up on the wall or the Christmas tree will be something she'll cherish long after the food or the hand cream or the gift card are forgotten. And cc the letter, or something very like it, to HR and her manager.

[llg, PhD, RN]

Since she helped you professionally ... I recommend helping her professionally. Write a letter to her supervisor (to put in her personnel file) saying what a wonderful job she did. Such a letter might help her get a bigger raise, get a promotion, or get some other "goodie" that she wants.

A small personal gift or some food for the unit is a nice touch to add to such a letter. I once had a student give me a used copy of an old book that I mentioned I was having trouble finding. That was a great gift -- so thoughtful of her to remember me mentioning that I was looking for it!

[classicdame, MSN, EdD]

hand lotion, a great card - really anything that says I am thinking of you

[Kaysmom8]

Thanks for all the great ideas, I really like the thought of a letter to her supervisor to let them know how wonderful she is. I definitely want something that lasts longer than food.