Staff Nurses Who Refuse To Precept Or Teach?

Been there,done that, ASN, RN · Dec 4, 2017

I personally, don't get not wanting to precept. I always enjoyed it and felt like I had a right hand man to help with the workload.

The duty to precept is in the job description.. "and other duties as assigned".

Any nurse should take on that responsibility , and be professional while doing it.

SummitRN, BSN, RN · Dec 4, 2017

I agree with a lot of what you are saying OP. I also think that there is not enough cultural emphasis on a nurse's duty to nursing's future through mentorship or at least being a resource.

Nurses are supposed to be good at teaching. But some of them are not good at it or really hate teaching. That is fine. However, anyone should be willing to be a resource IMO.

Katillac, RN · Dec 4, 2017

All nurses should have pride in their work/profession enough to want to share their wealth of knowledge at some level. You may not pursue a masters in nursing education or a PhD but you can still be a resource for you unit and colleagues, that's at least the minimum that should be required of you.
*sigh* just venting.

"Just venting"? Sounds more like you are making judgements about every nurse in the profession. Sure, you "understand that not everyone wants to teach". . . but they should. We should "all be willing to help/guide one another" because you do it even when you don't want to. You "love to teach" but somehow the reason you've been doing it since you got to your unit is "because other nurses refuse to teach". And somehow this failure on the part of nurses that don't live up to your global expectations is about NETY, lateral violence or a lack of pride that you imagine the MDs have.

If only everyone would be like you, everything would be so much better, right? Sounds just a tad selfish and condescending - to use your words.

How about acknowledging that maybe, just maybe, nurses fail your standards of leadership not because they feel like victims but because they know their limits and have healthy boundaries? Or in exercising appropriate self-care they decide to not participate in another dynamic of giving of themselves to be rewarded with an increased work load?

Like really.

NurseSpeedy, ADN, LPN, RN · Dec 4, 2017

Not everyone is good for precepting but I think that everyone who knows how to do something that someone needs help with should be willing to walk them through it so that they can do it themselves the next time. Also, explaining the rationale behind something only takes a couple minutes.

When it comes to precepting it's going to be a better experience if both parties are willing to work together and feel comfortable. I oriented a lot of agency nurses back when there was paper charting and orientation was done onsite, not at a computer somewhere else. This I enjoyed. I also enjoyed showing students a procedure and explaining the process. What I do NOT like is being responsible for checking their work, charting, etc and being held responsible for it being accurate. I also, as my user name describes, walk very fast, talk very fast, and chart fast. That's just me. I've been that way forever and that's how I keep up. Slowing down will get me behind and I don't do well with someone glued to my hip. I'm not trying to be mean. It's just ME. I have had students tell me that they didn't need to go to the gym after clinicals because they got their cardio that day or their legs were killing them the next day. What can I say? I warned them beforehand what they were in for.

wondern, ASN · Dec 4, 2017

I always liked teaching and precepting, though I rarely felt any appreciation for it from management or preceptors. Basically they do slow you down and I don't like being responsible for other's work when they're not paying attention half the time anyhow. Some of them act like they already know everything and your just a step to be stepped on before their big rise to the top.

What is rewarding is when you see a light go off and you did teach someone something they will use the rest of their career, something that will help their patients hopefully. After all, it all comes back to the patient.

AutumnApple · Dec 4, 2017

I relished being a preceptor earlier in my career for various reasons (some good, some not). These days, I don't refuse to do it but I don't necessarily raise my hand to volunteer for it either. Some of the reasons for my change in attitude:

1. Many facilities have high expectations for their preceptors but do not compensate for the additional responsibilities. This, in and of itself, should not be a reason to avoid the role but, refer to #2.

2. Most facilities who offer higher compensation for preceptors (and even some that don't) make up for the loss by unbalancing the patient assignments. The preceptor and new nurse will share a patient assignment for "X" amount of time, then eventually the new nurse has their own assignment too. Besides being a recipe for the teaching of said new nurse being rushed and incomplete, it's also unsafe. The end result usually is the preceptor is taking care of a double sized assignment with the new nurse helping.

3. Peers tend to have an irrational attitude towards preceptors. More than a few of the preceptor's peers will balk at seeing them with (what they consider) a helper. Then they begin to insist you "be a good teammate" and take part of their workload for them. Obviously, especially in facilities that suffer from the problem I described in #2, this is impossible. So, you say "no thank you" to "being a good teammate" and now you have to manage a blood feud with a coworker who thinks you should be "more of a teammate."

By the way, I said peers have an irrational attitude towards preceptors. This is where it gets irrational. The people I'm describing here are often the same ones that upset you. Yes, they are the ones who refuse to precept themselves. Lazy, whinny and simple minded, to say the least, but being a preceptor puts a target on your back with these types.

4. New nurses frequently are nervous about their new role and desperate to prove they belong. This motivates them to try to appear as though they are doing their duties perfectly and flawlessly. Then the day comes where they make a mistake. It doesn't even have to be a life threatening one, and in fact rarely ever is. But, the day they make a mistake comes and first thing they'll think to say is "I was taught differently in orientation."

Being thrown under the bus by a preceptee who recently started working independently is a constant stress for preceptors.

5. I'm a baseball fan for various reasons. Why I am is not important though. One of my favorite historical players is Ozzie Smith, a superb defensive shortstop. Ozzie tried to start a youth baseball camp after retiring, and it almost closed down because the participants weren't learning anything. The reason they weren't getting anything out of the camp was because Ozzie was involved in a lot of the workshops. His style wasn't something that could be taught. It was too unique and atypical. Ozzie backed off of the teaching and instead ran the camp acting as it's spokesperson. He avoided the workshops and practices. Then it became successful.

Many nurses feel their approach is "theirs" and too personalized to be taught. Whether it's true or not, if they feel that way they will avoid being put in a position where they must teach new nurses the "how to" of nursing.

5. We've not even started talking about the attitudes of patients towards new nurses. Some are downright paranoid towards them. This is an added stress the preceptor must manage. Sometimes it's nice not to have to worry about that.

6. Precepting introduces scheduling issues to the nurse's life. I personally had this happen to me. No matter how much the manager tells you "The new hire will have to work whatever your schedule is", you eventually end up making a lot of accommodations so that "the schedule can work for both of you." Combine this with #1 and #2 and you might understand those who say "hell no" to being a preceptor. During the times when I had a trainee, I sometimes would go into work and be told my schedule had been rearranged because the new nurse went to the manager asking for specific days off. Funny, but the story always went something like "Oh, they have a friend they've not seen in ten years visiting and can only see them that day." Odd how so many new nurses have estranged friends suddenly visiting.

I was once told I had to put off my scheduled vacation time because they had just hired three new nurses and having a preceptor MIA for an entire week would mean someone would take longer for orientation. Mind you, this vacation time was what I requested in January and it was August. When I protested, I was told "You can always just skip the vacation and cash in the vacation time. Don't you want to buy something nice for yourself?".

This post is already verbose and, to be frank about it: I'm not even half way done.

Just putting out there some of the reasons people shun being a preceptor. One last thing that I feel must be said though: Shunning the role and refusing it are different things. The first (what I do) is just a matter of taste. The second is insubordination and needs dealt with differently since it likely has nothing to do with liking teaching or not.

Ruby Vee, BSN · Dec 4, 2017

Of course I understand that not everyone wants to be a teacher or professor but a few of my coworkers lately have down right refused to precept or even be a resource to newer or less experienced nurses.
The education department had placed a sign up sheet for preceptor training courses and one of my colleagues very adamantly professed her disdain for teaching or precepting and that it "just wasn't in her to teach".
ok fine, but IMO it sounded a bit condescending and selfish of one to refuse to share nursing knowledge. She does everything to get out of precepting or cross training nurses. Seems unprofessional to me.
I was giving bedside report to a MICU RN who recently transferred to the SICU and the patient was a postop neurosurgery case with an EVD and ICP monitoring. I gave her an overview of what the drain was, how to manage it and transduce for IC pressures. I then told her to refer to Ms. Senior RN who is real good with neuro for any questions after I left. I then spoke to Ms. Senior RN and told her that I endorsed an EVD/ICP monitoring to Ms. New SICU RN and perhaps she could guide her throughout the shift on the neuro patient, she then promptly rolled her eyes and asked why I had to refer the new SICU RN to her?? (Mind you she is one of the most knowledgeable nurses in our ICU but I've never seen her precepting and she doesn't offer up knowledge freely either)
Like really? After almost 12 years of nursing this issue still grinds my gears. We should all be willing to help/guide one another. Sure sometimes I'm not in the mood to teach, or my orientee is not a fast learner or another RN asks for my help when I'm super busy, but either way I roll up my sleeves and get it done because if the shoe was on the other foot (like it has been many times) I would want someones help to guide-teach-assist me.
I don't mean to make this medicine vs nursing but physicians are expected to teach and mentor from the time they graduate medical school they are thrust into mentoring those behind them.
IMO nursing lags behind with this. Is it because we lack pride in our profession?, or feel like victims that we cannot and often do not embody a leadership mentality?
Perhaps its it's just part of the nurses eating their young/lateral violence that is far too prevalent in our profession.
On my unit its the same RNs who precept everyone while others flat out refuse and go years without precepting. I love to teach and came to this job with experience and for that reason I've literally been precepting since I came off orientation/probation myself (yes crazy I know) because many nurses just refuse to teach on my unit.
Heck when I was new to this facility myself a few years back my assigned preceptor (who didn't realize I was sitting nearby) flat out refused to orient anyone (she later apologized saying it was nothing personal when she realized I was in an earshot of her comment)
All nurses should have pride in their work/profession enough to want to share their wealth of knowledge at some level. You may not pursue a masters in nursing education or a PhD but you can still be a resource for you unit and colleagues, that's at least the minimum that should be required of you.
*sigh* just venting.

Condescending, selfish and unprofessional to decline to precept? Lacking pride in our profession? Playing the victim in not embodying a leadership mentality? Nurses eating their young or committing lateral violence because they choose not to teach? WOW! Judgemental much?

We often see posts here from new nurses or students who are unhappy with their preceptor or their learning experience, and almost all of those rants end with "If they don't want to precept, they just shouldn't do it." Those posts ignore the fact that most nurses aren't given a choice -- or even any notice -- when being signed up to precept. How lucky your unit is that some of the nurses who are not good at/burned out on/actively hate precepting are given the opportunity to decline.

It seems that you need to take a step back and look at this from another perspective. Those who decline to precept may have been continuously precepting for the past decade or so (like me). I enjoy teaching, but damn! There are days when all I want is my own assignment without someone to precept! According to you, if I request the day (or the month) off from precepting, I'm condescending, selfish, unprofessional, lacking in pride in our profession, playing the victim, failing to embody a leadership mentality, eating my young and committing lateral violence.

I think your critical thinking is faulty there.

mmc51264, BSN, MSN, RN · Dec 4, 2017

we have some great nurses that just don't want to precept. They are great charge nurses and they are great resources, but it does require a certain kind of person to precept well. We also have nurses that are great preceptors and horrible charge nurses. Some are good at both. For a unit to function well, the managers have to use their resources wisely.

QuarterLife88, MSN, RN, NP · Dec 4, 2017

I hate precepting and I refuse to do it anymore after having done it on a continuous loop. In fact, I flat out told management that. I do not feel it is my job to educate new nurses, and quite frankly, I do not care. I am there to take care of my patients, and I do a good job at that. I do not owe anyone anything else. After burning out to epic proportions this past year, "it's all about me" has taken on a whole new meaning for me.

NuGuyNurse2b · Dec 5, 2017

With some places, the turnaround in staff is so great, you have some poor experienced nurse precepting a new nurse every few months. So now that same nurse is taking anywhere from 8-12 weeks precepting an orientee, gets another orientee after the previous one is let loose on the floor, only to find out in 6mos-1yr later that all that time and energy went down the drain cause the new nurse quit. Can't fault that nurse for feeling burned.

TU RN, DNP, CRNA · Dec 5, 2017

I've never been asked to precept a new nurse so my input is limited by that. What I've heard from those that have though is that it's frustrating spending the time and attention for 8-12 weeks to have a nurse, many times within that "5-year-might-change-careers-still" window, then for them to leave the job. Maybe the hospital could make teaching more worth the preceptors' time through temporarily higher pay, a bonus, or at least some sort of "clinical ladder" initiative - but who am I kidding. Since when do hospital administrations wish to dole out more money, let alone listen to or even remotely care about what the bedside nurse has to say.

JadedCPN, BSN, RN · Dec 5, 2017

Just curious if you have worked with them for a while/are aware of their back story? I ask this because I know many nurses, myself included, who precepted back to back to back over and over again. At one point I had been precepting nonstop for a year and a half. Perhaps this particular person spent years precepting with little or no break, and finally decided to take some time off.