Working with a Preceptor
Included In This Lesson
Study Tools For Working with a Preceptor
Outline
Overview
- Preceptor training and guidance
- Observing your preceptor
- What to do during this time
- What to do if not going well
Nursing Points
General
- Preceptor
- Will work with you before you are on your own
- May differ in personality
- Doing this to train you and help you
- Will offer suggestions and guidance
- Will eventually step back and see what you can do!
Assessment
- Observe how your preceptor manages situations
- Learn from them!
- How do they talk to patients?
- How do they work with others?
- What do you like?
- What do you not like?
- You decide what kind of nurse you want to be!
Therapeutic Management
- Please do
- Respect
- Stay confident, but humble
- Friendly, yet professional
- Express any concerns or fears
- Be active and engaged in the learning
- Listen
- Ask questions!
- Use this experience to practice time management
- Safe practice
- If unsure, ask for help!
- No question is a dumb question!
- Communication is key
- Don’t feel like you are paired well?
- Let the educator or manager know!
- Not everyone works well together
- Express what you need to learn
- Respect
Nursing Concepts
- Communication
- Open communication helps you learn and prevents error
- Teamwork & Collaboration
- Learn how to work with eachother
- Observe how others do
- Professionalism
- Remain professional and respectful
Patient Education
- Introduce self as preceptee in training
Transcript
Hey guys! Welcome to the lesson where we will talk about working with a preceptor. Let’s start by talking about preceptors.
When you begin as a new nurse, you will be given a preceptor. It may be on your unit or another depending on the training system of your organization. For example, the unit that I work on is the dedicated learning unit, so we precept most of the new nurses first before they go to their units. Your preceptor will offer suggestions and guide you in your new role. As you become acclimated, they will eventually step back and be there for questions and assistance. Remember, personalities differ, so be aware of how you communicate and react to their suggestions.
When you begin working with your preceptor, observe them! How do they talk to their patients? How do they work with others? What do you like? Are there things that you would do differently? Use these observations to help learn and decide what kind of nurse you want to be!
Let’s talk about things that you should do while working with a preceptor. First of all, respect them. Stay confident, yet humble. You will be a great nurse, and you can do this! Remember, we none of us know EVERYTHING, so always be willing to listen. Be friendly, yet professional. Bonds with your fellow nurses will be strong ones as you will be working together in many different situations. Don’t alienate yourself! Express any concerns or fears that you have to your preceptor. Remember, they have been through what you are going through and they might have tips and tricks to help you. Be active and engaged in learning. Listen and ask questions. Use this time to practice managing your time. Make sure that you are practicing safe nursing. If you’re ever unsure, ask for help! That is what your preceptor is for! No question is a dumb question. Communication is key to learning and succeeding during your preceptorship. Next, let’s explore what to do if you feel like your preceptorship isn’t going well.
So, say you begin your preceptorship and you just don’t feel like you are paired with the right person. Maybe you find that they’re not teaching you enough or they won’t answer any questions. It’s okay! Not everyone works well together! Let the educator or the manager know so that they can pair you with someone else. Express what you need to help you learn.
The priority nursing concepts for working with a preceptor are communication, teamwork and collaboration, and professionalism.
Alright, let’s review the key points. Your preceptor will train you and guide you as a new nurse. They will act as a resource for you for any questions that you have. Make sure you observe your preceptor’s communication techniques with other nurses, doctors, and patients along with their behaviors. This will help you learn how to handle situations when you are on your own. Engage in the experience! Listen and ask questions. Communication is key! Remain confident, yet humble. Be friendly, yet professional. Always provide safe practice, and ask if you are unsure about anything!
Okay, guys, I hope you enjoy your preceptorships! Now go out and be your best self today, and as always, happy nursing!
Rina’s NCLEX Study Plan 2026
Concepts Covered:
- Endocrine System
- Studying
- Urinary System
- Tissues and Glands
- Nervous System
- Circulatory System
- Medication Administration
- Hematologic System
- Skeletal System
- Digestive System
- Respiratory System
- Emergency Care of the Cardiac Patient
- Reproductive System
- Endocrine and Metabolic Disorders
- Basics of Human Biology
- Muscular System
- Sensory System
- Communication
- Legal and Ethical Issues
- Basics of NCLEX
- Prenatal Concepts
- Prioritization
- Fundamentals of Emergency Nursing
- Documentation and Communication
- Delegation
- Community Health Overview
- Factors Influencing Community Health
- Concepts of Mental Health
- Test Taking Strategies
- Note Taking
- Substance Abuse Disorders
- Behavior
- Concepts of Population Health
- Concepts of Pharmacology
- Health & Stress
- Labor and Delivery
- Gastrointestinal Disorders
- Microbiology
- Depressive Disorders
- Postpartum Care
- Emergency Care of the Trauma Patient
- Emotions and Motivation
- Growth & Development
- Intelligence and Language
- Psychological Disorders
- State of Consciousness
- Respiratory Disorders
- EENT Disorders
- Infectious Disease Disorders
- Integumentary Disorders
- Neurologic and Cognitive Disorders
- Hematologic Disorders
- Cardiovascular Disorders
- Musculoskeletal Disorders
- Renal and Urinary Disorders
- Oncologic Disorders
- Anxiety Disorders
- Cognitive Disorders
- Eating Disorders
- Personality Disorders
- Psychotic Disorders
- Trauma-Stress Disorders
- Bipolar Disorders
- Developmental Considerations
- Psychological Emergencies
- Somatoform Disorders
- Perioperative Nursing Roles
- Preoperative Nursing
- Central Nervous System Disorders – Brain
- Lower GI Disorders
- Peripheral Nervous System Disorders
- Cardiac Disorders
- Integumentary Disorders
- Musculoskeletal Disorders
- Noninfectious Respiratory Disorder
- Postoperative Nursing
- Respiratory Emergencies
- Intraoperative Nursing
- Disorders of Pancreas
- Urinary Disorders
- Neurological Emergencies
- Central Nervous System Disorders – Spinal Cord
- Renal Disorders
- Infectious Respiratory Disorder
- Sexually Transmitted Infections
- EENT Disorders
- Shock
- Cardiovascular
- Shock
- Disorders of the Posterior Pituitary Gland
- Endocrine
- Disorders of the Thyroid & Parathyroid Glands
- Gastrointestinal
- Upper GI Disorders
- Liver & Gallbladder Disorders
- Neurological
- Respiratory
- Hematologic Disorders
- Acute & Chronic Renal Disorders
- Disorders of the Adrenal Gland
- Immunological Disorders
- Oncology Disorders
- Female Reproductive Disorders
- Musculoskeletal Trauma
- Vascular Disorders
- Male Reproductive Disorders
- Newborn Complications
- Disorders of Thermoregulation
- Neurological Trauma
- Integumentary Important Points
- Multisystem
- Emergency Care of the Neurological Patient
- Emergency Care of the Respiratory Patient
- Prefixes
- Suffixes
- Fetal Development
- Terminology
- Proteins
- Statistics
- Med Term Basic
- Med Term Whole
- Basics of Mathematics
- Basics of Sociology
- Pregnancy Risks
- Labor Complications
- Newborn Care
- Postpartum Complications
- Understanding Society
- Adult
- Dosage Calculations
- Adulthood Growth and Development
- Learning Pharmacology