Preceptor Development Program (PDP)

Keeping things moving while teaching in a busy practice is necessary, but presents an ongoing challenge. What can you do when things bog down and, more importantly, how do you prevent this from happening? Here are some suggestions:

• The learner does not need to see every patient. Go over the schedule in advance and indicate which patients the learner should see. This allows you to select the most appropriate patients and fit in some time for the learner to write notes and look things up - and time for you to see the rest of the patients.
• I choose a patient that is appropriate for student’s level, let them see the patient while I "catch up." Students don’t have to be involved in all encounters.
• Develop a pattern: you see a patient while the learner sees another. After you finish with your patient, you review the learner’s patient with him or her. See a third patient while the learner writes his or her note. Then you start the cycle again.
• Even if the learner is not seeing all the patients, you can still pull him or her in briefly for interesting findings or appropriate procedures. Encourage your partners to grab the learner from time to time for interesting cases. This can give you a brief break and enhance the learning for the learner.
• Don’t try to get too much teaching in between patients. Use focused teaching techniques such as the One Minute Preceptor.
• If you get bogged down, tell the learner to work on his or her charts or to read up on something until you get your head above water. TIP: This works best if you have informed the learner in advance that this happens from time to time, so that it is expected and they know to keep themselves occupied while you catch up.
• If you have a slow learner who is taking 45 minutes to see a cold, set strict time limits: “You have 15 minutes to get a basic history of the chief complaint and pertinent physical findings. I want you to come out after 15 minutes with whatever you have.” If the learner is not out when you are ready, go in and get him or her.
• If a slow learner is taking copious notes during each encounter, take paper and pen away to help the learner be more efficient and rely on his or her memory. Another option is to give a very small note pad to the learner and require that he or she only use one sheet per patient.

Strategies