Your Role as a Preceptor

As a preceptor your most important work is to:

     
  • Set expectations for students early in their rotation
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  • Provide ongoing feedback throughout the rotation
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  • Fill out evaluations and discuss them with students on the last day of their rotation
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  • Always be an exemplary and positive role-model (teach them about your speciality and the profession in and out of the office).

To optimize the teaching/learning encounter with a KCOM medical student, preceptors are asked to carry-out the following functions:

Administrative Duties

  • Orient student to the rotation and training site. Clearly identify specific service and personal expectations.
  • Encourage office/ancillary care staff to be helpful and make student feel a part of the team.
  • Complete a formal written evaluation of the student’s performance during the rotation and give formative feedback midway through rotation.
  • Contact the Regional Assistant Dean or Director of Student Medical Education to discuss issues of concern or poor student performance.

Teaching Duties

  • Serve as a mentor (experienced and prudent advisor) who assists the student in applying knowledge and building skills to problem-solve patient care.
  • Provide a variety of patient cases and adequate patient volume.
  • Challenge the student with deliberate and thoughtful questions.
  • Allow the student to participate in patient management to a degree appropriate for the level of training.
  • Provide written and verbal feedback to the student in a constructive and timely manner.
  • Be available, on site, for assistance during all patient care activities.
  • Share learning resources (texts, computers and educational programs if available) sufficient to increase student knowledge and productivity.
  • Assign readings, literature searches, or medical information gathering pertinent to patient cases.
  • Integrate Osteopathic Manipulate Medicine into the rotation experience. As such, encourage the use of hands-on OMT as appropriate for the level of training.

If you are unclear about the scope of these duties, or would like additional materials to develop your teaching/mentoring skills, contact your Regional Assistant Dean/Director of Student Medical Education.