Senior/CN-level nurses newly precepting, buddying, or mentoring — handed the role with clinical credibility but no formal preparation for teaching it.
Run the First Shift Briefing every time you're paired with someone new — even a five-minute version. Use the feedback scripts as a starting sentence, not a script to read verbatim.
First Shift Briefing Checklist
Cover this in the first ten minutes, before the shift gets busy:
- ✓Who do you call for what — MET call, NUM, me, the doctor covering this ward
- ✓Where things are — resus trolley, PPE, the things you won't remember under pressure
- ✓"Tell me your worry sentence right now" — a 30-second mini-drill using the escalation script from the Graduate toolkit, so it's already been said out loud once today
- ✓"Ask me anything, any time, including things you think are obvious" — said explicitly, not assumed understood
- ✓What today's patient load actually looks like, and where you expect it might get hard
Ask-Tell-Ask feedback script
Ask what they think first, tell your observation, ask what they'll do differently. This keeps feedback a conversation, not a verdict.
Reinforcing good practice
"Talk me through why you escalated that when you did." [listen] "That's exactly right — the timing was good because [specific reason]. What made you notice it when you did?"
Correcting unsafe practice, in the moment — calm, direct, non-punitive
"Before we go further — walk me through your thinking on [specific action]." [listen] "Here's what I noticed: [specific observation, not a character judgement]. Next time, I'd want you to [specific alternative]. What's your plan from here?"
Supervision vs. delegation — know the difference
Direct supervision — you're present, watching the task happen.
Indirect supervision — you're available, but not watching every step.
Delegation — you've handed over a task within their scope, and you remain accountable for the decision to delegate it.
Self-check: "Am I actually precepting — building their judgement — or am I quietly doing their job for them because it's faster?" Both feel productive. Only one builds a competent colleague.
End-of-shift debrief script
For supporting a junior colleague after a hard shift — deliberately mirrors the grad's own reflection template, so you're speaking the same language.
- ✓What was the hardest part of today?
- ✓What's one thing you did well that you might not be giving yourself credit for?
- ✓What's one thing you'll carry into tomorrow?
This resource is general information to support reflection and professional development. It does not replace your organisation's preceptor training, supervision policies, or the NMBA Code of Conduct for Nurses.