La. Admin. Code tit. 46 § XLVII-3543

Current through Register Vol. 50, No. 6, June 20, 2024

Section XLVII-3543 - Preceptorship Learning Experiences (Formerly Section 3541)

A. Nurse faculty shall retain the responsibility for selecting and guiding all undergraduate and/or graduate student learning experiences and the evaluation of student performances with input from preceptors.

B. Preceptors shall be selected according to written criteria jointly developed by faculty and nursing administration in the clinical facility, and in accordance with guidelines established by the board.

C. A faculty member shall be available to preceptors while students are involved in a preceptorship experience.

D. The faculty member shall confer with each preceptor and student at least weekly during the precepted experience.

E. Preceptor Learning Experiences

1. Undergraduate

a. Preceptor experiences for undergraduate students shall only occur during the last two academic semesters of a baccalaureate degree program and during one of the last two semesters of a diploma or associate degree program.

b. The total preceptorship experience for undergraduate students shall be limited to a maximum of 25 percent of the total clinical weeks in the program of study.

2. Graduate

a. The APRN role and population shall have supervised experiences in accordance with accreditation, certification, and education requirements and standards.

b. Faculty are responsible for all advanced practice registered nurse students in the clinical area whether supervision is direct or indirect.

i. Direct supervision occurs when advanced practice registered nurse program faculty function as on-site clinical preceptors.

ii. Indirect supervision has three components:

(a). to supplement the clinical preceptors teaching;

(b). to act as a liaison to a community agency; and

(c). to evaluate the students progress.

F. Preceptor Ratios

1. Undergraduate

a. The undergraduate nursing education degree program shall maintain a ratio of not more than 1 faculty to 15 undergraduate students (1:15) for the preceptorship experience.

b. There shall be one preceptor for each student.

2. Graduate

a. The graduate nursing education degree program shall maintain a ratio of not more than 1 faculty to 9 APRN students (1:9) for the preceptorship experience.

b. A preceptor shall not supervise more than two graduate APRN students during any given clinical experience.

G. Preceptor Qualifications

1. All preceptors must have an active unencumbered RN and/or APRN Louisiana license.

2. Undergraduate

a. The preceptor shall have at least a minimum of one year as a RN in the clinical area in which the preceptorship experience occurs.

b. Preceptors shall hold a minimum of a baccalaureate degree in nursing.

c. An individual RN, who does not possess a BSN, may be utilized as a preceptor provided that the RN has had no less than three years experience as an RN with a minimum of one year in the clinical area in which the experience occurs and has the requisite skills to guide the student to meet the desired course outcomes for the specific clinical experiences.

3. Graduate

a. The majority of clinical experiences shall be under a preceptor with an active unencumbered APRN license and certification in the population focused area of practice of primary and/or acute care as appropriate.

b. A mix of clinicians may be used to provide direct clinical teaching to students appropriate to the range of clinical experiences required to meet the program outcomes and enhance their inter-professional experiences.

c. The majority of the clinical experiences must occur with preceptors from the same population focused area in primary and/or acute care as appropriate.

La. Admin. Code tit. 46, § XLVII-3543

Promulgated by the Department of Health and Human Resources, Board of Nursing, LR 10:1028 (December 1984), amended by the Department of Health and Hospitals, Board of Nursing, LR 17:1207 (December 1991), LR 24:1293 (July 1998), LR 26:2791 (December 2000), repromulgated LR 27:853 (June 2001), amended LR 42890 (6/1/2016).

AUTHORITY NOTE: Promulgated in accordance with R.S. 37:918.