Document Type

Abstract

Publication Date

2018

DOI

10.4085/1304377

Publication Title

Athletic Training Education Journal

Volume

13

Issue

4

Pages

382

Conference Name

Athletic Training Educators' Conference, February 15-17, 2019, Grapevine, Texas

Abstract

Context: While research has revealed the characteristics, behaviors, and skills that help improve preceptors' success in meeting the objectives of clinical education, a gap in the literature exists as to how preceptors are being developed to ensure they exhibit such characteristics, behaviors, and skills. Understanding potential barriers that prevent program administrators from providing high-quality preceptor development opportunities will help develop future strategies and initiatives that enhance the development of preceptors. Objective: To explore the challenges program administrators (ie, program directors, clinical education coordinators) encounter when developing preceptors for graduate professional athletic training programs. Design: A consensual qualitative research approach guided this study. Setting: Individual semistructured phone interviews. Patients or Other Participants: Eighteen program administrators (17 clinical education coordinators, 1 program director; 5.92 ± 4.19 years of experience) participated in this study. Data saturation guided the number of participants. Data Collection and Analysis: Semistructured interviews were recorded and transcribed verbatim. A 4-person research team used a consensus process to analyze data and identify emergent themes. A consensual codebook that represented the data was created after researchers independently coded the data and discussed emergent themes. Credibility of the findings was established through the use of multiple researchers, an external auditor, and member checks. Results: Participants identified several challenges related to preceptor development, including what content to include, how and/or when to deliver preceptor development, and the process of creating and modifying preceptor development resources. Presenting content that is relevant and useful to a variety of preceptors from different employment settings and varying levels of experience was difficult. Participants reported not all preceptors were interested in learning about program policies and procedures, new accreditation standards, and/or new clinical skills. Variability in what content to include was challenging to balance when scheduling a large formal meeting of preceptors. Geographical location and busy work schedules made it difficult to decide how or when to deliver consistent and ongoing preceptor development. Finally, participants discussed their workload; while this part of their role was valued, there was no additional release time to plan, organize, and execute preceptor development. Finding adequate time to plan and develop content for preceptors with varying experience levels, interests, and needs was taxing. In addition, some preceptor development, due to scheduling, occurred individually, which further increased the workload for participants. Conclusions: While developing a large network of high-quality preceptors is essential to foster clinical education experiences for students, program administrators may encounter challenges. Different levels of experience and educational needs of preceptors may make it difficult to determine which content to include, especially as clinical immersion experiences increase in number. Administrators may need to offer multiple preceptor development options to accommodate the varying levels of experience, desired content, and geographical locations of preceptors; however, this would subsequently increase the workload challenge. Educating institutional administrators about the importance and demands of developing preceptors may open dialogue regarding workload and necessary resources associated with preceptor development. Future research should examine effective educational techniques to disseminate preceptor development.

Rights

© 2018 National Athletic Trainers' Association.

Included with the kind written permission of the copyright holders and the author.

Comments

Part of the work: Athletic Training Educators' Conference, February 15-17, 2019, Grapevine, Texas.

Available online: https://doi.org/10.4085/1304377

ORCID

0000-0003-3171-9141 (Cavallario)

Original Publication Citation

Rager, J. L., Cavallario, J. M., Hankemeier, D. A., Bacon, C. E. W., & Walker, S. E. (2018). 8870: Program administrators' perceived challenges associated with developing preceptors. Athletic Training Education Journal, 13(4), 382. https://doi.org/10.4085/1304377

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