Clinical Faculty Orientation Practices in the United States

Abstract

Background: Due to the nursing faculty shortage, expert clinical nurses are working as novice clinical instructors (CIs). Orientation is needed to prepare these nurses to teach; however, lack of evidence-based guidelines for orientation programs can lead to variability among institutions. Purpose: The purpose of this study was to describe clinical nursing faculty orientation practices in the United States Methods: A descriptive convergent mixed methods design was used. Results: One hundred thirteen CIs participated. Of these, 70.8% were not provided with a formal orientation to their role. Duration, modality, and content varied widely among orientations. Four themes were derived from the qualitative data: Administrative Requirements, Transition to Clinical Educator, Mentorship, and Resilience. Conclusions: Clinical faculty orientation practices vary widely in the United States. Evidence-based guidelines are needed to streamline orientations to provide CIs with the requisite knowledge and skills to support clinical students.