As a new nurse, you will come across many experienced nurses who will influence your professional life in different ways. Two of the most important should be your preceptor and a mentor. Today, let’s dive into the difference between a preceptor and a mentor. Preceptors are teachers or tutors while a mentor is a trusted counselor or guide.

In my experience as a nurse, the preceptor gets new nurses ready and trained to work on the floor or unit. The preceptor makes sure new nurses’ skills are up to par and makes sure they get a wide variety of patients so they are ready for whatever may come their way when they are on their own. The preceptor makes sure they are comfortable calling docs and know when to call the docs. The preceptor and new nurse usually form a bond, which the new nurse can turn to whenever he or she starts working alone. In a sense, they have a buddy they can go to and ask questions.

I remember my first days being a nurse, afraid of everything and nervous I was going to do the wrong thing. My preceptor helped to give me confidence and make me comfortable in the decisions I made for my patients. She helped me to improve my skills. She made me comfortable helping the docs at the bedside and taught me when to call the docs when I am having problems with my patients.

A mentor can be almost anyone on the unit, but usually they are the experienced and a well-seasoned nurse. They will tell you that they have been a nurse as long as Flo Nightingale was around! The mentor may or may not be your preceptor; it may be another really great experienced nurse. Mentors are those people on the unit that, when you meet them, you feel totally at ease and comfortable asking them anything. You know they will not judge or make you feel silly for asking a question and will tell you that no question is silly or stupid.

My mentor has helped me adjust to being a nurse in a very intense and stressful area. She has given me tips on how to cope with the stress and still love my job as a nurse. She has also helped me to deal with those difficult families we see in the hospital. I often go to her when I have an idea I want to bounce off another person before I call the doctor.

Both preceptors and mentors will shape you into being the best nurse you can be and nursing units could not function without them. You need them to help guide and share all the knowledge they have. They will help lead you down the right path of becoming an experienced nurse.

And before you know it, one day, you will be the experienced nurse and become a preceptor and/or mentor to someone.

Editor’s note: Send questions or share your experiences with Sarah Jane, the columnist behind The Preceptor Place, at janesarah18@hotmail.com.