CWU's Dietetic Internship program excellence comes from our 70+ outstanding preceptors!  Thank you for being gracious volunteers, mentors and experts for the future of dietetics.

CWU Preceptor Orientation Resources (new preceptors, please review):

1. Webinar: Guide to Being an Effective Preceptor Part 1 (1 hr/1CE); Guide to Being an Effective Preceptor Part II (1 hr/CE)

2. Practice Paper: Critical Thinking Skills in Nutrition Assessment  -- A great paper to help you understand where interns should be with their critical thinking skills.

3. Review CWU DI's Mission, Goals & Objectives here.

4. The DI Director will communicate specific rotation expectations & required competencies of the rotation/preceptor prior to placing an intern.  You will also be added to our preceptor email list, to be notified of program/ACEND changes as they occur.

5. Please ask DI Director for a current copy of our Policies & Procedures if you'd like to learn more about supervised practice site/preceptor selection & evaluation.

Benefits of Being a Preceptor:

1. Recruiting future employees - Many of our interns are hired by preceptors!

2. Professional Development - Having an intern helps preceptors stay current on the latest trends in dietetics practice.  Zisberg et al., 2003 revealed that a higher quality of care was provided when a student is present!

3. Assistance with job duties - Everyone wins, when interns are engaged in learning projects that are mutually beneficial. Interns help the preceptor complete tasks, while facilitating learning for the intern.  Both interns and preceptors have the highest internship/preceptor satisfaction when "real", worthwhile projects are completed!

4.  Personal Satisfaction - From the mentor/student relationship.

5. Resources - The CWU DI can help provide teaching resources for our preceptors.  If you have a need, please ask the DI Director!

Opportunities for Continuing Education:

1. Online Preceptor Training Module (8 CEs, free).  I encourage all preceptors to complete these training modules.  

2. Abbot Nutrition & Health Institute (wide variety of free CEs available, including a 7 CE Adult Malnutrition training). NOTE: For webinars to be accepted on your PDP, they need to be less than 3 years old. 

3. Evidence Analysis Library Tutorial (1 CE, free)

4. eNutrition Care Process Tutorial (2 CEs, free)

5.   WSAND Webinars (1 CE each, 3 webinars available, free for WSAND members).  Follow link to website, under "Of Professional Interest" tab there's a locked subheading "webinars" for members. 

6. Precepting  is included under the current Leadership activity yype with a three (3) CE/year, fifteen (15) CEs per five year recertification period maximum for Leadership and/or Precepting activities. Please see the following 3 attachments to help you properly record this for your PDP: 

• Precepting FAQ
• Preceptor Log Form (Optional)
• Preceptor Verification Form