Preceptorship: the progression from student to staff nurse.

Preceptorship assists the development from learner to accountable staff nurse. Time has to be available for preceptorship to be successful. The learning objectives need to be relevant for the individual preceptee. Preceptors require considerable support for their role. Preceptees had difficulty adjusting to being staff nurses and experienced high levels of stress. Most progress was observed after a three month period, when ability and confidence levels had increased and stress levels decreased.