During this webinar, we delve into the initial challenges faced by recruiters and internationally educated nurses (IENs). The questions addressed include how to build cultural compatibility, familiarity, trust-building and community integration for IENs? How to season IENs to adapt to the new work environment? And, how to foster a sense of belonging in the new country.
Kara and Kaye take the discussion beyond clinical aspects, to explore the role of preceptors in improving the nurses’ settlement experiences. Kaye makes some useful suggestions for icebreaking. These include the introduction of new nurses to community programs and creating connections even before their arrival.
Watch the complete webinar to get actionable strategies to implement at your own healthcare service. You won’t want to miss Kaye’s wealth of experience as a nurse, educator, and influencer, as she shares valuable insights on how to seamlessly integrate into the American healthcare system. Kara’s experience as a talent acquisition specialist is also vital as she identifies areas of friction and shows how to transform them into opportunities for team building.
Kaye goes on to show that preceptors from similar backgrounds provide comfort to transitioning nurses. They discuss the impact of the first day, highlighting the need for trust-building and open communication even more. Find out what more about using preceptors for clinical concerns and to improve the nurses’ overall well-being in the complete webinar.
Start of Video
Kara Murphy (0:07)
All right. Hello, Kaye.
Kaye Mendoza (0:09)
Oh, hi, Kara. Good afternoon. Hi, how are you doing?
Kara Murphy (0:13)
I’m doing great. Thank you for joining. So today I have the absolute privilege to spend some time with Kaye, who has 18 years of experience in nursing.
She’s an educator, she’s an influencer, extensively supports internationally educated nurses, which I personally love. She’s an amazing mom, and I just love getting time with her, I always learn something. So I’m excited to get this started.
So today I’m meeting with Kaye to shed some light on, you know, what we consider a very critical component, and then enhancement of healthcare services, the role of preceptors and the integration and, and professional development of internationally educated nurses, which is so important and as the healthcare landscape continues to evolve, so does it need to, for this collaborative training and mentorship approach and, you know, we see preceptors they they stand as, you know, vital connector in the process, providing hands on guidance, fostering seamless integration of nurses into new clinical environments.
They’re tasked with easing the transition of internationally educated nurses. I would say that it, they’re one of the most important pieces, when you really think of that first time that they’re in the United States.
And, you know, they’re, they’re tasked with just the transition and the facilitating not only the transfer of knowledge, but also just the adherence to standards and practices, and then and the new settings.
So, Kaye, I’m excited, I know that you’ve been a preceptor, you’ve had many preceptors. So I’m, I’m just really curious to hear your recommendations for preceptors with internationally educated nurses.
Kaye Mendoza (2:02)
Thank you so much, Kara, for that wonderful and kind words of introduction. Um, I’m just a normal nurse, like anybody, and I was trying to find, you know, the best ways how to do things and find things to make it efficient and work, you know, on my, I’m the best of both sides.
My goal is to learn and educate. So that has been my goal ever since I started this journey, and in my nursing practice. So, I would like to start with, since I’m Filipino, I would like to express the importance of preceptorship, you know, on international dedicated healthcare professional.
So if I’m Filipino, I’ll be very comfortable if I’m being precepted by a Filipino themself. I understand that not a lot of places have diversity on their facilities. But the closest relationship would be an Asian to an Asian, you know, European, to European, Canadian to Canadian.
If you don’t have much of that diversity, that is totally fine to your next best option, you know, your bet there will be the kindest person in that organization. You know, if you have a nurse that you identify as the most caring, most, you know, friendly person in that organization or your department, I would recommend you starting with that.
Primarily, these nurses that will come into a new place, new, new world, right, new, really, everything new to them, their first day is always going to be the first thing that they will remember.
They will never remember the second, they will not remember the second day or third day of their orientation. They will always remember the first day of their orientation. And this is actually a big impact in their retention. A big impact in their transition in the success of them becoming as part of your organization.
We always say “first impression lasts”, right? So it’s very important to start easy with these people. And these people will not say hey, this ICU of this hospital is awesome. They will never say that. They always say, “Oh, this hospital is awesome”. If they’re negative. They, the manager of this ambulatory surgery is awesome. They will have those impact of this hospital is friendly. Right.
So it and that will start them you know, getting more excited on their facility. So that are my first two things that I want to emphasize. It’s you know, take it easy. There’s so much things to be learning and nobody’s rushing on the first day because the first day you will really have to emphasize this. It’s building trust.
As nurses to patients we always emphasize the importance of building rapport on the first day that patients come to the hospital. So it’s the same thing with, with this transitional nurses, you know. Maybe a new grad, maybe a foreign nurse. But most importantly, the foreign nurses need a lot of help in transitioning. Right?
Kara Murphy (5:15)
Yeah, I can imagine you’re just coming into this new country and starting and to be able to have a nurse who maybe was also, you know, also an internationally educated nurse that came over here and really understands that experience and just being in the U.S. for a few days, and then starting work, and somebody who’s just kind that really can take that time and connect with them is really important.
That’s great. Thank you.
Kaye Mendoza (5:40)
Yep, the preceptor role in these nurses who are transitioning, it’s a big impact. I have been through a horrible preceptor, I’ve been through a best preceptor, I’ve been a preceptor myself.
And I can tell the success of these people staying in your facility is going to be impacted by the people who they get on their first days at work.
The second thing that I want to emphasize: this is communication. A lot of our foreign educated nurses or just workforce, simply have different cultures. For example, is, you know, majority of the Southeast Asian countries like me Filipino. Our culture is you don’t ask authority.
So it’s always that factor that when you ask this, nurses who are new to your country, not only new to the country, nurses, but I would say in general. If the if you ask them questions, “did you understand?” Most likely, I would say they will say 100% is “Yes”.
“Do you have questions?”, you know, and they will say “no questions”. Important to explore that, that the culture plays a very big impact on the response here. Understanding that is very important, as a preceptor, is to ask them, you’re very free, you know, any questions you feel like asking, you know, feel free to ask me if you don’t understand.
If you have additional questions, you know, save my number, this is my phone number, text me, you know, I might not be in the same, you know, area, I might be on a lunch.
So educating these preceptors, that they’re very accessible, if they have questions for these for foreign nurses to come in. And they have resources is very helpful.
A lot of my nurses have come in here in the United States, not my nurses but I would say the nurses who came in, came to me, they said, “hey we felt like we were just, you know, put in here, and then you do on your own, you know, find your way out, you know”.
So that is a very challenging scenario that you’re gonna put these nurses, they are transitioning not only clinically, they’re transitioning culturally, socially, personally. They’re going through a lot of things and the first three weeks of their life here in the United States, is the most challenging part that they’re going to go through.
Probably when they go home, they’re crying, because they miss their family. A lot of them, this is a lot of them, their first to be away from their family. And if you’re familiar with, you know, Southeast Asian culture, especially Filipino, our family ties is very strong.
You know, you see one house with 13 people in there, we’re throwing party for every, you know, our size is very, very, very tight. And being away is probably for their first time in their life. They, they are going through different struggles of their life.
And I want you to see it that way. And if you can be kind with them and be more patient and give them more time to adjust. It’s going to help them succeed in this transition. Yeah. And so
Kara Murphy (9:03)
it really sounds like it really sounds like beyond the clinical just checking in with them in all areas that there’s so much going on. And I imagine because you shared that a lot of times they’ll say, you know, they don’t have any questions or, you know, it’s easy to say I understand when it’s just a yes, no.
But that bond that can be created with the preceptor from the beginning to really have that connection where a nurse feels comfortable with asking questions and sharing really makes for the success of that international nurse and really that partnership with the preceptor as well.
Kaye Mendoza (9:41)
Absolutely, the preceptor will be their buddy system kind of like they and that will, you know, given to the success of this new nurse coming to the new facility.
Beyond clinical there are things that you can ask “Hey, are you here?” Are you new here? I mean, yeah, definitely. You’re new all right. “How are you doing?” “How are you settling with your new place?” “Do you need help in locating like the good grocery area?”, there’s, you know, this family with kids, you might want to ask them, “how’s your kids?” “Did you find them school?”, “how’s the school bus?”, “were you able to get around those things?”
And if there are community programs around the area, you might want to introduce them, “hey, you know what there is every Wednesday, if you are single, calm, they have like painting, you know, class here, painting sessions”.
Try to invite them, put it on the wall, you know, sometimes they will just find it on the nurses’ nursing lounge, and they will be like, “I’m shy to attend. But I really like to attend, but I don’t know anybody there”.
But if you have a preceptor who probably you think that will have similar single person that would want to try that out, that’s a good way to, to, you know, engage them in the community that will give them more value of staying in that area in that location. It will help them in in feeling, you know, just the feeling of belongingness because they are far away from where they are, belonging before.
So this is their feeling alone on this scenario. So finding a home for them again, to start a home and finding those key people are very important. And those are your preceptors.
Kara Murphy (11:22)
Yeah, I love that. And I love that you just gave some context around like what it’s like to count. I mean, everybody wants to belong, right?
And, you know, coming into not only a new team that you’re working with a new hospital. But it’s an entire new country. I mean, really stopping that. That’s amazing.
Kaye Mendoza (11:44)
Yep, yeah. So those are very important to go. If you have a preceptor that you can go beyond you know, the community and identify that preceptor. Know, if you don’t have diversity in your location, the kindness and you know, the easy first.
Don’t throw them, don’t throw them to the wolves. Not on the first three weeks, maybe on the second month, or first. Let them get on their feet first and take it easy.
Kara Murphy (12:14)
Yeah, that’s great advice. So really finding the right preceptor making sure that they understand what the nurse has gone through to get there, understand the culture a little bit understand that the communication, somebody who’s really kind and compassionate.
And I think that’s great, that you’re sharing that because I see a lot of hospitals having great taskforce groups or steering committees. And those are things that they could look at when they’re looking at the preceptor programs specifically for their internationally educated nurses.
Kaye Mendoza (12:47)
Yep. Thank you very much for for, you know, for your time, Kara. And I hope this, we’re able to give them good insights, you know, as for me, is an experience of a foreign nurse and as experience for me as a preceptor and being precepted upon, you know.
It creates a very good atmosphere of you know, opening all our Johari window, I would say.
Kara Murphy (13:09)
I love it. I love it. No, it was great insight. And I was just going to share real quickly, one best practice that I see is having the preceptors actually being on a Zoom call with the nurses prior to coming over to be able to meet and how powerful is that?
If you’ve already met your preceptor before going in the first day? So that’s something else that we’ve seen work really well.
Kaye Mendoza (13:30)
Oh, yes, absolutely. I have, like people come to me. Before I always tell them, we’ll have the you know, give me um, two months before your departure in the Philippines.
And then when they get here, you know, the first thing they call is me. “Kaye, I’m here already. I’m very excited”, and, you know, having that person that they can, you know, be you know, be comfortable is a big help on them.
And a lot have said that, you know, you connecting with us before arriving in the Philippines really helped us tremendously in our transition.
Kara Murphy (14:05)
Yeah, that’s amazing. Okay, as always, I always learned something from you. So thank you for your time, and I look forward to our next conversation.
Kaye Mendoza (14:15)
Well, thank you, Kara. Have a good day, everyone.
Kara Murphy (14:18)
You too, bye-bye.
Kaye Mendoza (14:20)
Bye.
End of Video
