Most new hires in long-term care receive an orientation day, a login and a quick walk-through of the electronic health record. Then they are on the floor, learning the system under pressure while residents need care. Documentation errors, missed tasks and frustration follow, and experienced staff spend time rescuing newcomers. A paced thirty-day plan spreads learning over time and ties it to real work.
The outline below is general. Adjust it to your own policies, your configured workflows and the training materials your PointClickCare account provides.
Preparation prevents a slow first week.
Create the user account and confirm the correct role and permissions before the person arrives
Verify that the new hire can sign in on the devices they will use
Assign a preceptor, an experienced staff member who will answer questions
Prepare a short list of the documentation tasks that role performs most often
The first week is about confidence and safe basics, not mastery.
Privacy and security. Review HIPAA expectations, password handling, locking screens and never sharing logins.
Navigation. Learn how to find a resident, open the chart and move between common screens.
Shadowing. Watch the preceptor document in real time, with the new hire narrating what they see.
Reading before writing. Practice finding information such as orders, care plans and recent notes.
Downtime basics. Know where paper forms are and what to do if the system is unavailable.
Keep entry tasks supervised. The preceptor should review early entries together with the new hire.
Now the new hire begins to document under supervision.
Complete routine charting for a small group of residents, with the preceptor reviewing
Learn the facility's standards for notes, such as what to include and what to avoid
Practice documenting the tasks most common to their role, whether that is vital signs, care tasks or medication administration documentation for licensed staff
Learn how to correct an error properly, so the record stays accurate and auditable
At the end of the week, hold a ten-minute check-in. Ask what felt confusing and what was slower than expected.
The goal is steady, accurate work with less hovering.
Assign a full workload, with spot checks from the preceptor or charge nurse
Introduce shift-end tasks, such as reviewing outstanding items before handoff
Teach how to find and respond to alerts, reminders and outstanding documentation
Introduce communication between disciplines, such as how to flag something for a physician or a dietitian through your established process
Role-specific practice matters here. Aides, med technicians, charge nurses and unit managers use the system differently, so give each a tailored checklist.
By the last week, the focus shifts from "how do I do this" to "how do I do this well."
Review a sample of the new hire's documentation with them, praising what is accurate and coaching what is not
Discuss how their entries feed care planning, quality measures and billing, so they see why accuracy matters
Cover reports and dashboards relevant to their role
Gather feedback on the training itself, and update your plan
Define what "ready" looks like for each role. Examples might include completing assigned documentation by end of shift, using the correct locations for entries and handling common corrections independently. Use a short checklist signed by the preceptor, so progress is visible and consistent between hires.
Learning continues after the plan ends. Name a go-to person for questions, share short tips in staff meetings, and review common errors you notice in audits. When the system changes, such as new workflows or updated forms, provide a brief refresher rather than assuming everyone noticed.
Giving a login but no preceptor
Training only on the best-case workflow, without corrections or downtime
Letting one expert become the bottleneck for every question
Skipping feedback from new hires, who notice friction that veterans have stopped seeing
UnityCare IT helps long-term care operators in Oklahoma, Texas and Arkansas prepare accounts, devices and access for new hires ahead of time, so day one is spent learning instead of waiting for a login.
Keeping PointClickCare and other EHR systems fast, connected and available.
Call or text: 405-285-3845
New customers: start@unitycareit.com
Existing customers: support@unitycareit.com
Address: UnityCare Technologies, 2524 N Broadway Ste 554, PMB 947974, Edmond, Oklahoma 73034-4172