The Role of the Practice Educator
Practice Educator competencies were published by the HSE and The Therapy Project Office.
The full document can be found at
http://www.hse.ie/eng/staff/Leadership_Education_Development/healthsocialcareprofs/Pr ojectoffice/predcompetencies20008.pdf
In summary Practice Educators are expected to:
1. Ensure client consent for student participation in their work.
2. Treat students in a manner that respects their developing competence.
3. Acknowledge different learning styles, set learning goals and review in supervision weekly.
4. Teach, educate, supervise, mentor and evaluate students and to ensure
opportunities are available for students to develop their competence in the practice context.
5. Give appropriate and timely informal and formal feedback.
6. Be an appropriate role model of professional conduct for the student.
7. Adhere to professional practice standard, legislation and policies relevant to the practice context.
8. Assess students fairly.
9. Communicate with the Practice Education Team.
Occupational therapy students carrying out their Practice Education placement do so under the following assumptions:
1. Therapists’ primary responsibilities are to their patients/clients.
2. Students presence will not hinder the work of the therapist.
3. Students’ behaviour during the placement should not compromise the therapists credibility or relationships with other colleagues and staff.
Good Practice in Practice Education
There are also guidelines on good practice in Practice Education published by the HSE and the Therapy Project Office. These can also be downloaded from the NUI Galway Practice Education Website
http://www.nuigalway.ie/faculties_departments/occupational_therapy/practice_education.
html
In summary these guidelines give guidance on:
1. Preparation for Practice Education 2. During Practice Education
3. Post-Practice Education
Practice Education Process at NUI Galway
Expectations of Students at Each Level of Practice Education
Expectations of Placement
Level Observation
Placement Year 2
Level 1 Placement Year 4 Level 2 Placement Purpose of
Placement Introduction. Practice. Practice and
Competency.
Level of
Competency Emerging. Consolidating. Competent.
Level of
Supervision Educator: Use direct
active supervision. Coach: Use collaborative
Autonomy None. Participates in all
tasks. Plans and leads assessments, reduced case load.
Works independently in straightforward / routine cases. Seeks guidance and
supervision for more complex work.
Contributes to developments in the service.
Competency
Attainment Understanding
Occupational Therapy practice.
Applying knowledge and attaining skills of practice. Developing competence.
Prepare to enter work as a competent, critical and reflective practitioner.
Roles and Responsibilities of Practice Educator, Student and Practice Education Team
Educator Student University Practice
Education Co-ordinator Before
Placement
Complete a site profile.
Read the Practice Education Handbook.
Prepare an orientation file for the student.
Familiarize with the assessment form and student assignments.
Send the site profile and details of the student on contact.
Sign the NUI Galway agreement form and return to the University.
Complete a C.V. and letter of introduction.
Send to the Practice Educator.
Read the Practice Education handbook.
Read the CORU codes of professional conduct.
Read the site profile and complete pre-readings for the placement.
Develop a draft learning contract.
Prepare the student for Practice Education.
Provide information to the Practice Educator on the student and
expectations of placement.
Provide information on Garda Clearance, insurance and assessment.
Provide the NUI Galway agreement form.
First Week of Placement
Orient the student to the setting.
Negotiate and agree a learning contract.
Establish regular
supervision using one of the NUI Galway
supervision forms and set weekly learning objectives.
Attend placement.
Negotiate and agree a learning contract.
Maximize all learning opportunities.
Maintain Blackboard contact with all students.
Half-way Complete the halfway report. Contact the University if student not progressing.
Review and maintain the learning contract.
Complete the half-way report. Review and maintain the learning contract.
Listen to feedback and continue to maximize opportunities for competency development.
Provide support via phone, email, skype or a site visit to both student and educator.
End of Placement
Complete final report.
Meet with student and discuss report contents.
Complete the final
report. Collate final reports at the University.
Orientation of Student to the Setting
Research has indicated that one of the most important factors in a quality placement is a welcoming environment that is organised and orientates the student to the placement.
This checklist is a suggested reference for both Practice Educator and student as to what could be covered in the students’ orientation to the placement.
Initial Orientation Need: Day One
• Desk space OR area student can work/desk sharing / Blank timetable.
• Storage of personal belongings/ Toilets/Tea/coffee/lunch facilities
• Policy on mobile phones/ computer use/internet.
• Orientation to building/Safety procedures, locking up, personal safety procedures.
• Timetable/ Working hours/Diary if being supplied.
• Fire safety (evacuation plan, location of extinguishers etc.).
• Procedures on answering the phone/Mobile phone/devices policy.
Introduction to Staff / Staff Roles
• Key personnel /Provide staff list and contact phone numbers.
Orientation: Week One
• OH &S /Building security/Infection prevention and control.
• Resources – location.
• Management of case records.
• Procedures for using internet.
Getting to Know the Student
• Past placement experiences – positive and negative learning experiences.
• Identify skills/strengths from past placements.
• Personal objectives/learning contract / Preferred learning style.
• Disability? Are accommodations needed?
Suggested Content of Service Resource File
• Service information/ Outline of the management structure.
• List of members of the multi-disciplinary team with contact details.
• Samples of standard documentation e.g. referral forms etc. / referral procedure.
• Department policies and procedures/ Health and Safety regulations.
• List of medical conditions usually encountered in the department.
• Map of hospital/ unit etc. / Area map.
• List of assessments used in the department.
• Library facilities/ List of recommended reading.
• Commonly used abbreviations.
• Telephone procedures and dialling codes.
• Emergency numbers in service, e.g. cardiac team.
• Car parking facilities or information on public transport.
• Articles or research/ Good practice guidelines related to practice context.
Devising a Learning Contract with your Student
The student should bring a draft learning contract. The contents should be negotiated and agreed in the first week of placement and reviewed in supervision. The learning contract focuses the learner on their goals of the placement. A sample format for the Learning Contract is included in Appendix E. A Blank electronic learning contract can be found at http://www.nuigalway.ie/faculties_departments/occupational_therapy/practice_education.
html
Learning Contracts should specify the following:
1. The learning objectives or goals to be achieved 2. The support required and resources available
3. Details of how learning goals or objectives will be addressed
4. The timeframe within which goals or objectives should be achieved
5. The nature of the evidence that will indicate when goals or objectives have been met 6. The criteria to be used to assess the evidence
7. The signatures of the parties involved in the contract.
Twelve steps to working through a learning contract:
Step 1: The Learner’s needs or gaps in knowledge or skills are clarified: student identifies strengths, knowledge and skills and identifies weaknesses in relation to current placement. Practice Educator can provide guidance.
Step 2: Learning outcomes are defined: Agreeing on what will be achieved in a defined timescale.
Step 3: Learning opportunities and resources needed to attain outcomes are
identified e.g. literature, technology, members of the multi-disciplinary team etc.
Step 4: The process by which learning is to occur is specified in a plan. Plan reflects learning strategies to be used.
Step 5: Responsibilities of the people involved are detailed.
Step 6: Timeframe for completion is determined: Practice Educator facilitates the student to set a realistic timeframe.
Step 7: The criteria against which the achievement of goals is to be assessed are recorded: A checklist for the evidence required to ensure that the terms of the learning contract are fulfilled.
Step 10: The contract is revisited and revised as necessary as the plans progress.
Step 11: Outcomes are evaluated against the recorded criteria: Good to consider what helped or hindered learning process.
Step 12: Future needs may indicate a renegotiation of the contract.
Example learning contracts are provided in the Placement Booklets.
Assessment of Student Competence in Practice Education
The current assessment forms were designed in collaboration between Trinity College Dublin, NUI Galway and AOTI. These are based on the HSE Therapy Project Office Entry Level Competencies for Occupational Therapists -
http://www.nuigalway.ie/faculties_departments/occupational_therapy/practice_education.
html.
Student competence is assessed by the Practice Educator in placement and recorded on the relevant competency form as listed below.
Year 1: Practice Education Observation Assessment Form (Appendix A).
Year 2: Practice Education Assessment Form – Level 1 (Appendix B).
Year 4: Practice Education Assessment Form – Level 2 (Appendix C).
The Level 1 form comprises 36 competencies while the Level 2 form comprises 49
competencies. Competencies can be marked as “Not Evident”, “Emerging”, “Evident” or
“Enhanced”. To pass the assessment, all competencies must be either “Evident” or
“Enhanced” by the end of placement. Two formal assessments take place in each placement – after four weeks and at the end of placement.
Both Level 1 and Level 2 assessment forms assess five areas of competency:
1) Occupational Competencies 2) Communication Competencies
3) The Occupational Therapy Process Competencies 4) Professional Behaviour Competencies
5) Professional Development Competencies
To pass placement all competencies must be evident or enhanced.
NOT EVIDENT – This competency was not demonstrated.
EVIDENT – This competency was consistently demonstrated.
EMERGING – This competency was not consistently demonstrated.
ENHANCED – This competency was consistently demonstrated. The performance was to a high standard.
In all practice placements there are also University Marked Assessment items which evidence student’s application of knowledge and competency in a practice setting. These are marked by the Practice Education Co-ordinator. These are listed below:
Observation Placement – 1,000 word occupational analysis (Pass/Fail).
Recommended Educational Approaches for Each Placement Level
Level Observation 2nd Year (Level 1) 4th Year (Level 2) Primary
Focus of Placement
Exposure to occupational
therapy in a practice context. Acquisition of practice skills
and developing competence. Integration of skills and demonstration of competence to graduate.
Practice Educator Approach
Teach. Educate and provide
opportunities for practice. Relinquish control, allow student to show competence.
OT Practice Student observes or participates with direct instruction. Allow some ‘hands on’.
Provide opportunities to observe, participate and lead on all aspects of the OT Process. Referral – assessment – intervention etc. Increase challenges in routine situations.
Student to organize, lead, choose and apply appropriate assessments/interventions.
Evaluate performance collegially. Allow to manage a caseload and identify strategies for managing complexity.
Feedback Provide direct and specific
feedback. Provide a mix of direct
feedback and asking student to identify what went well and what were the challenges.
Ask student to reflect and self-evaluate before giving direct and specific feedback.
Reasoning Use case narratives or stories and explain your thinking and decision making to the student.
Use narratives and case stories and discuss options (get students to choose correct options) considered in your thinking and decision making.
Use narratives and case stories but prompt student to identify their reasoning by them describing, exploring/discussing options or alternatives to interventions.
Theory Prompt student to think about how the Person, their
Occupation, the Environment, and their participation (PEO-P) can be applied to a client.
Ask the student to report on a model or theories that may apply to clients in this practice context.
Set expectations that a model of practice and frames of reference will be applied to clients and give time for student to defend their choice and how it was applied in practice.
Evidencing Learning
Prompt student to ask questions and provide options for answers, students can choose the one they think may be correct.
Prompt student to
communicate their thinking in pre and post intervention. Get student to give options for the next action. Ask students to tell you why a task is being completed / approached in a certain way.
Encourage student to report on their thinking (options and choices), reflections, and self-evaluation of performance.
Encourage students to seek out learning opportunities and report back. Facilitate critical evaluation of their
performance, occupational therapy and interventions in this context with suggestions for improvements.
Supervision
Supervision is an integral part of Practice Education for students. The educational and supportive supervisory functions of Practice Education supervision are closely aligned to those of professional supervision for qualified staff therefore, the experiences that students gain from being supervised and of taking on the responsibilities of being a supervisor begin early in an Occupational Therapist’s career (Professional supervision in occupational therapy, AOTI, 2010).
1. Supervision should be scheduled as a formal meeting weekly.
2. Students should prepare new items for the supervision meeting as well as be prepared to report on actions from the previous meeting. These can be based on student reflections or informal feedback given since the last meeting.
3. The learning contract should be an integral part of supervision, and should be reviewed or added to in the supervision meeting. Supervision is collaborative with both parties setting objectives, talking and planning future actions.
Supervision can be separated into the following sections:
Competency Review (Learning and Development): Progress from last week (including student self-appraisal from reflection), what went well, what were the challenges, what is to be completed by the next week and to what standard.
Development of reasoning and reflection (Developing practice thinking): Discussion on case study or other cases regarding the occupational therapy process, best practice, local policy and procedure, application of theory or duty of care. Encourage multiple perspectives including those of the service user to develop critical thinking skills.
Support and encouragement (Developing as a professional): Discuss personal challenges of working in this setting and strategies for management of self and as well as professional approaches to others. Practice Educators need to give space for students to be supported in managing emotions, stress and anxiety generated from new experiences on placement.
They are being socialised into the profession so supervision can facilitate a sense of
‘belonginess’ to this placement and to the profession.
Accountability (Developing professional autonomy and confidence): Ask student to report on how they have used their initiative this week, such as what they have researched or read, what progress they have made on project work or what ideas they have for the
development of new resources. Encourage and reinforce appropriate use of time in the workplace as they need to develop as independent and proactive professionals.
Supervision should be recorded on one of the NUI Galway supervision forms (Appendix G).
Actions should be specific and time framed. The supervision form can be found at
Providing Feedback to the Student
Informal
Feedback is the most important part of educating students in work settings. It is highly valued by students but they prefer realistic feedback, so be direct and factual. After a student contributes to an activity is the ideal time to give informal feedback. This can be an overall performance, verbal and non-verbal communication, content, knowledge, approach, pace or attitude to the activity. Tell the student what went well and give goals that they need to achieve next time… ‘you did this well on these aspects 1) 2) and 3) but next time I would like to see you work towards achieving 1) 2) and 3)’. Respond positively to feedback seeking behaviour. Sometimes it is useful to use the word ‘feedback’ as some
conversational style feedback may not be perceived by the student as feedback on their performance. If a student is becoming over demanding of feedback and this is impacting on your workload, agree some ground rules or boundaries.
Formal
Make a time to meet mid-week as this is a one-week placement. Ask the student to prepare for the meeting with a reflection on one or two activities they contributed to during that day or during a specific time period. Give them time to self- evaluate and evidence that they have heard your previous informal feedback and what to describe the actions they have completed as a result of that feedback. Discuss how they can ensure they work towards achieving the performance goals. Discuss their proposed strategies to achieve these goals and their relevance to this placement. In other words, reflect but also ensure they are travelling towards achievement of competencies. The student will want realistic feedback.
Give examples of good performance, their strengths and their skills. Identify areas that need to be addressed in future placements. Make a plan for the following week. This will ensure that the student is clear about the next steps that need to be completed.
If concerns exist be specific on these concerns. Give clear expectations on what they need to show or perform to indicate the achievement of an ‘evident’ competence grade at the end of this placement.
Written
Please use one of the NUI Galway student supervision templates which can be found at http://www.nuigalway.ie/faculties_departments/occupational_therapy/practice_education.
html.
Who to Contact in the Event of a Problem or Query?
Should you require advice or assistance prior to, during or after a student is on placement it is advisable that you contact one of the following:
1. the Practice Tutor (if there is a tutor in your department) or Regional Placement Facilitator (if there is one in your region);
2. the Practice Education Coordinator at the University, Ms. Caroline Hills.
[email protected]. Telephone (091) 495294
In the event that neither is available, please contact another member of the NUI Galway staff [(091) 492957/5470] who will be more than happy to deal with your query or concern.
Identify concerns regarding the behaviour, performance or competency development of a student.
Discuss your concerns informally with a practice tutor or regional placement facilitator if available; if not contact the Practice Education Co-ordinator for informal support and advice/strategies to manage concerns. Do this as soon as concerns are identified as it is
important to address any issues as early as possible.
Concerns continue, persist or the student is not progressing.
Complete a ‘Concerns Exist’ Form and send to the University (Appendix D).
List concerns and give examples of them.
Share the form with your student.
Practice Education Co-ordinator will visit the placement. A Placement visit form will be completed (Appendix F)
Discussions will be completed with Practice Educator, student and then together.
A SMART remediation plan will be completed and agreed by all parties.
Agreed support systems will be put in place to review the remediation plan. This will be developed on an individual basis and can include further visits from the Practice Education
Co-ordinator or telephone contacts with all parties.
Quality and Practice Education
Practice Educator Courses
NUI Galway provide courses on a regular basis for Practice Educators. The two day
interdisciplinary Practice Education workshop for beginner Practice Educators is run on an annual basis. For details for Practice Educators courses please contact the Practice
Education Co-ordinator.
Feedback from Practice Educators
After placement Practice Educators will be provided with a feedback template to complete and return to the University.
Feedback will be summarised in an annual report and actions as a result of that feedback, either completed or planned will be reported in the annual Practice Education Report.
General feedback for students will be added to the Blackboard Site of their course and if
General feedback for students will be added to the Blackboard Site of their course and if