Occupational Therapy News OTnews February 2019_Joomag | Page 37

STUDENT EDUCATION FEATURE
Due to their inter-professional way of working and fully integrating
into the wider multidisciplinary team, the remaining five weeks
allowed the student to integrate fully as a member of the ward team,
being an occupational therapy representative.
She was also able to fully immerse herself into the ward way of life
and be involved on all levels of the ward quality assurance processes,
trust initiatives, and even national social media initiatives, while being
able to focus on key occupational therapy skills and showcase and
embed this into the ward.
Daily support was provided from the occupational therapy
team and supervision was still carried out as it would be on any
other placement. All reports were completed away from the ward
environment and the tutor still visited from university.
Therefore, throughout the placement, as the educator, I was
constantly visible and still made sure the student was trained and
supported on all aspects of occupational therapy, so they could
consolidate their learning and meet all of their university outcomes
and competencies within occupational therapy, to prepare her for
moving on to her second year in regards to developing action plans
for her future learning and development.
This way of undertaking a placement could not have been
completed without the commitment and significant support from the
ward. Staff were asked for feedback in regards to their experience of
having an occupational therapy student on the ward.
The ward manager reported: ‘The occupational therapy student
really embraced the experience and put into practice manual
handling techniques and assisted patients with personal care.
‘She was able to see the impact of the nurses’ role and the
importance of collaborative working within the multidisciplinary team.
‘The ward team benefitted from having a member of the
occupational therapy team on the ward and it allowed less
experienced members of the ward team to gain more knowledge
of what occupational therapy is and how this is implemented on the
ward.
‘It enabled some inter-professional working between the
occupational therapy student and nursing students, which benefitted
all of them. As a ward, we look forward to continuing to support
our occupational therapy colleagues with this innovative way of
completing practice placements.’
From my perspective as an educator, this way of completing
a placement allowed the student to significantly develop her
confidence in regards to communication, moving and handling skills
and promoting occupational therapy within the multidisciplinary team
on the ward.
I feel that by not having an educator with her constantly, she was
allowed the freedom to develop her own style and autonomy without
the feeling of being watched and constantly assessed.
The student was asked to reflect on this style of placement and
felt that it allowed her to fully understand the roles and responsibilities
of the ward staff, allowed her a good level of autonomy, with the
reassurance of support as it was needed, and allowed her to
fully explore occupational therapy values and how these can be
implemented on the ward.
Thew et al (2018) undertook a mixed methods
study to understand the impact of role emerging
placements (REPs) on the post-qualification
employability, career paths and practice of
occupational therapists. An online survey of
graduates (n=19) from one UK Masters’ level pre-
registration programme recruited six participants for
telephone interviews. Thematic analysis revealed
three overarching themes: ‘complementary benefits of
traditional and role emerging placements embedded
within the curriculum’; ‘inward impact: personal skills
and identity’; and ‘outward impact: added skills and
value for occupation-focussed service development
and delivery’. The authors identify several benefits of
REPs, including development of project management
skills, and suggest that REPs may be particularly
suited to ‘generation Y’ characteristics of young
adults currently entering training and the work place.
Reference
Thew M, Thomas Y, Briggs M (2018) The impact
of a role emerging placement while a student
occupational therapist, on subsequent qualified
employability, practice and career path. Australian
Occupational Therapy Journal, 65(3), 198–207
Whilst on placement she also had the opportunity for one of her
occupational therapy student peers to shadow her on the ward,
which enabled her to consider how to lead and teach others.
I believe that, as occupational therapists, we are in an excellent
position to be innovative within our practice and I feel that we can
also apply this to facilitating practice placements.
This model may not suit all practice placement areas, but we can
use our own skills as occupational therapists to problem solve, adapt
and grade the placement according to the needs of the student.
This model was received in a positive way by my student and
enhanced her overall experience. Moving forward, I feel that this
model would be a good way to explore the possibility of having more
than one student at a time in the future, and further enhance and
utilise peer learning and inter-professional ways of mentoring.
Reference
NHS Education for Scotland (2007) AHP practice-based education
facilitators programme. Models of practice placement provision for the
allied health professions: A guide (version 2). Edinburgh
Lucy Key, team leader occupational therapist, University Hospitals
of Derby and Burton NHS Foundation Trust. With acknowledgement
to: Queens Hospital Occupational Therapy Department; Ward 4,
Queens Hospital, University Hospitals of Derby and Burton; and
Natalie Matchett, AHP practice placement co-ordinator, Practice
Learning Support Unit, Royal Derby Hospital
OTnews February 2019 37