Cate Fitzgerald

Supporting new graduate professional development: a clinical learning framework.

BACKGROUND/AIMS New graduate occupational therapists are required to competently deliver health-care practices within complex care environments. An occupational therapy clinical education programme within a large public sector health service sought to investigate methods to support new graduates in their clinical learning and professional development. METHODS Three cycles of an insider action research approach each using the steps of planning, action, critical observation and reflection were undertaken to investigate new graduate learning strategies, develop a learning framework and pilot its utility. Qualitative research methods were used to analyse data gathered during the action research cycles. RESULTS Action research identified variations in current practices to support new graduate learning and to the development of the Occupational Therapy Clinical Learning Framework (OTCLF). Investigation into the utility of the OTCLF revealed two themes associated with its implementation namely (i) contribution to learning goal development and (ii) compatibility with existing learning supports. CONCLUSIONS AND SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY The action research cycles aimed to review current practices to support new graduate learning. The learning framework developed encourages reflection to identify learning needs and the review, discussion of, and engagement in, goal setting and learning strategies. Preliminary evidence indicates that the OTCLF has potential as an approach to guide new graduate goal development supported by supervision. Future opportunity to implement a similar learning framework in other allied health professions was identified, enabling a continuation of the cyclical nature of enquiry, integral to this research approach within the workplace.

Evaluation of a Collaborative Project to Engage Occupational Therapy Clinicians in Promoting Practice Placement Education

The Queensland Occupational Therapy Fieldwork Collaborative (QOTFC), which was founded in 2004, includes representatives from universities, practising occupational therapists, professional registration bodies and key employers, and aims to promote a shared vision for the future of practice placement education (fieldwork) in Queensland, Australia. Strategic alliances between key occupational therapy stakeholders were fostered by the QOTFC to address a shortfall of occupational therapy practice placement education opportunities in Queensland. This paper describes a project that aimed to engage occupational therapy clinicians in localised ‘hubs’ across the state of Queensland, with a view to solving practice placement shortfalls. The project evaluation and outcomes are discussed. The outcomes indicated that ownership of practice placement education across the entire profession is critical, and can be achieved through a strategic and a collective focus of key stakeholders working collaboratively with local professionals.

Simulation in Occupational Therapy Curricula: A literature review

BACKGROUND/AIM Simulated learning experiences are increasingly being used in health-care education to enhance student engagement and provide experiences that reflect clinical practice; however, simulation has not been widely investigated in occupational therapy curricula. The aim of this paper was to: (i) describe the existing research about the use and evaluation of simulation over the last three decades in occupational therapy curricula and (ii) consider how simulation has been used to develop competence in students. METHODS A literature review was undertaken with searches of MEDLINE, CINAHL and ERIC to locate articles that described or evaluated the use of simulation in occupational therapy curricula. RESULTS/FINDINGS Fifty-seven papers were identified. Occupational therapy educators have used the full scope of simulation modalities, including written case studies (22), standardised patients (13), video case studies (15), computer-based and virtual reality cases (7), role-play (8) and mannequins and part-task trainers (4). Ten studies used combinations of these modalities and two papers compared modalities. Most papers described the use of simulation for foundational courses, as for preparation for fieldwork, and to address competencies necessary for newly graduating therapists. The majority of studies were descriptive, used pre-post design, or were students perceptions of the value of simulation. CONCLUSION Simulation-based education has been used for a wide range of purposes in occupational therapy curricula and appears to be well received. Randomised controlled trials are needed to more accurately understand the effects of simulation not just for occupational therapy students but for longer term outcomes in clinical practice.