Maggie Mallik

The role of nurse educators in the development of reflective practitioners: a selective case study of the Australian and UK experience.

The potential to improve patient/client care, stimulate the personal and professional growth of the practitioner and help close the theory practice gap has provoked much discussion in the nursing literature on the benefits of reflection on practice. In order to examine recent developments in this area, a study tour, supported by the Florence Nightingale Foundation, was conducted in Australia and the UK during the spring and summer of 1995. Using an illuminative case study approach, data collected demonstrated that although reflective practice was fully endorsed by the nursing profession in Australia, and there were excellent examples of reflective practice in use, the continued growth of the reflective practice movement appeared to be threatened by the rationalization of both clinical and theoretical education in the universities. Issues around methods of encouraging reflection in students focused on ethical use of journals, the levels of reflection developed and the outcome effectiveness of reflective learning. Although it is recommended that the nursing profession continue to endorse developments in reflective practice in the UK, it is also necessary to encourage both process and outcome evaluations of its effects on the development of the individual nurse and on the ensuing quality of health care delivery.

‘Practising under your own Pin’– a description of the transition experiences of newly qualified midwives

AIM Transition experiences of newly qualified midwives were examined in depth during the third phase of a UK evaluation study of midwifery education. BACKGROUND The fitness to practise and the retention of newly qualified nursing and midwifery graduates are pressing concerns for health care managers. The advantages of preceptorship are reported in the literature but the content and timing of schemes remain unclear. METHODS A semi-structured diary was kept for up to 6 months by 35 newly qualified midwives in 18 work sites covering all countries in the UK. The preceptor and supervisor of midwives for each newly qualified midwife completed short questionnaires about their preceptees performance, and a further sub-sample of newly qualified midwives and preceptors participated in a semi-structured interview. Data were analysed to elicit aspects of newly qualified midwives transition experiences. RESULTS Findings confirm that structured preceptorship schemes are not widely available. Newly qualified midwives primarily obtained transition support from members of the midwifery team. CONCLUSION Although perceived as competent, there is no demarcation point in becoming confident to practise as a registered practitioner. Implications for managers include the importance of a supportive culture within clinical teams for successful transition and the introduction of structured preceptorship schemes facilitated by appropriate rotation patterns.

The MINT project--an evaluation of the impact of midwife teachers on the outcomes of pre-registration midwifery education in the UK.

OBJECTIVE to explore the contribution of midwife teachers in preparing student midwives for competent practice. DESIGN a three phase design using qualitative and quantitative approaches. Phase one involved UK wide on-line questionnaire surveys, phase two was a case study method in six UK approved education institutions and phase three was a diary study with newly qualified midwives. PARTICIPANTS phase one included all UK Lead Midwives for Education (LMEs), midwife teachers and Local Supervising Authority Midwifery Officers; phase two participants were three year and shortened programme student midwives, midwife teachers, LMEs and programme leads from each of the four countries; and phase three included a sample of newly qualified midwives graduating from the case study sites and their preceptors and supervisors of midwives. FINDINGS midwife teachers were valued for their unique and crucial role in supporting the application of knowledge to midwifery practice. Visibility and credibility were two key concepts that can explain the unique contribution of midwife teachers. These concepts included being able to support skills acquisition, understanding of contemporary midwifery practice, having a role in practice contexts and able to offer personal support. Visibility of teachers in practice was vital for students and mentors to assist students put their learning into practice and monitor learning and assessment decisions. CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE given the complexity of midwifery education a team approach is essential in ensuring the effectiveness of these programmes. This requires a sufficient differentiation of midwife teacher roles to deliver the pre-registration curriculum. A set of resource quality indicators is proposed to support midwife teacher teams achieving sufficient clinical and academic expertise to deliver effective education programmes.