Practice Education Facilitators

1. Practice Education Facilitators April 2005

2. ASSESSMENT AND FEEDBACK Within the practice placement environment

3. Aims:- The mentor will have a clearer understanding of the assessment process, including their professional responsibility and accountability Outcomes:- The mentor will recognise how each step of the assessment process is integral to providing a ‘fair and objective’ assessment. The mentor will be able to demonstrate knowledge of the effective use of the Continuous Assessment of Practice (CAP) book.

4. Domains of learning COGNITIVE – thought processes involved in acquisition and organisation of knowledge AFFECTIVE – how attitude and values systems develop through learning PSYCHOMOTOR – how intention is translated into action/behaviour (Heron) What is being assessed? • Practical or technical skills • Communication /interpersonal skills • Organisational skills • Knowledge base • Safe practice and critical thinking skills • Ability to function as a team member • Confidence, professional attitude • (ACE report 1993) Process and Tools of Assessment Process involves – defining a learning objective – collecting the evidence – matching this evidence against the learning objective – making a judgement based on that matching activity Tools used – Benner (from novice to expert); Bondy (in CAP booklet)

5. Assessment on a Continuum • Formative and Summative Assessment • Formative assessments inform the student of their progress and highlight study areas that require development • Summative assessments inform the student what they have achieved at the end of a period of study ( e.g. final assessment in a placement, an examination at college) • Assessment within a • Practice Placement • Introductory discussion – formative • Ongoing/continuous – formative • Self assessment – formative • Midway assessment – formative • Final assessment - summative Effective feedback • Descriptive/Objective /Constructive • Specific – not general • Focus on behaviour not personality • Involve sharing information • Be well timed • Solicited rather than imposed • Verified/checked by the recipient • Avoids collusion • Pays attention to consequences of feedback Effective mentorship means: • Showing concern, establishing a climate of trust • Motivating the learner – ensure access to a wide range of experiences • Act as a resource • Recognise tension/conflict –use as a learning experience • Reflect and accept own strengths and weaknesses

6. Assessment of Student Nurses in Practice Placements

7. Helpful things to have • A copy of the curriculum so that you know what they have already learnt • The PEF’s have got summaries of the curriculum - Just ask them and they will get you any information you need OR download the PowerPoint copies of the curriculum that you will find at this site. • Know where the student is on the course • If the student doesn’t know you can get it from the change list that told you the student was coming • A copy of the CAP booklet • Go through the CAP book and see what clinical outcomes can be individualised to your area • Know what special learning opportunities your area can offer More helpful things to have • Knowledge of how the CAP book works: read the first four pages Cap books can be downloaded from http://www.cppsu.dundee.ac.uk • A set of goals/objectives • A learning contract with the student

8. What to Do... • Sit down at the beginning and go through the book with the student. We all know it’s difficult BUT if you don’t do it then the whole experience is doomed before it starts • Make a learning plan The PEF’s have made a template to help you. They are also only a phonecall away • Identify a “second- in- charge” You should have another colleague for a associate mentor for when the mentor is on nights, holiday, days off or ill.All of you should know how you are going to cover each other in order to allow the student to almost always have a mentor handy • Make a definite date for another meeting - you do not have to wait for half way - do not forget to write down a log of each meeting (even just a few words) If you don’t both have a date in your diary and in the ward’s diary then the meeting will not get the priority it requires and it will never happen • Go through the book again at halfway - Adapt the learning plan to fill in the gaps • YOU DO NOT HAVE TO WAIT UNTIL HALF WAY IF YOU FEEL THERE IS A PROBLEM This is the most important meeting of all - if you don’t have this meeting there is no way of planning the adapted learning plan so that the student will have all the support that can be given in order to pass the placement

9. More what to do... • At the end of the placement the student should have achieved all of the competencies to the expected level shown in the book • If they haven’t - you must mark them as not having achieved the competency in the CAP book • Tick the box on the blue assessment sheet that the student has not achieved the competency level required for the placement • If the student fails the placement despite everything the mentor has done to support them, and all the support has been documented, then it is unfortunate - but not the blame of the placement or the mentor

10. Half-Way Assessments • You MUST give a minimum of a half-way assessment A half way assessment is required for every student. This will mean going through the book with them and discussing each individual section in the book. • Half-way assessments can be pencilled into the book or otherwise documented. This will highlight any areas that need to be developed in the second half of the placement • The learning plan can be adapted to show what areas are going to be concentrated on in the second half of the placement. • EVERYTHING DECIDED AT THE HALF-WAY ASSESSMENT MUST BE DOCUMENTED Another point:- • Good Students can have their learning plan adjusted too !

11. Clinical Competencies and Continuous Assessment of Practice Book (Lets just call it the CAP book) There should be a copy of the book in the ward/area • Students will have their own book • They are responsible for their own book • They are responsible for getting it filled in • Mentors MUST be aware of how the book works- read the first 4 pages and it explains exactly what to do with the book • Clinical outcomes are derived directly from the NMC - the language can be a little difficult but that can’t be changed just yet • Clinical outcomes are assessed on a scale from “dependant” to “independent” • Students have 3 years to get all the way up the scale - even 3rd years are still learning

12. CAP books • Each outcome has 4 spaces- This is because the student may have one or two placements each semester. Semester 1 one Semester 1 two Semester 2 one Semester 2 two Find out which semester and which placement the student is in (and write in the right box). If the student doesn’t know you can get it from the change list that informed the ward/area that the student was coming OR from the college.

13. CAP books Documentation • Every meeting with the student should be documented - even if it is only a few words • You can photocopy pages from the book and stick them in if you need more room to write • The student’s expected target level of competence for the placement is written in the book • This is the level of competence for the current placement - it doesn’t matter how they performed in previous placements • Students who are having problems need to have every stage of assessment, planning, implementation of helping strategies and evaluation of the strategies documented - THIS IS FOR THE PROTECTION OF BOTH YOU AND THE STUDENT • In this age of perceived litigation we write everything down about our patients in case we end up in court one day. • If we do the same for the students then the student journey is more easily followed and an action plan to help them gain the competencies is easier to formulate. This helps the student in the long run. • If a student does not get their competencies in the placement then the mentor can explain their decision more easily if they have comprehensive documentation. • The student may have had problems in the past with either previous placements or with an interpersonal relationship with a previous mentor. This may have led to a bad assessment. If you have documented everything during the students placement then this may act as evidence that the assessment from a previous placement may not be representative.

14. The Data Protection Act made easy This is in reference to a letter to the Practice Education Facilitators LEGAL IMPLICATIONS RE STUDENT ASSESSMENT DOCUMENTATION.from the Central Legal Office, NHS National Services Scotland. January 2005If a mentor or other person within a placement writes documentation about one of their students and this is not part of the CAP book or the blue form then this can be described as data and will have to be covered by the act.This information becomes "data" because of the way in which it is stored i.e. "part of a relevant filing system e.g. a card file structured by name or part of an accessible record."The CLO emphasises confidentiality and security of this data and also gives instruction on how it should be disposed. Personal data should not be kept longer than necessary for the defined purpose” and “When the data is discarded it must be done with due regard for security and the data subject should be informed of the action" It does not seem workable that a ward would keep the data for the length of the students course as has been suggested by the CLO because this would then cause problems with contacting them to tell them that information has been destroyed.So - how about this?If, for instance, a ward keeps a learning contract and makes notes on the student's progress (in partnership with the student) and keeps this information in a secure place for the length of the placement then this means that you can destroy it with the student's knowledge at the end of the placement. This data can then be used as evidence to give a detailed account of the students progress on the Blue Evaluation form - it would then become redundant because any relevant information has been transferred to the form.The evaluation form is not defined under the act as data and so is not our problem in this context.

15. Final Assessment This is the Summative assessment - nothing here should come as a surprise to the student. All of the work of developing the student should have come before this point. Go through the CAP book with the Student and let them know why you have assessed them at the levels you are documenting. Write your comments on the Blue Feedback form alongside the student. Allow them to write in their comments with you. Comments should be based on the Competencies - this is how you keep your assessment objective and valid. Comments should contain positive comments as well as highlighting areas that will need to be developed - Students like to know where they should be concentrating their efforts, positive criticism is valued. If you have had a Student who has not managed to reach the required level of proficiency despite all of your efforts and intervention, it is hard! - but it is not your fault!!