4.1
Attendance
4.1.1 Policy:
A student’s working hours (including lunch, coffee breaks, and daily
schedule) will be determined according to the policies/regulations of
the fieldwork site. (OT committee, Aug 26,2004)
4.1.2 Policy:
A student will attend fieldwork with no hours missed (OT Committee, Aug
26, 2004)
4.1.3 Policy:
A student involved in endeavors at a recognized provincial, national, or
international level, and is required to participate in an event during
her/his fieldwork placement, should inform the ACCE as soon as possible
of the dates of the activities. The student is required to make up all
missed time, and to complete the placement at a time that is arranged
with the appropriate fieldwork site personnel (OT Committee, Aug. 26,
2004).
4.1.4 Policy
Students may request to attend a conference during their placement that
is pertinent to their occupational therapy education. This request must
be negotiated with and approved by both the placement site and the
ACCE. Given approval to attend, students may use up to 3 days of their
placement to attend a conference without making up the time.
(OT Committee,
April 16, 2007 )
Procedure:
Any time
missed from placement must be made up, regardless of reason i.e.,
illness etc. There are various strategies that can be used for students
to make up this time, including; project work/presentation, working
extra hours through the week, extending the placement (please note, a
placement cannot be extended except for health reasons), or
adding hours to a subsequent placement. Students are strongly
encouraged to track their hours and overtime throughout their placements.
We find that most students tend to work overtime and making up missed
time is not usually difficult. Please contact the ACCE if you need
assistance in developing some creative strategies for missed time.
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4.2
Orientation
Before the student arrives, an
organized and thorough orientation to the facility should be planned.
Orientation to the site and service/practice area is mandatory as it
structures the placement for a successful fieldwork experience
(see
A Miscarriage of Justice etc
6.6.4). The following is a list of what you might want to
ensure is covered on or close to the first day:
□
Introductions
□
Orientation to the
physical layout
□
Review of
universal precautions
□
Discussion of
facility objectives: philosophy, scope and limitations of service
□
Familiarize with
communication etiquette of the facility
□
Development of a
schedule for the first week
□
Scheduling a
consistent time to meet for (daily? weekly?) feedback
□
Scheduling a time
at the end of the first week to review the evaluation process and
collaboratively review learning objectives written by student
□
The
Competency
Based Fieldwork Evaluation for Occupational Therapists (CBFE) is
reviewed by the student and the preceptor
□
Take the
opportunity to learn more about each other (preceptor/student work and
life experiences)
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4.3
First Week of Placement
The following
is a checklist of what might typically be covered in the first week of
the placement
□
Development and
completion of learning objectives. Orientation and observation.
□
Preceptor
delegates simple tasks. Student reports observations to
preceptor/team. Safety issues/techniques are reviewed. Client
descriptions, diagnosis and needs, are reviewed.
□
Preceptor assigns
client tasks at the level of the student. Student initiates and
implements these tasks. Preceptor provides feedback aimed at ensuring
safety. Preceptor assigns a level of responsibility in maintaining
client records.
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4.4
Midterm
4.4.1 Policy:
The mid-term evaluation will normally be given within 3 days of the
actual mid-date of the placement to allow the student the opportunity to
make the necessary changes by the end of the placement. However, this
does not preclude failure at any point during the placement given that
competency has not been achieved or that there is an immediate failure
(OT committee, July 20, 2004)
Procedure
The mid-term evaluation is a
vital component of the placement, allowing for formal adjustments of the
learning objectives and providing the student with feedback to make the
necessary changes to successfully complete the placement by final.
□
Clinician
evaluates student using
Competency
Based Fieldwork Evaluation for Occupational Therapists (CBFE)
□
Student evaluates
self using a photocopy of the CBFE.
□
Student evaluates
the site using the Site Evaluation (form
with hand
on front).
□
Student completes
Summary of Strength, Challenge Areas and Strategies
□
Preceptor
evaluates the student’s ability in areas of client care responsibilities
and increases same as appropriate
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4.5
Final Week of
Placement
4.5.1 Policy:
The clinical preceptor, using professional judgment, will determine
whether the student receives a CR (pass), PWR (pass with
reservation) or NC (failure) (OT Committee, July 20, 2004).
Procedure:
The final evaluation is
aimed at describing strengths and areas requiring further work.
General goals for next placement are formulated through discussion.
□
Clinician
evaluates student using CBFE
□
Student
evaluates self using a photocopy of the CBFE.
□
Student
evaluates the site using the Site Evaluation (form
with hand
on front).
□
Student
completes Summary of Strength, Challenge Areas and Strategies
□
Student makes
copy of CBFE for own records.
□
Evaluation
mailed back to University.
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4.6
Projects
4.6.1
Policy:
A site
may assign an assignment or project to a student (first placement
exempt) that will demand no more than 5% of the placement time (OT
Committee, Aug. 26, 2004)
Procedure:
A
facility may determine that an assignment would augment the learning
experience, and assist the student to achieve the fieldwork
objectives of the placement. For example, on a 5 week placement = 9
– 10 hours (5 weeks x 37.5 hours x 5%).
Please
note:
during the students first placement we ask that students not be given a project.
However, it is reasonable to expect the student to share information
on their concurrent course assignments.
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4.7
Academic Assignments
Certain
academic courses will require the student to do an assignment
related to their fieldwork experience. These assignments generally
include collecting information to use in an assignment. Generally,
working on assignments is not to be done during the fieldwork hours
unless it is directly related to the fieldwork expectations or
caseload e.g., researching evidence on an assessment tool for an
assignment, but also providing this information to the site if it is
needed there.
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4.8
Facilitating Self-Directed Learning
4.8.1
Policy:
A student is expected to be self-directed in their learning and to
adjust to the service specialty, focus, and environmental demands
(OT Committee, Aug, 2004)
Procedure:
To facilitate self-directed learning with students, you may have to
shift your thinking from being an instructor and information
provider to a facilitator of learning for the students.
Encourage students to share previous learning experiences and to
build on these in determining learning needs and in setting goals
and objectives. Encourage students to seek out and utilize
available resources and to evaluate themselves according to their
goals and learning. This model requires a collaborative
relationship between supervisor and student where feedback can be
given and received comfortably.
The learning contract
can be a useful tool for facilitating self-directed learning.
Encourage students to evaluate themselves on the goals they set and
on the learning process and to make changes as needed.
Self-directedness can be evaluated with the learning objectives
included in the Competency Based Fieldwork Evaluation and the role
the student takes in completing these. The preceptor can also
reflect on situations where students were required to demonstrate
self-initiative to a degree determined by the situation at hand.
A preceptor may provide a
great deal of guidance and structured experience at the beginning of
fieldwork, but it is expected that students will take more and
eventually full responsibility for their own learning. It is
important to discuss the student’s current skill level and the
expectations for this level. The skill level will vary with the
fieldwork experience and with the degree of personal development.
Self-directed learning
is a motivating style of learning which builds upon past experiences
and acknowledges the adult needs to move from dependency to
increasing independence and self-directedness. It also takes into
account that adults learn best when there is “a need to know”
something and the learning experience is relevant and meaningful.
The rewards are internal (personal and professional growth) versus
external (exams). Self-directed learning skills are lifelong skills
that a student will need to be a competent professional. These
skills are required to allow students to continually seek out new
knowledge and to adapt to new problems encountered.
Tips and hints.
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4.9
Closure
By the
end of the placement, most preceptors are proud of the outcome of
the student. A relationship has developed that will require a
moment to close. A suggestion is to join the student during
farewells to clients and being with the student at the end of the
day.
If you
have agreed to provide a reference, a letter offered prior to exit
is positive and may later prove to be time effective. A reference
addressed to “To whom it may concern” allows more portability.
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