Quality monitoring

Contribution to quality monitoring – audit

As a mentor/PPE you will evaluate the placement learning experience of the student from your own perspective – this is often done informally, maybe as a discussion in a team meeting. This may be supported by evaluation feedback directly from the student. All mentors/PPEs should reflect on their experience of mentoring each student.

Ultimately healthcare education impacts on the quality of care patients and service users receive (www.skillsforhealth.org.uk)

Whilst appreciating the uniqueness of healthcare education, we must also consider the need to continually drive forward improvements that enhance learning in practice. The overarching principle of contemporary quality monitoring, is one that extends beyond assurance to quality enhancement. Rather than focus on achieving a ‘threshold’ standard, this process aims to capture and disseminate best practice, whilst developing action plans that facilitate continual enhancement and progression.

Self-evaluation

It is not always easy to reflect on one’s own performance in relation to supporting learners, it is easier perhaps to respond to the comments of others. Most people will rate themselves lower or as less effective.

Learner evaluation

Learners’ evaluations are important and you have already seen in previous sections what learners think and their views about a range of issues. However, evaluation is about the gathering of data over a period of time and the more learners contribute over time the more you can collate and the greater the significance of positive and negative feedback from different people.

• in what ways do you think you participate in evaluation?
  
• what evidence can you show to demonstrate that you contribute to your own and others’ personal development?

As a mentor/PPE you are actively contributing and collaborating with Higher Education Institutions and Strategic Health Authorities (SHA). Your role supporting learners/students in practice will naturally generate information that has significant value to the process of continuous quality monitoring and enhancement.

Your Placement Development Team (PDT) works collaboratively with colleagues in practice, to facilitate ongoing quality monitoring enhancement (OQME) using the Practice Quality Review Tool (PQR). More information related to this PQR tool and ways in which you can share your perspective of mentoring/supporting learners in practice, can be obtained by contacting your PDT Practice or academic lead.

Ask your manager for access to your PQR tool; it should be available to all, including students. Consider the sections and if you feel that you or your colleagues can add information then do so, it is a live document and can be reviewed at any time.

For example:

• has your student resource file been updated?
  
• has your student provided information or added to your learning resources?
  
• have you completed a mentor update?
  
• have you developed your service?
  
• have you designed learning pathways or provided inter-professional learning?
  

Remember that mentors/PPE’s must be able to demonstrate that they have kept themselves updated about assessment issues. It is recommended that you keep your work related to this as evidence of updating for your ‘Knowledge and Skills Framework Portfolio’.