Beyond Tourists and Day Trippers: Reimagining GP Placements through Design Thinking
by X | @rali2100 - Linkedin|R Ali
Created: 2023-12-03
The metaphor "students as tourists and day trippers" has often been used to describe some medical students' passive and superficial approach towards GP placements. While this metaphor effectively captures the idea of limited engagement and understanding, it also carries potential drawbacks, such as belittling the value of GP placements and oversimplifying the learning process.
Reframing the Metaphor through Design Thinking
Design thinking, a human-centred approach to problem-solving, can help us reframe the metaphor of "tourists and day trippers" to design more effective and engaging GP placements. By focusing on the needs, experiences, and perspectives of both students and GPs, design thinking can lead to placements that are more meaningful, immersive, and conducive to deep learning.
Empathising with the Student Journey
Just as tourists and day trippers have different motivations and expectations when visiting a new place, medical students also approach GP placements with varying backgrounds, interests, and learning styles. To design practical placements, we must first understand the student's perspective.
Student Needs: Identify the needs and expectations of students, such as gaining hands-on experience, developing clinical skills, and understanding the role of a GP in the healthcare system.
Student Experiences: Map out the typical student journey during a GP placement, including interactions with GPs, patients, and other healthcare professionals.
Student Perspectives: Gather feedback from students about their experiences with GP placements, both positive and negative, to identify areas for improvement.
Designing for Immersion and Active Engagement
The metaphor of "tourists and day trippers" suggests that students often remain on the periphery of GP placements, observing but not fully engaging. Design thinking can help us create placements that encourage students to immerse themselves in the experience and actively participate in their learning.
Immersive Experiences: Design placements that provide students with opportunities to shadow GPs, participate in patient consultations, and contribute to the overall functioning of the practice.
Active Learning Opportunities: Incorporate active learning strategies, such as case studies, simulations, and group discussions, to challenge students' thinking and promote deeper understanding.
Meaningful Interactions: Foster meaningful interactions between students and GPs, creating opportunities for mentorship, guidance, and feedback.
A Collaborative Effort: GPs as Partners in Design
Just as tourists often rely on local guides to enhance their experiences, GP placements can be enriched by the involvement of experienced GPs as partners in design.
GP Perspectives: Gather insights from GPs about their expectations for students and their vision for practical GP placements.
GP Expertise: Leverage the expertise of GPs to develop placement curricula, design learning activities, and provide ongoing mentorship to students.
Collaborative Environment: Foster a collaborative environment where students and GPs work together to improve the quality and effectiveness of GP placements.
Reimagining GP Placements: A Human-Centred Approach
By adopting a human-centred approach through design thinking, we can move beyond the limitations of the "tourists and day trippers" metaphor and reimagine GP placements as transformative learning experiences. Through empathy, immersion, and collaboration, we can design placements tailored to students' needs, aligned with the expectations of GPs, and conducive to deep learning and meaningful engagement. Ultimately, this human-centred approach can help us prepare future GPs who are not just passive observers but active participants in the healthcare system.