Support in practice

Supported learning time: time to facilitate learning. This may include supernumerary status that enables students to be supported in safely and effectively achieving proficiency (NMC, 2018, p14).

The following staff are available to support your learning in clinical practice: 

Practice assessors

This refers to a named midwife who has been prepared for and accepted the responsibility of formally planning, assessing, and documenting a named student’s clinical achievement in accordance with the validated assessment strategy for the Bachelor of Midwifery (Hons) in Midwifery (BMid (Hons) Midwifery).

Expectations:

• Midwifery students are assigned to practice assessors who are registered midwives.

• All students on an NMC approved programme are assigned to a nominated practice assessor for a practice placement or a series of practice placements, in line with local and national policies.

Roles/responsibilities:

• Practice assessors conduct assessments to confirm student achievement of proficiencies and programme outcomes for practice learning

• Assessment decisions by practice assessors are informed by feedback sought and received from practice supervisors

• Practice assessors make and record objective, evidenced-based assessments on conduct, proficiency and achievement, drawing on student records, direct observations, student self-reflection, and other resources

• There are sufficient opportunities for the practice assessor to periodically observe the student across environments in order to inform decisions for assessment and progression

• There are sufficient opportunities for the practice assessor to gather and coordinate feedback from practice supervisors, any other practice assessors, and relevant people, in order to be assured about their decisions for assessment and progression

•  A nominated practice assessor works in partnership with the nominated academic assessor to evaluate and recommend the student for progression for each part of the programme, in line with programme standards and local and national policies

•  Practice assessors have an understanding of the student’s learning and achievement in theory

• Practice assessors are not simultaneously the practice supervisor for the same student 

Practice supervisors

Expectations:

• All students on an NMC approved programme are supervised in practice by NMC registered nurses, midwives, nursing associates, and other registered health and social care professionals.

• There is sufficient coordination and continuity of support and supervision of students to ensure safe and effective learning experiences

• The level of supervision provided to students reflects their learning needs and stage of learning and facilitates independent learning

Roles/responsibilities:

• Serve as role models for safe and effective practice in line with their code of conduct

• Support and supervise students, providing feedback on their progress towards, and achievement of, proficiencies and skills

• Receive ongoing support to participate in the practice learning of students (envisaged as an online training)

Academic assessors

Expectations:

• Are working towards or hold relevant qualifications as required by their academic institution and local and national policies

• Academic assessors have an understanding of the student’s learning and achievement in practice 

Roles/responsibilities:

• Communication and collaboration between academic and practice assessors is scheduled for relevant points in programme structure and student progression

• The nominated academic assessor works in partnership with a nominated practice assessor to evaluate and recommend the student for progression for each part of the programme, in line with programme standards and local and national policies 

Learning Environment Manager (LEM)

The Learning Environment Manager (LEM) is a midwife working in the clinical area who is responsible for allocating students to specific practice assessors. Your learning environment manager’s key responsibilities are to:

• Monitor the appropriateness of the learning environment by participating in practice audits with the allocated academic assessor and PLFs.

• Allocate practice assessors to students for each practice placement.

• Ensure the PARE is up to date and includes relevant practice information for students.

• Liaise with the academic assessor to ensure the allocation of students to practice assessors is timely, and where possible responds to students individual learning needs (e.g. personal birth numbers).

• Enhance the overall student experience in practice by bridging the gap for students between theory and practice. This may include attending regular meetings with the academic assessors, circulating emails to all practice assessors regarding any student/practice assessor issues etc.

• Attend student surgeries or any other related student support meetings to improve the overall experiences of the student in practice.

• Attend midwifery course monitoring programme (CMT) meetings to stay abreast with midwifery programme issues.

• Act as a named individual in practice for a student to raise practice issues/concerns with or seek support with personal or professional issues.

Support in practice: senior staff

In addition to practice assessors and academic assessors, there are senior members of practice staff (either a nurse or a midwife) based in NHS Trusts and large care providers, who have a key role in promoting the quality of the learning environment for students.

These individuals have different titles depending on their employing organisation, for example Practice Education Facilitators, Practice Placement Facilitators or Clinical Lead for Education. They work closely with the practice assessors and managers within placement areas and provide a valuable link with the Department of Health Sciences. They also lead initiatives to support student learning and can be contacted for information and advice. They may also be involved in the educational audit of placements with service staff and academic assessors.

In addition, you may also find it helpful to support your learning in practice by contacting/discussing issues with a Professional Midwifery Advocate (PMA). PMAs are experienced and specialist midwives: often many have been a Supervisor of Midwives (SoM) who have undertaken additional training and are able to offer restorative clinical supervision to staff and students in the clinical environment 

Practice Learning Link: PLL team

The Practice Learning Links (PLL) are dedicated to providing you with additional support whilst you are in practice. These lecturers are available through a group email (dohs-pll@york.ac.uk) and are able to respond to student requests at short notice (within usual working hours). They also hold regular remote drop-in sessions during your placement experiences, and can offer advice and support on a wide range of practice and programme related issues. Please contact them in the first instance with any practice related questions and, if they are unable to resolve your query, they will refer you accordingly.