Broadening placement opportunities for nursing students through an indirect supervision model.

BACKGROUND: Higher Education Institutions struggle to fill national deficits in student placement capacity, especially in social care and the voluntary sector. The Indirect Placement Supervision and Assessment Model and its holistic focus helps redress this deficit. METHODS: A Microsoft Forms survey was distributed to a self-selecting sample of 50 students, placement providers, and university staff, all of whom had been involved in indirect supervision as either an assessor, student, or supervisor. RESULTS: Three key themes emerged from the data collected; responses suggested that the model generated greater placement variety, increased placement capacity, and brought about reciprocal gains in the learner-supervisor matrix. CONCLUSION: The study's key implication for healthcare institutions pertains to a strong evidence base that the indirect supervision model provides an efficient means of broadening nursing placement variety and capacity alike.

A qualitative evaluation of a student midwife placement teaching English to speakers of other languages (ESOL).

INTRODUCTION: A shortage of UK midwives has put pressure on clinical placements and supervision of student midwives. Alternative placement solutions are needed to provide students with meaningful learning experiences. One such learning experience was a placement undertaken by student midwives who attended a program teaching English to speakers of other languages (ESOL). This study evaluated the impact of the placement on student midwife learning and experiences of the ESOL participants. METHODS: The 2022 study employed a qualitative design using Kolb's model of experiential learning as a framework. Ten student midwives placed with the ESOL program and three women enrolled in the program participated. Data were collected via online focus groups with the student midwives and a face-to-face focus group with the women. Data were analyzed using thematic analysis and Kolb's model of experiential learning. RESULTS: Four themes were constructed: 'Putting the scripts aside: expectations versus the reality of being an educator', 'Adapting and personalizing teaching', 'We are learning too: an environment for mutual learning', and 'Taking our learning forwards'. Students faced barriers during their placement and had to adapt their teaching accordingly. They gained crucial knowledge of the challenges faced by women who speak other languages. The women valued the students' input and together they forged a reciprocal learning environment. CONCLUSIONS: This study demonstrates how placing student midwives in a unique non-maternity setting has benefits for student learning which are transferrable to future practice. Importantly, it confirms that quality of learning during a novel placement is not compromised for students or participants.