Mentoring the Wellbeing of Specialist Pediatric Palliative Care Medical and Nursing Trainees: The Quality of Care Collaborative Australia
Palliative Care; palliative care; wellbeing; mentoring; specialist
BACKGROUND: The Quality of Care Collaborative Australia (QuoCCA), working across 6 tertiary centers throughout Australia, builds capability in the generalist and specialist pediatric palliative care (PPC) workforce, by providing education in metropolitan and regional areas. As part of the education and mentoring framework, Medical Fellows and Nurse Practitioner Candidates (trainees) were funded by QuoCCA at four tertiary hospitals throughout Australia. OBJECTIVE: This study explores the perspectives and experiences of clinicians who had occupied the QuoCCA Medical Fellow and Nurse Practitioner trainee positions in the specialised area of PPC at Queensland Children's Hospital, Brisbane, to identify the ways in which they were supported and mentored to maintain their wellbeing and facilitate sustainable practice. METHODS: Discovery Interview methodology was used to collect detailed experiences of 11 Medical Fellows and Nurse Practitioner candidates/trainees employed by QuoCCA from 2016 to 2022. RESULTS: The trainees were mentored by their colleagues and team leaders to overcome challenges of learning a new service, getting to know the families and building their competence and confidence in providing care and being on call. Trainees experienced mentorship and role modelling of self-care and team care that promoted wellbeing and sustainable practice. Group supervision provided dedicated time for reflection as a team and development of individual and team wellbeing strategies. The trainees also found it rewarding to support clinicians in other hospitals and regional teams that cared for palliative patients. The trainee roles provided the opportunity to learn a new service and broaden career horizons as well as establish wellbeing practices that could be transferred to other areas. CONCLUSION: Collegial interdisciplinary mentoring, with the team learning together and caring for each other along common goals, contributed immensely to the wellbeing of the trainees as they developed effective strategies to ensure their sustainability in caring for PPC patients and families.
Slater PJ; Herbert AR
Advances in Medical Education and Practice
2023
Article information provided for research and reference use only. PedPalASCNET does not hold any rights over the resource listed here. All rights are retained by the journal listed under publisher and/or the creator(s).
<a href="https://www.dovepress.com/mentoring-the-wellbeing-of-specialist-pediatric-palliative-care-medica-peer-reviewed-fulltext-article-AMEP">10.2147/amep.s393052</a>
Education and Mentoring of Specialist Pediatric Palliative Care Medical and Nursing Trainees: The Quality of Care Collaborative Australia
Palliative Care; palliative care; pediatrics; education; mentoring; specialist workforce
BACKGROUND: The Quality of Care Collaborative Australia (QuoCCA) builds capability in the generalist and specialist paediatric palliative care (PPC) workforce throughout Australia. It supports regional and community services to provide care close to families' homes, as well as building expertise in tertiary centers. OBJECTIVE: Medical Fellows and Nurse Practitioner candidates (specialist trainees) were funded by QuoCCA at four tertiary hospitals throughout Australia supported by an education and mentoring framework. This study explored the activity and experiences of clinicians who had occupied these roles to evaluate their effectiveness to build PPC capability. METHODS: Online surveys recorded the monthly activity of Medical Fellows, with a point in time check of knowledge, skills and confidence in 2019. Discovery Interview methodology was used to collect detailed experiences of 11 trainees employed between 2018 to 2022 in Queensland. RESULTS: A combination of mentoring and formal and informal education, peer support and practical experience was valuable for trainees. They found the support of the whole interdisciplinary team advantageous to learning. Shadowing experienced team members gave them the opportunity to learn practical skills, especially regarding communication with families. Practicing clinical skills was beneficial, through being on call, attending home visits, supporting families, prescribing medications and developing treatment plans in collaboration with the team. The trainee experience was optimised through learning from families, personal reflection, involvement in research projects and delivering QuoCCA education. CONCLUSION: The QuoCCA trainee roles for Medical Fellows and Nurse Practitioner candidates exhibit a valuable and effective education and mentorship framework that could be applied to other specialties. The service leadership and collaborative interdisciplinary team support various modes of education and mentoring. The roles not only develop the trainees' specialised PPC clinical skills, they also improve their general clinical practice, including communication, empathy and holistic care. A structured curriculum of education is recommended to protect these positive outcomes.
Slater PJ; Herbert AR
Advances in Medical Education and Practice
2023
Article information provided for research and reference use only. PedPalASCNET does not hold any rights over the resource listed here. All rights are retained by the journal listed under publisher and/or the creator(s).
<a href="http://doi.org/10.2147/amep.s393051" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">10.2147/amep.s393051</a>
Ongoing Value and Practice Improvement Outcomes from Pediatric Palliative Care Education: The Quality of Care Collaborative Australia
education outcomes; evaluation; medical education; palliative care; pediatrics; practice improvements
PURPOSE: Novice and experienced professionals who care for children with life limiting conditions throughout Australia were provided with pediatric palliative care (PPC) education through the Quality of Care Collaborative Australia (QuoCCA). Impact evaluation has shown this education to be beneficial. This study examines the longer term outcomes reported by the participants more than 4 months following education. METHODS: An online survey measuring quantitative and qualitative education outcomes was sent to all participants of QuoCCA 2 education throughout Australia, at least 4 months following their education. There were 152 respondents between February 2018 and June 2020. RESULTS: More than 4 months after the QuoCCA education, 98% of respondents rated it as extremely valuable or valuable and 78% of respondents rated it extremely or very helpful in improving clinical practice. Improvements in knowledge, skills or confidence were reported by 90% or more respondents in the areas of PPC referral, responding to psychosocial needs, the benefits of the PPC approach, PPC resources and communication skills. Between 84% and 89% of respondents reported improvements in advance care planning, assessment and intervention, responding to physical needs, supporting spiritual needs and supporting health professionals and self care. Providing bereavement care improved in 85% of responses. The most valuable aspects of the education, changes in practice and barriers to the implementation of learning were discussed. CONCLUSION: The interprofessional QuoCCA education in PPC continued to provide value and clinical practice improvements for the majority of respondents more than four months after the session. Respondents particularly mentioned improvements in awareness of the network of care, the practical management of patients and communication skills. Reflection on clinical practice, in a proactive clinical learning environment, enabled the translation of education into improvements to the quality of PPC.
Slater PJ; Osborne CJ; Herbert AR
Advances in Medical Education and Practice
2021
Article information provided for research and reference use only. PedPalASCNET does not hold any rights over the resource listed here. All rights are retained by the journal listed under publisher and/or the creator(s).
<a href="http://doi.org/10.2147/amep.s334872" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">10.2147/amep.s334872</a>
Evaluating the impact of national education in pediatric palliative care: the Quality of Care Collaborative Australia
training; confidence; health care; education dosage; evaluation
Purpose: The Quality of Care Collaborative Australia (QuoCCA) provided pediatric palliative care education across Australia with the aim of improving the quality of services. The education was delivered through a collaboration of six tertiary pediatric palliative care services, through funding for Nurse Educators, Medical Fellows, a National Allied Health Educator, and national project staff. Methods: Pre- and post-education surveys were completed by participants immediately following the education, and confidence and knowledge were measured along nine domains related to the care of the child and family, including managing a new referral, symptom management, medications, preparing the family, and using local agencies. Results: Education was provided to over 5,500 health and human service professionals in 337 education sessions across Australia between May 2015 and June 2017. Paired pre- and post-surveys were completed by 969 participants and showed a significant improvement in all the domains measured. Those with no experience in caring for children receiving palliative care showed greater improvement following QuoCCA education compared to those with experience, although the latter had higher scores both before and after education. Similarly, those with no previous education showed greater improvement, but those with previous education showed higher scores overall. Participants in full-day and half-day sessions showed greater improvement than those in short day sessions. Thus, the dosage of education in the length of the sessions and prior attendance impacted knowledge and confidence. Topics requested by the participants were analyzed. Educator learnings were that education was more effective when tailored to the needs of the audience, was interactive, and included story-telling, case studies, and parent experiences. Conclusion: These results encouraged the continuation of the provision of education to novice and experienced professionals who care for children with a life-limiting condition, leading to higher levels of confidence and knowledge. The learnings from this evaluation will be transferred into the second round of funding for the national QuoCCA education project. The next stage will focus on developing simulation and interactive training, accessible training modules, and videos on a national website.
Slater PJ; Herbert AR; Baggio SJ; Donovan LA; McLarty AM; Duffield J A; Pedersen LC; Duc JK; Delaney AM; Johnson SA; Heywood MG; Burr CA
Advances in Medical Education and Practice
2018
<a href="http://doi.org/10.2147/amep.s180526" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">10.2147/amep.s180526</a>