Interpretation of these data provides valuable information for the profession, notably academic programs, regarding needs and resources to foster collaborative relationships with fieldwork facilities to meet the growing need for fieldwork education.

OBJECTIVE:The purpose of this study was to explore students' perceptions of their confidence to use research evidence to complete a client case analysis assignment in preparation for participation in fieldwork and future practice. PARTICIPANTS: A convenience sample of 42 entry-level occupational therapy Masters students, included 41 females and one male, ages 24 to 35. METHODS: A quasi-experimental pretest-posttest design was used. Students participated in a problem-based learning approach supported by educational technology. Measures included a pre-and post-semester confidence survey, a post-semester satisfaction survey, and an assignment rubric. RESULTS: Based on paired t-tests and Wilcoxin Signed Ranks Tests, statistically significant differences in pre-and post-test scores were noted for all 18 items on the confidence survey (p < 0.001). Significant increases in students' confidence were noted for verbal and written communication of descriptive, assessment, and intervention evidence, along with increased confidence to effectively use assessment evidence. CONCLUSIONS: Results suggest that problem-based learning methods were significantly associated with students' perceptions of their confidence to use research evidence to analyze a client case. These results cannot necessarily be generalized due to the limitations of using non-standardized measures with a convenience sample, without a control group, within the context of a single course as part of one academic program curriculum.

Perceptions of the Same Site Model (SSM) of fieldwork, where students complete a Level I and Level II fieldwork requirement in the same setting, were examined by survey. The benefits, drawbacks, and implications of the SSM are discussed. Fieldwork educators and students identified gaining familiarity with the setting, increased comfort and decreased anxiety, and preparation for Level II fieldwork as benefits of this model. The SSM survey results suggest that this model may be helpful in decreasing stress associated with fieldwork as experienced by students and fieldwork educators.

BACKGROUND: Occupational therapy practitioners with the simultaneous working role of fieldwork educator support the growth of the profession by supervising students, but little is known about their reported burnout, compassion fatigue, and compassion satisfaction levels, and if specific work characteristics predict those levels. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this research was to: 1) assess the current levels of compassion fatigue, compassion satisfaction, and burnout in occupational therapy fieldwork educators through The Professional Quality of Life Scale (ProQOL), and 2) to explore how professional characteristic variables correlate and predict the measured constructs of compassion fatigue, burnout, and compassion satisfaction. METHODS: A cross-sectional design was used, and participants were recruited from a convenience sample to complete the ProQOL and a work characteristic questionnaire. RESULTS: On the average, 117 fieldwork educators scored higher on the subscale of compassion satisfaction when compared to those of the normed group. Linear regression analyses revealed that a higher number of roles and greater years working predicted higher compassion satisfaction. CONCLUSIONS: This study contributes to understanding the experiences of fieldwork educators in multiple roles, their reported levels of compassion fatigue, compassion satisfaction, and burnout, and the potential for development of personal, educational and organizational resources to support professional quality of life indicators within the role of fieldwork educator.