Use of Simulated Patients and Reflective Video Analysis to Assess Occupational Therapy Students’ Preparedness for Fieldwork

Abstract

Educators must determine whether occupational therapy students are adequately prepared for Level II fieldwork once they have successfully completed the didactic portion of their coursework. Although studies have shown that students regard the use of video cameras and simulated patient encounters as useful tools for assessing professional and clinical behaviors, little has been published in the occupational therapy literature regarding the practical application of simulated patients or reflective video analysis. We describe a model for a final Comprehensive Practical Exam that uses both simulated patients and reflective video analysis to assess student preparedness for Level II fieldwork, and we report on student perceptions of these instructional modalities. We provide recommendations for designing, implementing, and evaluating simulated patient experiences in light of existing educational theory.

Experiential Learning to Advance Student Readiness for Level II Fieldwork

“…Experiential learning has been found to enhance confidence levels of occupational therapy students (Giles et al, 2014;Knecht-Sabres, 2010;Seif et al, 2014). Students showed more competent clinical skills such as assessment and intervention planning, therapeutic use of self and awareness of client resources when provided with an opportunity to deliver occupational therapy services to clients in the community with guided supervision, as determined by Knecht-Sabres (2010).…”

“…Students showed more competent clinical skills such as assessment and intervention planning, therapeutic use of self and awareness of client resources when provided with an opportunity to deliver occupational therapy services to clients in the community with guided supervision, as determined by Knecht-Sabres (2010). Further, learners who have participated in hands-on client labs demonstrated critical thinking and clinical reasoning through engagement in more challenging client issues, examination of clinical relationships and through processing of experiences with clients (Vogel, Geelheod, Grice, & Murphy, 2009), leading to greater fieldwork readiness (Giles et al, 2014). Knecht-Sabres (2013) determined that more advanced clinical reasoning was used by students for intervention planning and implementation following the use of "hands-on" experiences with clients.…”

“…Experiential learning was found to be beneficial in the preparation of students for clinical practice as well as in building confidence, clinical reasoning and decision making, written and oral communication, therapeutic use of self, integration of learned materials and professional behaviors necessary for future practice as an entry level practitioner (Giles et al, 2014;Knecht-Sabres, 2010;Knecht-Sabres, 2013;Palombaro, Dole, & Lattanzi, 2011;Vogel et al, 2009).…”

“…Some examples of other course types using experiential learning have included modified didactic courses, such as a 2-hour lecture, 2-hour lab experience (Peloquin & Osborne, 2003), structured school based group activities (Falk-Kessler, Benson & Witchger Hanson, 2007), and interprofessional simulations with client actors (Williams et al, 2010). Giles, Carson, Breland, Coker-Bolt, and Bowman (2014) used healthy individuals as patient actors in video cases combined with student reflective video analysis. A four-week experiential learning course was described by Boyle, Beardsley, Morgan, and Rodriguez de Bittner (2007) for pharmacy students, using community rotations to focus on professional behavior management.…”

High-Fidelity Simulation in Occupational Therapy Curriculum: Impact on Level II Fieldwork Performance

“…The top three goals for use indicated by entry-level master degree OT programs are increased clinical reasoning (92%), problem solving or decision-making abilities (88%), and communication skills (65%). The results of this study, as with the majority of OT-based studies, were qualitative self-reflections on the use, quality, and benefits of simulation (Bethea et al, 2014;Bradley, Whittington, & Mottram, 2013;Castillo, 2011;Giles, Carson, Breland, Coker-Bolt, & Bowman, 2014;Herge et al, 2013;Hedge et al, 2015;Shoemaker et al, 2011 In this study, Tomlin (2005) (Bethea et al, 2014). Therefore, Bethea et al (2014) …”