Nuala Devlin In 2018 the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) published the Standards of Proficiency (NMC 2018a) and Standards for Student Supervision and Assessment (SSSA) (NMC 2018b) which superseded the Standards to Support Learning and Assessment in Practice (NMC 2006, 2008), which reflected the response to two earlier consultations on the standards themselves and on fitness to practice at the point of registration (NMC 2005; UKCC 1999). This new framework adopted by all universities in partnership with placement providers encompasses undergraduate, post-graduate, and associate nursing (England only) (NMC 2018).1 It recognises the important and varied roles that registrants and other healthcare professionals contribute to the student’s journey, offering flexibility and richness to the student’s practice learning experience. A student will now be supported by practice supervisors (PS), practice assessors (PA), and academic assessors (AA). These roles will support the student in practice working collaboratively to support and guide the student’s progression through theory and practice. Registrants who were previously mentors and sign off mentors as per the SliAP standards (NMC 2006, 2008) will undertake training and transition to practice assessors and supervisors. Registrants have a key role in supporting nursing students in practice (Aston & Hallam 2011). Elcock and Sookhoo (2007) suggest that the quality of support in pre-registration nursing education is highly variable and at times may be a cause for concern, particularly since registrants are the people assessing nursing students’ fitness for practice at the point of registration, crucially separating the roles of supervision and assessment. Under this new framework, three new roles have been set up to support the student in practice. These roles are defined under the SSSA (NMC 2018) as practice supervisors (PS), practice assessors (PA), and academic assessors (AA). Working collaboratively these roles will support the student’s progression in both theory and practice. (NMC 2018a) The ability and flexibility of working with practice supervisors will enrich the nursing students’ practice learning environments. This unique perspective will offer the student nurse insight into the roles of other members of the multi-disciplinary team (MDT). Aiding the student in the practice environment, the PS will help the student show learning opportunities and link in with other practice supervisors where appropriate, to combine that knowledge. Crucially the PS will provide the student with feedback on your knowledge, skills, and professional attitude. They will provide feedback to the nursing students’ practice assessor naming areas of achievement along with areas for future development. (NMC 2018b) The practice assessor should be assigned to the student at the start of the placement, and they will handle the overall assessment in practice. They will provide the student with constructive feedback and their assessment of the student should be objective and evidence based, considering feedback from practice supervisors and other members of the team. They will oversee the placement opportunities working with the practice supervisor to ensure that the student can avail of all necessary opportunities. They will make an informed decision about the nursing students’ progression, supplying detailed and constructive feedback to the nursing students in relation to their achievements and areas for further development. They will communicate with the academic assessor (AA) developing an action plan to help the student achieve the identified goals. A practice assessor needs to have some extremely specific skills to reflect what Nash and Scammell (2010) describe as essential in pre-registration supervision. These include knowledge of learning theory, including adult learning; practice-based teaching and assessment; integration of theory and practice; and a knowledge and insight of the curriculum, as well as developed communication and relationship skill (Nash & Scammell 2010). (NMC 2018b) The academic assessor will be familiar with the student’s programme of study. Their role is to support the practice assessor and ensure that the student has received an objective assessment of their performance. The academic assessor should check that all feedback has been considered and that the practice assessor is an appropriately prepared registered nurse. The focus of the AA is one of collaboration and partnership, working with the practice setting and liaising with practice education facilitators, placing an emphasis on the support of practice assessors and practice supervisors in the assessing and supervising of nursing students in practice. These roles have a wide remit to enhance the quality of the practice learning experience and positively contribute to the development of a well-educated and practice-competent future nursing/midwifery workforce. It is important to recognise that practice assessors and practice supervisors support nursing students and help to ease learning by identifying goals, programmes of learning, and negotiating action plans. Assessment and the provision of prompt and proper feedback are vital to the role and any challenging issues are discussed and managed. It is hoped that the introduction of these roles will provide the student with a more balanced approach to supervision and assessment in practice. The focus of the practice education facilitator role is one of collaboration and partnership, working within the practice setting and liaising with higher education institutions, placing an emphasis on the support of mentors in the assessing and supervising of nursing students in practice. These roles have a wide dispatch to enhance the quality of the practice learning experience and positively contribute to the development of a well-educated and practice-competent future nursing/midwifery workforce. More specifically the role entails:
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Supporting the Planning of Care – Practice Assessor, Academic Assessor, Supervisor, and Student
PRACTICE SUPERVISOR
PRACTICE ASSESSOR
ACADEMIC ASSESSOR
OTHER ROLES THAT WILL SUPPORT THE STUDENT IN PRACTICE
PRACTICE EDUCATION FACILITATOR
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