Understanding students' participation in physiotherapy and nursing work settings

Area of Science:

• Health Professions Education
• Workplace Learning
• Sociocultural Learning Theory

Background:

• Health profession education relies on workplace learning through placements.
• Student participation in daily activities with supervisors, co-workers, and peers is crucial for skill development.

Purpose of the Study:

• To identify affordances for learning in health profession education (HPE) students during workplace placements.
• To characterize student participation within these placements.

Main Methods:

• Observational research design.
• Shadowing three student-physiotherapists and four student-nurses during two placement days each.
• Categorizing affordances based on participation in activities, direct interactions, and indirect interactions.

Main Results:

• A categorization of affordances was developed, including participation in activities, direct interactions, and indirect interactions.
• Student participation varied, characterized by unique combinations and sequences of affordances.
• Patterns of participation showed changes over time and were influenced by the presence of supervisors, co-workers, and peers.

Conclusions:

• Understanding affordances and participation patterns is key to optimizing workplace learning for HPE students.
• The study highlights the dynamic nature of student engagement during placements.
• Findings inform strategies for enhancing clinical education and professional development.