Education in Focus | September 2014

Vol 2 no.1 | Sep 2014

Health: a new blend at Flinders the already strong industry links to allow the School to foster mutually beneficial relationships with professional associations, employer groups and communities. Ongoing participation in activities including joint continuing professional development, industry accreditation, and student placements further cultivates the School’s connections with external stakeholders.

L-R: Prof John Coveney. Mrs Leesa Vlahos MP, Prof Eileen Willis and Prof Andrew Parkin at the launch of the School of Health Sciences One of the most successful techniques in viticulture is the blending together of different wine varieties - some mature and well developed, others new and fresh – to ferment new flavours, bouquets and characteristics.

I could not think of a better metaphor to describe the formation of the School of Health Sciences at Flinders, which brings seasoned departments together with newer disciplines to create multifaceted approaches to teaching, learning and professional practice.

I am already witnessing innovative ways in which this rich brew comprising Audiology, Disability and Community Inclusion, the Greater Green Triangle, Nutrition and Dietetics, Occupational Therapy, Optometry and Vision Science, Palliative and Support Services, Physiotherapy, Public Health, Rehabilitation Aged and Extended Care, Social Health Sciences, and Speech Pathology can work together.

The opportunity to be Foundation Dean of a School with such a diverse range of disciplines fits well with my professional background and interests. I have

enjoyed the experience of working in a range of health professional capacities that have exposed me to a breadth of health issues. I have worked extensively in clinical practice and community health, including two years in Papua New Guinea.

As an Accredited Practising Dietitian, I have been a member of the dietetics profession for nearly 40 years. I am also a long-standing member of the public health community and was President of the South Australian Branch of the Public Health Association of Australia for two terms. Throughout this time, shaping ideas for blending dimensions of clinical practice with population health perspectives has been a major interest.

The opening of the Flinders Clinical Teaching and Education Centre at ViTA, a collaboration between Flinders, the ACH Group, and state and federal governments, demonstrates the opportunities for further progressive partnerships to revolutionise teaching, research and health care.

The health needs of our communities are changing through social, economic, technological, demographic and other influences. This makes it an exciting time to be leading a School of Health Sciences that is committed to changing health and shaping lives. So please raise a glass to this new blend of health at Flinders. Cheers!

(Many thanks to Sally Jones for assistance with this article) john.coveney@flinders.edu.au

Becoming leader of the School of Health Sciences with its mix of disciplines – some vintage, others nouveau; some clinically focused, others population oriented; some with a rural perspective, others more metro minded – provides me with opportunities to implement new ideas to support collaborative teaching, research and community engagement to improve health and care outcomes for individuals, groups and communities.

The recent School launch demonstrated

Professor John Coveney Dean, School of Health Sciences

Education in Focus From the Executive Dean

New teaching and learning staff

Following the creation of the new School of Health Sciences, it was quickly realised that student administration assistance would be best provided at the coal face in the Schools themselves. The Student Administration team has therefore welcomed three new Administration Coordinators (Teaching and Learning):

 Tania Steinhoff (School of Health Sciences),  Emma Mackenzie (School of Nursing & Midwifery) and This issue of Education in Focus, from the Flinders University Faculty of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences, showcases many significant education developments and innovations.

Last month, we launched ViTA, our new state-of-the-art aged care, rehabilitation, teaching and research facility located at the Repatriation General Hospital. This facility will provide training opportunities for up to 600 health profession students each year and will play an important role in developing the health workforce of the future through interprofessional education models and a focus on teaching excellence. It is a wonderful addition to the many health education innovations underway across our Faculty in South Australia, the Northern Territory, and Western Victoria.

 Sonia Mowbray (School of Medicine).

The staff in these positions work closely with the Associate Deans (Teaching and Learning) to respond to emerging issues and strategic objectives. They work with key staff to contribute to the management and delivery of outcomes for teaching and learning tasks specific to their School. Although physically based in the Schools they are part of the Faculty Office Student Administration team.

The idea behind the creation of the positions was to provide a single point of contact for course and topic advice in each School. Each person provides administrative support for the development, planning and evaluation of course proposals, changes and revisions

within the Faculty and more broadly assists with Faculty-wide support for teaching and learning activities. Other responsibilities include the provision of advice and assistance in the interpretation of KAMs data and other business analytics and assisting with the approval process for prizes and awards. Karen Siegmann continues to provide the main support for the fiveyearly course reviews and the Administration Coordinators (Teaching and Learning) assist with the implementation of recommendations at School level. Other duties include providing assistance with updating course brochures and course promotional material.

Each coordinator provides executive support to their respective Board of Studies and sub-committees of the Faculty Teaching and Learning Committee. Sonia supports the eLearning sub-committee, Tania supports the IPE sub-committee and Emma supports the Simulation subcommittee.

These roles contribute to the quality and appropriateness of teaching and learning related documentation and advice to enhance communication and support this important function in our Faculty. jacqui.troath@flinders.edu.au

In this edition we also celebrate the achievements of Professor Dennis McDermott, Dr Julian Grant and Dr Yvonne Parry who have received prestigious Office for Teaching and Learning grants to advance their work in innovation in education. We look forward to the outcomes of their work.

Professor Michael Kidd AM Executive Dean Faculty of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences Flinders University

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L-R Emma Mackenzie, Sonia Mowbray, Jacqui Troath and Tania Steinhoff

Faculty of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences

Australians are living longer than ever before, creating a strong demand for a future health workforce with the skills to support the country’s ageing population to live as well as they can. To help build this workforce, Flinders University has established a significant collaborative partnership called ViTA with ACH Group, SA Health and the federal government, bringing important opportunities for authentic interprofessional education (IPE), practice and placement experiences to Flinders University Faculty of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences students.

ViTA is Australia’s first purposebuilt teaching aged care facility with integrated teaching spaces, linking health, aged care, education and research to enable older people to access restorative care and other support services. It is linked to SA Health’s Rehabilitation Unit and Flinders University-based education network located at the Repatriation General Hospital (RGH) in Daw Park. ViTA will deliver restorative care to 120 patients and residents who access its aged care, transition care and rehabilitation services.

The purpose built facility will provide:

 Innovative health, teaching and research based on rehabilitation and restorative care models.

 Simulation training and development to prepare students to support the future older workforce. 

IPE opportunities for a wide variety of disciplines, including dietetics, geriatrics, health sciences, medicine, nursing, occupational therapy, optometry, palliative care, physiotherapy, psychology, social work, audiology and speech pathology.

 One-stop, unified support for older people recovering from injury and illness.

ViTA can accommodate up to 600 students each year, offering them comprehensive interprofessional experiences as part of its state-of-

the-art Clinical Training and Education Centre (CTEC), with dedicated teaching facilities that include lecture theatres, tutorial rooms and simulation labs. Students will have access to:  Robotic-based therapies  Integrated learning in a clinical health setting  Online module delivery  Linkages to metropolitan com munity services  Rural program education and training through a ‘hub and spoke’ approach.

This significant investment provides important impetus and opportunity for the University to consolidate its research and education activities, and for the RGH to develop as a high profile aged care teaching, learning and research hub, locally and nationally. ViTA will add to Flinders University’s growing suite of IPE options which include 4th Generation, the Rural Clinical School IPE program, extensive IPE within the School of Nursing & Midwifery and integrated undergraduate Health Sciences options. It will help cement Flinders’ important role in interprofessional teaching and research, providing significant opportunities to develop and test advanced approaches to IPE that help address current gaps in this field (ICRC Australia, 2013).

We know that IPE requires:  A clear purpose that is meaningful to students, the curriculum, disciplines, services and patients.  Non-negotiable student time and engagement of students, academics and clinical staff, ie. commitment to IPE activities as core, not as optional placement activities.

 An educational framework to scaffold IPE knowledge, skills, attitudes and values, with reflection at its core.  IPE facilitation skill development for health care professionals to maximise the educational experience for students.  Time for IPE to evolve and embed itself within and across curricula.  Dedicated time and resources from university and health service stakeholders for its effective implementation.  Exposure, immersion and mastery stages for students as part of the learning path to them becoming health professionals (Charles, Bainbridge & Gilbert, 2010).

The unit will be fitted with state of the art audio visual and networking capabilities, supporting the provision of an advanced technological teaching, learning and simulation environment. The result of this will be enriched student experiences delivered through simulated learning and reinforced with practical application of knowledge through patient interaction.

Teaching will also be linked to a range of regional sites, including Darwin, Renmark and Mt Gambier, with the potential for links to overseas locations.

For more information visit: http:// www.flinders.edu.au/sohs/sites/vita/ vita.cfm sharon.lawn@flinders.edu.au References Charles G, Bainbridge L & Gilbert J. (2010) “The University of British Columbia model of interprofessional education”. Journal of Interprofessonal Care, 24(1), 9-18 Interprofessional Curriculum Renewal Consortium (ICRC) Australia (2013) Curriculum Renewal for Interprofessional Education in Health. Sydney, Centre for Research in Learning and Change, University of Technology, Sydney. http://caipe.org.uk/silo/files/ ipecurriculum-renewal-20141.pdf

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Education in Focus

5th International Nurse Education Conference Didy Button from the School of Nursing & Midwifery attended the 5th International Nurse Education Conference which was held in Noordwijkerhout, The Netherlands in June. The conference was attended by nurse educators from 44 countries and Didy presented a paper titled “Students please turn your smart phones on” about using a cloud-based student response system to track learning.

The increasing use of computerbased education technologies in nursing is arguably the most significant change since nursing education moved into the tertiary sector. Nurse educators are faced with competing pressures from two areas. One is the need to keep up with the rapidly changing health care environment and secondly, the ever expanding computer information education technologies that are now available.

One of the recent developments in education technologies is the development of cloud-based (also known as Internet-based computing) resources.

Didy demonstrated how a free cloud-based student response system was used to track preregistration nursing student learning in a first year anatomy physiology topic and included students’

Quiz reports can also be generated and emailed to the educator. This type of Internet technology can be accessed outside of the classroom wherever internet access is available thereby increasing flexibility for both educators and students. Delegates with mobile devices and Internet access were able to try the response system during the presentation. Didy demonstrates the system in a YouTube clip which can be found at https://www.youtube.com/watch? feature=player_embedded&v=SDWq7S 6ESZs

feedback. Using the cloud-based student response system the educator loads quizzes into a virtual classroom and students use their mobile phone or any internet connected device to enter that virtual classroom. Students undertake quizzes and receive immediate feedback on their mobile device about their responses. The educator can project the class responses onto the screen allowing the entire class to see the spread of responses and to monitor their own progress.

Amsterdam: Venice of the North

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Didy also made a number of international contacts while attending the conference as well as some new Australian ones that she will follow up for possible research opportunities.

didy.button@flinders.edu.au

Faculty of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences

Associate Dean appointment in new School Dr Christopher Lind took up the position of Associate Dean – Teaching and Learning in the new School of Health Sciences in January 2014. While participating in the School in its earliest days and seeing it develop as an entity has been exciting he has found the learning curve very steep indeed.

One of the great pleasures of his new post has been working with the staff who are taking on new positions within the School.

Christopher was born in South Australia but moved to Victoria with his family where he attended school and university before moving back to Adelaide in 1999. Subsequently, he took up a position in Speech Pathology and Audiology at Flinders University where he is currently a Senior Lecturer in Audiology. Christopher holds undergraduate degrees in Arts (University of Melbourne) and Speech Pathology (LaTrobe University). He holds a Postgraduate Diploma in Audiology (University of Melbourne) and a Master’s degree by research (LaTrobe University). He completed his PhD at the University of Queensland in 2006.

Prior to settling in Adelaide, Christopher practiced as a Speech Pathologist and Audiologist in adult hearing rehabilitation at the (then) HEAR Service of the Victorian Deaf Society from 1987. During this time he also taught part-time into the Speech Pathology program at LaTrobe University (1993 –1996). He took up his first fulltime teaching position at Flinders from 1996 to 1997 then moved to Brisbane to teach in both Speech Pathology and Audiology programs at the University of Queensland.

Christopher’s research in these areas has led to him being an invited speaker at conferences in North America, the UK, Scandinavia and Europe. He was visiting international scholar at the National Centre for Audiology, University of Western Ontario between May and August, 2013 where he now holds an adjunct research position. christopher.lind@flinders.edu.au

Christopher’s abiding interest in research is in linguistics, specifically Conversation Analysis which guided his doctoral study into effects of adult acquired hearing impairment on everyday spoken interaction. Christopher currently supervises Honours, coursework Masters and PhD research projects in Auditory Processing Disorders, psychological issues in hearing aid adoption, as well as Conversation Analysis in acquired adult hearing impairment and other adult onset communication disorders.

Dr Christopher Lind

New online learning program for health practitioners Flinders Human Behaviour & Health Research Unit (FHBHRU) is excited to announce the release of the Flinders Program™ online learning program. The course comprises ten modules that provide the learner with an interactive selfpaced learning experience that is suitable for all health practitioners.

The Flinders Program™ is a framework for chronic condition management. Within that framework is a set of tools that consist of four

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parts: disease management, selfmanagement, coordination and coaching. The Flinders Program™

To preview the online course visit http://fctgp.flinders.edu.au/login/ index.php

has been applied in a variety of settings and countries with adaptations for diverse populations. It provides a pathway for patients to follow that enables them to set achievable goals, break down problems and become more empowered in managing their own health.

For more information: ccm@flinders.edu.au or Jessie Hurrell on +61 8 (08) 8404 2607 and for more on the Flinders Program™ visit: www.flinders.edu.au/ medicine/sites/fhbhru Our new website is coming soon!

Education in Focus

Trust: the key to Aboriginal health Both institutions and students can struggle to see the relevance of an Indigenous health curriculum, but the benefits for health outcomes of learning to deal with Aboriginal people in a way that gains their trust are enormous, says Professor Dennis McDermott.

Professor McDermott, Director of the Poche Centre for Indigenous Health and Wellbeing at Flinders University, has just been awarded a $250,000 National Senior Teaching Fellowship by the Federal Government’s Office for Learning and Teaching to address issues of resistance to education around Aboriginal health.

“Five to 10 per cent understand immediately and come on board with it; there is a second group who are moved by what they find out, and see ways to learn from it; a third group who are completely flummoxed, and feel personally attacked by it, or guilty; and a fourth group who are downright hostile, indifferent and even disruptive,” he said.

tion of concepts such as family, reciprocity and spirituality, it doesn’t mean being an expert on individual Aboriginal cultures.

“Our job is to find teaching modalities to work across that spectrum that help keep students engaged.”

Establishing such trust can hugely increase the efficacy of clinical interventions, Professor McDermott said.

“If you spend the time initially, particularly in listening deeply, then later on you can go anywhere.”

Professor McDermott said maintaining engagement over a period of time is crucial: “We ask the students to come on a journey with us.”

An Indigenous health curriculum is increasingly being adopted as part of medical and health education courses across Australia, Professor McDermott said.

He said while a broad understanding of the social and economic factors that affect and determine everyone’s health and wellbeing can help to provide context for students, approaches to teaching are evolving too.

“What we are saying is you can’t be a good doctor, nurse or public or allied health professional unless you understand why the Aboriginal person walking through that door is presenting in the way they are presenting: you’ve got to know the back story of the nation, as much as the person.”

“People don’t want to have a whole series of didactic lectures: they want to be more involved with staff and have informal conversations and build relationships,” Professor McDermott said.

But not all students are equally receptive.

Professor McDermott said that many students are initially shocked by the realities of the social, cultural and economic conditions that underlie the chronic health issues among Aboriginal people.

“It’s not that people wilfully don’t want to get the message – it’s just that many are shocked and surprised by what they discover, first about Aboriginal health, and second about their own country,” he said.

Professor McDermott said there is typically a spectrum of response from students.

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The real message for students is about honesty, respect and building trust, or as Professor McDermott said, “keeping your skills at hand, but taking off the white coat”.

Professor McDermott’s National Senior Teaching Fellowship was one of three Office for Teaching and Learning grants made to Flinders. dennis.mcdermott@flinders.edu.au Adapted from an article originally posted on the University website on 4 July 2014

by Marketing and Communications. Article used with permission.

“We have to create a safe space where you can have the hard conversations and ask the awkward questions.”

It is also important to counter feelings that Aboriginal health issues are too big or too complex to deal with, Professor McDermott said.

“There are a number of things you can do, whether you’re a podiatrist or a surgeon, in clinical encounters; there are things you can do in a public health or prevention scope; and there are things you can do through advocacy for change.”

The overarching tool in clinical settings, Professor McDermott said, is cultural safety.

Professor McDermott said that while cultural safety includes an apprecia-

Professor Dennis McDermott

Faculty of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences

Breakthrough hope in caring for children Design of a revolutionary new learning platform to create shared understanding between health, education and welfare professionals working with children will be the focus of a $223,000 grant won by School of Nursing & Midwifery researchers.

It will have the effect of dismantling a Tower of Babel confronting professionals each speaking in their own industry tongues when working together across disciplines with children.

The project will develop an educational framework for professionals in diverse fields working collaboratively with children and families in their early years.

Flinders University School of Nursing & Midwifery, Dr Julian Grant (Project Leader) and Dr Yvonne Parry will be part of a team working to create a national interdisciplinary educational framework for professionals working with children in the early years.

The Office of Learning and Teaching Grant, Category 1 grant will contribute to the development of a national interdisciplinary learning and teaching framework to inform curriculum for the education of professionals who will work with children from birth to five years of age (the early years) and their families.

The first five years of a child’s life are irrefutably important, establishing life-long health, social and economic outcomes. To optimise these outcomes, national and state policy is directing professionals from a range of disciplinary backgrounds involved with children to work more collaboratively than ever before.

interdisciplinary learning and teaching framework to inform higher education curriculum for preparing early years professionals across disciplines.

The framework will take into account the diverse demands of multiple professions, qualification levels and workforce agendas. Informed by rigorous scholarship, and optimising interdisciplinary collaboration and engagement, the project design uses multilayered methodologies including modified Delphi rounds, and focus groups.

The national interdisciplinary learning and teaching framework will be developed to inform curriculum for the education of professionals across diverse disciplines who will work with children from birth to five years of age (the early years) and their families through:

A statement of common outcomes for children from birth to five years that recognises various disciplinary foci.

An interdisciplinary map of evidence-informed theories and national regulatory requirements for inclusion in an educational framework for early childhood practice.

A statement of universal essential elements (knowledge, skills and attributes) required for working with children from birth to five years of age.

 A set of project resources based on outcomes 1, 2 and 3, that can be embedded into the delivery of existing curriculum and can inform future curriculum development for early years’ professionals involved in interdisciplinary work.  A dissemination and evaluation strategy that is integrated across the life of the project and beyond.

School Dean, Professor Paul Arbon said the project represented an exceptional opportunity for cross-discipline collaboration and is core to the philosophy, methodological approach and design of the project with the team members as the essential collaborators.

He said this area of scholarship in early childhood would add to the reputation of the team and the School as a player in health care research and development. It is particularly pleasing that it had been worked up with industry partners.

The Project Team consists of: Dr Julian Grant (Project Leader) Dr Yvonne Parry, Ms Kaye Colmer, Prof Sally Brinkman, Dr Keith Miller, Prof Jennifer Sumsion, A/P Kerryann Walsh, Ms Christine Gibson, Dr Jess Javanovic, Prof Sue Kruske Article by Arndrae Luks arndrae.luks@flinders.edu.au

As pre-service education varies across the professions, such collaboration to support the early years has proven problematic.

This project seeks to address this problem by developing a national Dr Yvonne Parry and Dr Julian Grant

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Faculty of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences

2014 Faculty Scholar The 2014 Faculty of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences (FMNHS) Scholar Award recipient is Dr Wendy Abigail. Dr Abigail’s project is the development of a Community of Practice (CoP) within the Faculty which focusses on creative and innovative teaching practices. This CoP is based on the Creative and Innovative Teaching and Learning Interest Group which was originally formed by Dr Abigail in the School of Nursing & Midwifery(SONM) in 2012. The Faculty Scholar Award project is now expanding this group to encompass the three Schools within the Faculty.

The dual purpose of the group is to provide a regular forum for interested staff to share teaching practices, knowledge and experiences and to foster networking between .

the three Schools where interprofessional education opportunities may be identified. The meetings aim to be practically focussed with guest presenters who have an interest in some aspect of creative teaching practice willing to share tips, tricks and resources. It is planned that the meetings will be held in different School locations during teaching semesters. The SONM held the first meeting with Dr Steve Parker, Associate Dean, Teaching and Learning SONM, discussing the SQ3R reading method. Other sessions planned include Dr Chris Brebner discussing her 2013 teaching awards, and a session on using FLO analytics to track online student engagement.

ically dispersed such as is the case for the Faculty; hence consideration is being given to physical locations within the campus as well as remote locations in various states. To encourage the participation of all staff, video-conferencing will be available where possible.

Consideration is also being given to differing teaching settings such as classroom teaching, clinical placement online settings which may vary between disciplines. It is anticipated that as with all CoPs, the format and content of the group will continue to evolve over time.

A formal launch of the new group is planned for the end of the year. wendy.abigail@flinders.edu.au

It is acknowledged that CoP settings can be virtual and geograph-

Dr Wendy Abigail

Educa on in Focus in an ini a ve of the Faculty of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences at Flinders University Comments and sugges ons for future ar cle are welcome Also available online: www.flinders.edu.au/health‐sciences/current/publica ons.cfm Editorial Team: Mrs Karen Siegmann, Dr Claire Drummond, Ms Kelly Meier, Dr Barbara Sanderson, Dr Wendy Abigail and Dr Yvonne Parry

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