Clinical Placements for the Professions Allied to Medicine, Part 2: Placement Shortages? Two Models that can Solve the Problem

Abstract

Traditional models of fieldwork education are unable to provide for the increasing numbers of student placements required to cope with the growing demand for qualified staff. Part 1 of this article summarised the recent research carried out in the North West Region which explored many clinical placement issues. It highlighted the need for occupational therapists to use different approaches to fieldwork education and to utilise non-traditional placement models which have the potential to increase the numbers of appropriate learning experiences without compromising the placement quality. Willingness to test new placement models is the key issue. Part 2 of the article looks at current placement provision and describes the advantages and disadvantages of two fieldwork education models identified in the North West Region research: the collaborative and the role-emerging models. These models have the potential to increase the numbers of good quality placements available to occupational therapy students while preparing them for working in a changing and challenging health care environment.