Exploring experiences of wellbeing amongst psychological professionals in healthcare

This thesis portfolio comprises three parts: a systematic literature review, an empirical paper and appendices. This thesis aims to explore experiences of wellbeing amongst psychological professionals working within healthcare, with a particular focus on thriving at work.Part One: Systematic Literature ReviewThe systematic literature review explored conceptualisations of wellbeing within the qualitative literature regarding psychological practitioners in healthcare. It also explored psychological practitioners’ experiences of wellbeing at work in healthcare. Twelve studies were identified as meeting the inclusion criteria following a systematic search of the literature. A narrative synthesis was undertaken to inform of an overall picture of understandings and experiences of wellbeing amongst psychological practitioners in healthcare. The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) Methodological Quality Checklist for Qualitative Studies was used to assess the quality of the included studies. Two main themes emerged: heterogeneity in understanding wellbeing, with different theoretical conceptualisations of wellbeing across studies. Secondly, practitioners experienced a journey of wellbeing over the course of their careers, with feeling a sense of purpose in their roles playing a key part in their wellbeing at work. Clinical implications and further areas for research are discussed.Part Two: Empirical PaperThe empirical paper explored clinical psychologists’ (CPs) experiences of thriving at work within a National Health Service (NHS) context. A qualitative Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) methodology was employed. Ten participants completed semi-structured interviews. Four core conditions were identified which needed to be fulfilled for CPs to thrive at work: making a difference as a clinical psychologist, working in line with personal, professional, and organisational values, growing and developing as a professional, and safety: psychologically safe environments and job security. These conditions were subject to multiple threats in the current NHS context, which CPs attempted to overcome in various ways. The findings suggested that CPs can thrive within their roles, and that they played an active role in shaping their thriving at work. Recommendations for further research are discussed, alongside the implications of this research in clinical practice and training contexts.Part Three comprises the AppendicesThe appendices contain further information to support the systematic literature review and empirical paper. The role of the researcher is also considered further in the epistemological and reflective statements

Shaping the future for primary care education and training project. Education and training provision to deliver integrated health & social care: course finder

Within the Shaping the Future for Primary Care Education and Training Project, the literature review concerning integrated health and social care identified a number of implications or recommendations for service and education. For education, these recommendations may be categorised under a number of headings or themes: Team working, Communication, Role Awareness, Practice Development and Leadership,Partnership Working. It would follow that if agencies in the North West are to deliver truly integrated health and social care services, educational curricula across the region should cover these themes. Prior to the Shaping the Future Project there was no simple way of looking across the entire region to gain insights into current education and training provision. One of the core objectives of the Shaping the Future Project was to develop a webbased Course Finder tool and to map existing regional provision of education and training which can support the delivery of integrated health and social care service

Supporting organisational learning: an overview of the ENRICH approach

Traditional training separates learning from the work context in which the newly acquired knowledge is to be applied. This requires the worker themselves to apply imparted theoretical knowledge to knowledge in practice, a process that is grossly inefficient. The ENRICH approach builds on organisational learning theory to intertwine working and learning. The ENRICH methodology incorporates theories of learning at the individual, group and organisational level. Individual level learning is supported through the provision of semantically related resources to support problem reframing and to challenge assumptions. Group learning is supported through the evolution of domain concepts through work documents and representations linked to formal models of group knowledge, and the development of group practices and perspectives through enhanced sharing and collaboration. Organisational learning is supported through exposure to customs and conventions of other groups through shared best practices and knowledge models. The approach is being investigated in a range of industrial settings and applications

The development of the professionalism of adult educators: a biographical and learning perspective

To investigate the development of the professionalism of adult educators, we compare individuals’ narratives of their professional work at different times in their biographies. Using data from a qualitative longitudinal study, the paper includes two case studies through which we show phases of learning in the development of professionalism. We reconstruct forms and meanings of learning in this process. The study allows insights into differences in professional learning during the life course and the influence of institutional and social context in the development of professionalism. (DIPF/orig.

CHORUS Deliverable 3.3: Vision Document - Intermediate version

The goal of the CHORUS vision document is to create a high level vision on audio-visual search engines in order to give guidance to the future R&D work in this area (in line with the mandate of CHORUS as a Coordination Action). This current intermediate draft of the CHORUS vision document (D3.3) is based on the previous CHORUS vision documents D3.1 to D3.2 and on the results of the six CHORUS Think-Tank meetings held in March, September and November 2007 as well as in April, July and October 2008, and on the feedback from other CHORUS events. The outcome of the six Think-Thank meetings will not just be to the benefit of the participants which are stakeholders and experts from academia and industry – CHORUS, as a coordination action of the EC, will feed back the findings (see Summary) to the projects under its purview and, via its website, to the whole community working in the domain of AV content search. A few subjections of this deliverable are to be completed after the eights (and presumably last) Think-Tank meeting in spring 2009

Enhancing choice? The role of technology in the career support market

This report explores the role that technology has played in the development of the career support market. This market is conceived broadly to include all possible resources that individuals might draw upon to support them in their career development. A key element is the role that is played by public-sector career services and by careers professionals; though these resources are supplemented by services paid for in a wide range of ways and delivered by a range of professionals and non-professionals.UKCE