Bridging the Gap: Three Strategies to Optimize Professional Relationships with Generation Y and Z

Millennials (Generation Y) and the Generation Z population comprise the majority of occupational therapy student cohorts and new graduates entering the workforce. While fieldwork education has historically prepared students for generalist, entry-level practice, there is still a gap between what students versus employers feel are career-ready skills and qualities to be successful in the workforce. This manuscript presents evidenced-based strategies for educators, occupational therapists, and managers to enhance the preparation and professional development of occupational therapy students and new graduates. Use of coaching philosophies, emphasizing practice-ready skills, and a growth mindset are methods to target the strengths of Generations Y and Z members and address areas of growth as they prepare to enter the workforce. Emphasizing human relationships over task completion or skill mastery helps uphold the values of millennials and the Generation Z population that they can make an impact in the workplace. Modeling practice-ready skills, explicit discussion of “soft” skills, and use of guided discovery supports these generations’ understanding of basic workplace etiquette and culture. Using a growth mindset philosophy can help foster initiative and self-awareness, which are potential areas of growth for these generations. These strategies can then promote healthy, productive collaboration in the workplace and, ultimately, enhance the client-provider relationship

A Nationwide Descriptive Study: Part II Understanding the Ways Academic Fieldwork Coordinators Describe the Responsibilities and Challenges of their Role

The responsibilities and challenges of Academic Fieldwork Coordinators vary considerably across occupational therapy and occupational therapy assistant programs in the United States. In the second part of a nationwide convergent mixed-method study conducted to identify the roles and responsibilities of the Academic Fieldwork Coordinator, we examined the role responsibilities, structural supports, and barriers that influence their success and satisfaction. Academic Fieldwork Coordinators described the valuable role they play in supporting students’ achievement of learning outcomes, successful fieldwork experiences, and their entrance into the profession as competent practitioners. They additionally delineated the valuable contributions they make to their programs’ maintenance of relevance in their curriculum and in the community. Their ambassadorship of institutions, program, students, fieldwork educators, and the occupational therapy profession brings them both reward and challenge. This study yields important data on these juxtaposed experiences and sheds light on the ways they can be addressed to improve role satisfaction and success

A Nationwide Descriptive Study: Understanding Roles, Expectations, and Supports of Academic Fieldwork Coordinators in Occupational Therapy Programs

Fieldwork education is considered a central component to the formative development of occupational therapy professionals and the responsibility for the quality of fieldwork educational experiences falls to the Academic Fieldwork Coordinator (AFWC). The roles and responsibilities of the AFWC vary considerably between institutions and are not clearly understood. Using a convergent mixed methods research design, the study aimed to describe the roles and responsibilities of the AFWC in occupational therapy programs in the United States and to identify the structural supports and barriers that influence success in meeting the unique expectations and challenges in fieldwork education. A 64-item online survey was completed by 103 AFWCs from accredited occupational therapy programs nationwide. Results demonstrated that AFWCs have limited teaching experience when they enter academia and report that they have been in the role for relatively short periods of time. They balance traditional core responsibilities of academic life with considerable work demands for administration and practice community collaboration for fieldwork. Findings suggest that, though role satisfaction is high, responsibilities and support and resources vary considerably among AFWCs. Understanding the role and responsibility characteristics may improve fieldwork outcomes. This study contributes to the existing research of fieldwork education and provides new data to inform occupational therapy practice and educational programs regarding the unique roles, responsibilities, and performance of the AFWC in occupational therapy and occupational therapy assistant educational programs

Increasing Self-Efficacy through Role Emerging Placements: Implications for Occupational Therapy Experiential Learning

Fieldwork education is an essential component of occupational therapy curriculum design and student development. Today’s students are faced with a variety of challenges in the changing, diverse healthcare system, and educators need to ensure there are placements that best prepare them for these demands. Role emerging fieldwork offers an opportunity to not only meet the curricular requirements of fieldwork education, but also afford students the chance to develop confidence and skills unique to this kind of placement. The purpose of this explanatory case study was to explore graduate occupational therapy students’ self-efficacy before and after a Level I role emerging fieldwork experience, and in addition, the potential personal or professional transformation that occurred as a result. Data was collected from 36 students using a pre-post survey with the Student Confidence Questionnaire (SCQ). The findings revealed a statistically significant growth in each of the seven areas of the SCQ (Risk Taking, Supervision, Communication, Adaptability, Innovation, Clinical Practice, and Professional Competence), which led to an increase in self-efficacy, personal and professional development, and a further understanding of the role of occupational therapy. Results indicated the influential impression role emerging fieldwork leaves on the growth and autonomy of the student and provides a potential solution for programs to meet the accreditation standards for all level of experiential learning

Mindfulness in the Occupational Therapy Classroom: Infusing Grit, Gratitude Practice, and a Growth Mindset into OT Education

With the rigor of occupational therapy programs increasing to meet the demands of the diverse healthcare system, students are reporting stress and anxiety at an increasing rate. This mixed methods study assessed the outcomes of occupational therapy students who participated in a comprehensive mindfulness program that included interventions on grit, gratitude practice, and growth mindset. Twenty-four occupational therapy students participated in the 10-week mindful-based intervention program prior to a Level I fieldwork experience. Data was collected pre- and post-intervention using the 12-item Grit Scale, the Gratitude Questionnaire (GQ-6), the Motivated Strategies for Learning Questionnaire (MSLQ), journal entries, and a satisfaction survey at the completion of the program. Student outcomes included statistically significant changes in grit and gratitude. While growth mindset was not statistically significant, there were meaningful changes in reported self-regulation, both in the classroom and clinical experience. Infusing mindful-based curriculum into occupational therapy education can have a positive effect on both the occupational therapy student and subsequent clinical experiences, ultimately carrying over to therapeutic client interactions. Educators within academia and in clinical settings can utilize similar interventions to ensure students are holistically prepared to meet the demands of the current healthcare system

Simulated fieldwork: A virtual approach to clinical education

The purpose of this study was to investigate student satisfaction and perceived clinical reasoning and learning using a computer-based simulation platform that incorporates case-based learning principles. The simulation was used to replace a previously scheduled face-to-face clinical rotation which was cancelled due to COVID-19. A descriptive design was used to implement the Satisfaction with Simulation Experience Scale (SSES) with students (n = 27) following each a low fidelity (paper cases) and high fidelity (Simucase™) simulation. A comparison of the SSES data following paper cases and simulation scenarios indicated statistically significant increases in Debrief and Reflection (p = 0.008) and Clinical Reasoning (p = 0.043), suggesting that students develop in-depth reflection, reasoning, and clinical abilities as they progress through their simulated experience