Summer 2015 is almost over, which means our final year placement is looming. So we have decided to create our very own placement survival guide, based on our personal experience and advice from lecturers.
1. Pre placement visit. When you are notified about where your placement is, it's really beneficial to get into contact with your new educator(s) to formally introduce yourself as their new student. Arranging to visit your educator before your placement officially starts will allow you to meet with your educator to discuss; expectations on the placement, to familiarize yourself with the setting/environment/client group, and to practice your soon to be daily journey to the setting. A pre placement visit will save you a lot of worry and anxiety before starting your placement, so you can begin your first day knowing at least a little more than you first did!
2. Research. Take a look into the setting that you are going to be working in. If it is a mental health setting, look into the types of interventions which are used with various diagnosis', ask other students if they have had a similar placement, google your setting - does it have a website? Doing a bit of background research into your placement will show your educator that you have a passion for OT and are willing to learn. It also helps you prepare yourself for the weeks ahead. If you have never worked in a setting similar to your placement in the past, doing a bit of research will give you a clearer idea of the environment that you will be working in. Researching the roles of other professionals in your new MDT will help to paint the picture of how you all fit together as a cohesive network of professionals, and when they question you to see if you know what their role is, you can give some sort of answer other than "urm".
3. Confidence. It's ok to be anxious before starting your placement, everyone else on your course will be having the same thoughts as you. It is natural to be a bit scared when entering a new place and working with a new team of people, but don't ever think that as the weeks progress that you can't become a valued member of the team, because you can! Just think, you made it through the interview stage to get onto the OT course at your University, before really having a clear understanding about what OT actually is, so you can make it through this placement.
You are a student, you're not expected to know everything and your educators understand this. so if your not sure about something, don't automatically assume you are the worst student in the world, just do a bit of research and come back with an idea.
4. Ask questions. If you aren't sure what your MDT are talking about in the weekly MDT meetings, then ask your educator when it finishes. If there is a complicated word that sounds like some sort of ancient Greek God, just ask your educator. Your educator knows that this setting/role is new to you, and they are there to answer your questions, it's part of their job! Asking questions rather than nodding along with a blank expression will let your educator know that you are listening and are interested in learning as much as you can in your time with them. If you don't know something, don't let it stew away inside you, just ask!
5. Reflect. As OT students we are naturally being molded into reflective people. When on placement, it's really beneficial to reflect on positive interactions so you can understand what to do, and negative interactions to help you realize what not do. Reflection helps you to uncover your feelings, and ultimately helps you learn for the future. Depending on the type of person you are, you could try free flowing reflections or follow a structured model such as Borton or Gibbs.
6. Supervision. Whilst on placement it's extremely beneficial to utilize your weekly supervision sessions with your educator. Supervision can give you a chance to reflect with your educator about the week, set goals for the upcoming week and ultimately keep you and your educator on the same page. Supervision sessions allows your educator to track your progress, and gives you the opportunity to show them what you have the learned that week (which all counts to your overall placement mark).
7. Marking Scheme. Ok, this may sound really obvious, but some students don't do it.. look at the marking scheme for your placement, it TELLS you how to get marks! If your marking scheme says to achieve a First for your placement, you should have an outstanding understanding of the use of 'occupation as therapy' show that understanding outstandingly! Get creative with posters, diagrams and reflections with your educator, it all counts as evidence. Keep track of pieces of work that you do and show your educator how it demonstrates what it says on the marking scheme, then you and your educator will know that you are on the right tracks and the next steps you need to take.
8. Take opportunities. If your educator says that you can take the lead in an assessment today, take it. Your educator wouldn't say it if they didn't think you were ready! Don't doubt that you cannot do something whilst on your placement, your educator will be there to support you every step of the way, so do it! If your setting is running a group for it's service users, make the posters to send to them, volunteer to help run the group and plan activities for the group with your educator. Taking these kind of opportunities now will make you a better OT in the future and get you higher marks, so take initiative, say yes and take a deep breath!
9. Occupational Balance. We learn about occupational balance at University so it must be important for us to have occupational balance too, right? Like our future service users, we should have a relatively equal balance between our work and leisure pursuits to maintain our well being. This means when you are on placement, don't forget about your friends, family and your hobbies, they are as important in your life as your OT placement is. Placement sometimes makes it easy to forget about the other things you love in your life, as you begin you live, eat and breathe OT. But, you need to keep a healthy balance in your life which still lets you ace your placement and be human! If you are finding it hard to fit everything in, make a time table and promise your self at the very least one night a week you will veg out, go for a run or spend time with the important people in your life. This time table will keep you focused and organised whilst preventing you from losing that important balance in your life.
10. Tea and Biscuits...Your educator and MDT will appreciate this!
Love,
Kelly&Lucy.