Occupation

Abstracts
and why they make certain choices and identify attitudes and
reasons that underpin behaviour.
This is a practice evaluation of the introduction of VBR to
student recruitment. Ethical approval was not required.
Consultations took place with academic staff, current students
and service users. A nominal group technique was used to
inform the development of the VBR process for the 2014 intake.
Using examboard spreadsheets and practice placement data,
issues of progression and professional practice were evaluated
for one year. This information was then compared with those
students who had not experienced the VBR process. Feedback
on the VBR process was invited from applicants, staff and
students.
All nominal groups identified the same top 5 values but with
some differences in order of priority. The feedback on the VBR
process of applicants, staff and students was positive. Data from
spreadsheets and practice placements showed little difference in
progression rates or practice performance between those that
experienced VBR and those that did not.
Whilst staff and students report a level of satisfaction with
the process, the little difference in areas that are significant
markers for Higher Education Institutional audit would suggest
that further investigation is required concerning the resources
required to implement a system that appears to have little
impact.
References
DoH (2015) The NHS Constitution Department of Health https://
www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_
data/file/448466/NHS_Constitution_WEB.pdf accessed 15.9.15
Keywords
Students, Service improvement or transformation, Impact of
policy, Education
Contact E-mail Addresses
a.hook@salford.ac.uk
Author Biographies
I have over 30 years of experience within the field of
occupational therapy and I am currently a Senior Lecturer in
Occupational Therapy at the University of Salford and a founder
member of OT4OT.
As an occupational therapist I am concerned with promoting
health and wellbeing through engagement in meaningful
occupations across the age span and the consideration of how
to enable individuals experiencing problems in these areas due
to illness, trauma, disability or environmental difficulties.
I am currently admissions tutor for the Full time undergraduate
programme.
I am an Occupational Therapist registered with the Health and
Care Professional Council. Having worked in a variety of clinical
areas I am now a lecturer in Occupational therapy at University
of Salford. I gained a PhD in 2013 with the thesis title “Siblings
of adults who have a learning disability: personal wishes, reality
and parental expectations for future support”. This will be
followed by further investigation of fathers of people who have
a learning disability. I am currently the admissions tutor for the
part-time undergraduate programme.
P174
Role emerging opportunities for students on
placement: the CORDS observational visit
Posters
Hutchings S, Roche J, Oxford Brookes University
It is well established that Occupational Therapists are a
professional group that work across a wide spectrum of settings
and increasingly in third sector ‘role emerging’ contexts (COT
2014). The provision of ‘role emerging’ placements can help
students develop confidence in their professional identity and
core skills in an authentic way, thus preparing them for the
future challenges of contemporary practice (Fieldhouse and
Fedden 2009, Clarke et al 2015). The nature and provision
of role emerging placements has varied across the Higher
Education Institutions, as the sourcing, support and sustainability
of these opportunities can be challenging and time consuming
(Thew et al 2008, Cooper and Raine 2009). The Oxford Brookes
practice education team have introduced a ‘bite-sized’ role
emerging observation visit to a voluntary/third sector service as
a learning opportunity within each allocated placement (Years
1–3) for all students. This initiative – the CORDS project (Core
Skills in Diverse Settings) – was implemented as part of practice
education in 2012. Working in partnership with students
and placement providers/Practice Educators, key findings
have emerged in terms of this initiative meeting its intended
objectives and its possible future development.
References
College of Occupational Therapists (2014) College of
Occupational Therapists’ learning and development standards
for pre-registration education. London: COT
Clarke C, Martin M, de Viser R and Sadlo S (2015) Sustaining
professional identity in practice following role-emerging
placements: Opportunities and challenges for Occupational
Therapists. British Journal of Occupational Therapy, 78 (1),
42–50.
Cooper R and Raine R (2009) Role-emerging placements are an
essential risk for the development of the occupational therapy
profession: the debate. British Journal of Occupational Therapy,
72 (9), 416–418.
Fieldhouse J and Fedden T (2009) Exploring the learning process
on a role-emerging practice placement: a qualitative study.
British Journal of Occupational Therapy, 72 (7), 302–307.
Thew M, Hargreaves A and Cronin-Davis J (2008) An evaluation
of a Role Emerging Practice Placement Model for a Full
Cohort of Occupational Therapy Students. British Journal of
Occupational Therapy, 71 (8), 348–353.
Keywords
Students, Practice development, Education and learning,
Voluntary/third sector services
Contact E-mail Addresses
sehutchings@ brookes.ac.uk
Author Biographies
Sue Hutchings is a senior lecturer and a practice placement
tutor at Oxford Brookes University. Her previous professional
experience is in community mental health. Her current
professional focus is practice education & is a member of the
COT affiliated Practice Placements Tutors Forum and is also a
COT Accreditor and External Examiner.
Judy Roche is a senior lectuer and a practice placement tutor at
Oxford Brookes University. She has responsbilities for teaching
on the under-graduate curriculum and well as co-ordinating the
mandatory skills requirements as part of placement preparation
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