Professional Experience Placement

A colleague and I recently published a paper reporting that in Australia, there is a mobile learning paradox in healthcare settings. There is an inability of nurses to access mobile learning, while it is increasingly recognised that utilisation of mobile or portable devices at point of care can improve care and improve patient outcomes. This qualitative study was undertaken during 2014 in two Australian States. Analysis of the data identified there were a range of positive and negative behaviours that impacted on the perception of professionalism by clinical supervisors.

The key theme professionalism embodies competence and behaviour ascribed by the nursing profession. Student nurses develop their professional identity through a range of strategies including modelling behaviours they observe and perceive to be professional. Similarly, clinical supervisors recognise there is a standard of behaviour they are expected model with students. In Australia there is an identified minimum standard of knowledge, skills, attitudes and behaviour of nurses guided by the Australian and Midwifery Council Competency Standards and Code of Professional Conduct. Clinical supervisors in this study recognised ‘workarounds’ were developing when engaging in learning and teaching in the workplace. Strategies used to solve limitations created by lack of, or access to mobile learning impacted on clinical supervisors’ emic perspective of the standard of professionalism.

Positive findings included clinical supervisors indicated there were opportunities to reduce errors as information could be looked up or verified in real-time and also prevent duplication. Mobile learning information could be used for prompting appropriate sequences when undertaking clinical procedures. Participants considered mobile devices could improve collegiality within teams by enabling communication with their peers even when absent from the workplace. Participants also indicated the provision of another learning style afforded by using mobile devices for patient education could strengthen the nurse-patient relationship. Furthermore, inclusion of students in this new pedagogical approach to learning was viewed as positive for the development of rapport with patients and clinical supervisors.

Negative attributes impeded opportunities for positive professional identity formation of students, were identified by clinical supervisors. Participants from organisations where mobile learning was dissuaded were conscious of the ‘ducking out’, ‘toilet learning’ or ‘loitering in their lockers’ that occurred when a knowledge deficit, clarification or verification of information was identified by students or clinical supervisors. Clinical supervisors reported students were perplexed by some of their behaviour, which the clinicians construed as poor role modelling such as using mobile learning when they were aware organisational policy precluded its use. Clinical supervisors were also conscious of body language that indicated peer disapproval when they undertook mobile learning activities. Clinical supervisors reported the mobile learning paradox created by inability to access information prevented the “side to side thing” of developing a learning partnership with students and patients.

We concluded this paper by suggesting that redesign of learning and teaching to include mobile learning is overdue.  Suggestions to enable legitimisation of mobile learning as an integral nursing function during healthcare work were provided by clinical supervisors. Enabling mobile learning to become an overt activity that is part of formation of professional identity will promote appropriate behaviour and empower the next generation of nurses to seek information in real-time and solve the mobile learning paradox.

If you have any comments about using mobile learning in healthcare settings you are welcome to post them here. Join us @PEPCommunity.