Workshop evaluation report: network characteristics of a youth counselling service

Cornerstone Youth Services (Cornerstone, CYS) in Launceston, Tasmania was funded by the Tasmanian Clinical Education Network under the Enhancing Workplace Practice in Health and Human Services Sectors strategy to undertake a project to ‘Improve clinical education and support for students re interprofessional settings’. The University of Tasmania Department of Rural Health (UDRH) which has staff experienced in teaching, promoting and studying IPP and IPL, was asked by Cornerstone to oversee one component of a larger project. The task was to assist them review the extent to which its structures and processes exploit its network potential and enable it to optimise IPP and IPL for staff and students undertaking field/professional experience placement. Two workshops were conducted to (i) examine existing interprofessional work practices and network characteristics of the youth mental health service and (ii) identify and report opportunities to enhance interprofessional education and practice within the organisation. Key learnings from the workshops were that Cornerstone employees have a good knowledge of each other’s roles and are well networked. The workshops have provided a valuable forum for staff and students to learn with, from and about each other’s roles and enabled them to develop greater insight and understanding. Health professionals are ‘well-rippled’, across all three domains thus demonstrated strong teamwork and collaboration, patient-centredness and relatively weak professional identity and territoriality. The service demonstrated a good capacity to support interprofessional student placement practice. The findings reveal opportunities and ways to modify some structural and procedural elements of the workplace, strengthen interprofessional network relations and contribute to the service to enhance its IPP and efficacy. For example, incorporating IPP/IPL and teamwork into organisational value statements and/or philosophy of care, building reference to IPP, teamwork and IPL into position descriptions, designating an ‘IPE champion’, devising a strategy to showcase good IPP/IPL practice and developing a structured IPE program for staff and students that is perceived to be relevant by a variety of disciplinary groups. It could also be worthwhile to include some administrative staff in case conferences because they are so well connected. The findings also reveal new opportunities for IPL that position the service well to develop its IPP culture and profile as an IPL placement provider. The organisation is receptive to students though could benefit from having a central coordinator to liaise with education providers and formalise IPL opportunities for students to spend time with staff outside their discipline. Ultimately, the study has contributed to developing and reinforcing a team committed to promoting client outcomes through collaborative IPP and promoting IPL opportunities for students undertaking placement within the organisation.