A year of progress in technology enhanced learning

Representatives from provider trusts and higher education institutions across Kent, Surrey and Sussex have met to review the progress of the HEKSS technology enhanced learning (TEL) programme.

The programme began in June 2013 and worked with stakeholders to establish a five-year strategy for developing the use of technology enhanced learning across the region

The strategy aims to meet the needs of a multi-professional workforce in a changing health and social care environment, with a focus on patient safety, organisational collaboration and developing the skills and knowledge to underpin the HEKSS skills development strategy.

The TEL programme covers three key areas:

1. Simulation: developing simulation training for multi-professional team-based learning.
2. E-learning: increasing and improving access to e-learning for the whole workforce.
3. Mobile applications: exploring how to use mobile applications to provide easy access to tools for assessment and learning.

Over the last year the programme has supported 34 TEL projects. Attendees at the 2 July event received updates on some of these initiatives and shared their experience and ideas. Projects discussed at the event included:

Kent, Surrey and Sussex Children’s Simulation Centre

HEKSS funded a unique children’s simulation centre at the Royal Alexandra Children's Hospital. The project, led by Brighton and Sussex University Hospitals NHS Trust, was a collaboration of nine organisations, including primary care, other acute trusts and education providers across the region.

In addition to the dedicated simulation centre, mobile simulation equipment and baby and child training mannequins will also be used for ward-based training and taken for outreach education in primary care and community settings.

Trainers are currently being trained, including doctors, nurses, paramedics and AHPs and this will be extended to include primary and community professionals.

Mobile simulated ambulance

HEKSS is supporting a collaboration between trusts in Surrey, Sussex and Kent to develop a simulated ambulance so multi-professional teams can put training into practice and learn how to provide the best care for patient in transit. It will also enable processes for transfers and handovers to be tested and improved.

The fully functioning ex-fleet ambulance will be equipped with adult and child mannequins and will travel to sites across the region. Consultant leads in each county will work with a central co-ordinator and technician to deliver training to meet local needs.

Other projects

• A project to understand, identify and pilot ways to overcome barriers to the use of e-learning at East Sussex Healthcare NHS Trust.
• Projects at Surrey and Borders Partnership NHS Foundation Trust to use innovative video technology to create immersive learning environments and to develop an e-learning course for health and care professional to better support gender variant children and transgender adolescents.
• The development of an endovascular training system at Frimley Park NHS Foundation Trust which provides opportunities for multi-disciplinary teams to learn.
• A collaboration including Kent Community Health NHS Trust and Canterbury Christ Church University to develop an online training package for advance care planning.
• The use of simulated skill trainers at Medway NHS Foundation Trust.
• An interactive tool to enhance child protection being developed by the University of Kent to help health and care professionals better identify and support people at risk of online sexual grooming.

The event was also an opportunity for the HEKSS TEL programme’s new clinical lead, Dr Ian Curran to hear more about the TEL developments underway across the region. Dr Curran is a consultant anaesthetist at Bart’s Healthcare NHS Trust. He was previously a clinical adviser to Health Education England and Dean of Educational Excellence & Head of Innovation at the London Deanery.

Dr Curran said “I look forward to working with colleagues across HEKSS on this innovative workforce development programme. I believe that if we are to deliver enhanced patient safety and improved multi-professional working we must adopt Human Factors principles and practices more widely, support professional excellence and build the necessary educational capacity and capability to succeed.”

For more information on the HEKSS TEL programme, please visit Technology Enhanced Learning or contact project manager Rebecca Burden, rburden@kss.hee.nhs.uk.