DNAT and other supportive mechanisms
Support within the workplace is essential for advanced practice development to be successful within service.
The Advanced Practice Development Needs Analysis Tool
It is recognised that practitioners in differing roles will have different development needs that are dependent on their current job role. The Advanced Practice Development Needs Analysis Tool (DNAT), originally developed for participants on the NES Advanced Practice Succession Pathway has been found to be valuable in helping practitioners identify their development needs (Currie, et al 2010) Practitioners have found the DNAT useful for reflecting on their current role, identifying where they might benefit from further training, education and development and as a means of measuring progression and identifying ongoing learning needs.
The tool is based on the four overarching themes of advanced practice and the underpinning principles outlined in the Advanced Practice: Definitions section. It is recommended that the DNAT is completed jointly with the practitioner's line manager to identify the learning outcomes most appropriate for the development of the role within service. It can also be linked to the individual's annual development review, role benchmarking tool and KSF post outline.
Action Learning Sets
Participants on the NES Advanced Practice Succession Planning Pathway had peer support through action learning sets facilitated by experienced individuals.
The action learning sets were initially online but following feedback from participants two face to face sets were introduced. Action learning may be appropriate in some situations but requires commitment to attend the learning sets and the ability to commit the time for both facilitation and attendance. Further information is available in the evaluation of the action learning sets.
Critical Companionship
The identification of a 'Critical Companion' within the workplace was also included in the Succession Planning Development Pathway. The role of the critical companion is to provide a high level of support combined with a high level of challenge, thereby enabling development of higher-level reflective and critical analysis skills. This support mechanism was highly valued by participants. Further details available within the evaluation report.
Other supportive mechanisms may be required for specific roles or aspects of development. Some clinical roles, for example, may require multi-professional mentorship. Different support mechanisms may be more appropriate to different areas but it is important that some form of support is available to advanced practitioners.
