. 2020 Mar 31;9(2):74–82. doi: 10.1007/s40037-020-00569-1

Table 2.

Strategies identified for supporting learning in the workplace

Themes	Illustrative quotes	Strategies
Structure a journey of learning	“I first started having these initial education sessions to set the scene, which really supported me and gave me the base knowledge to understand my role, then getting resources to follow up and read through … then consolidating that through practice, with constant support. It’s the ongoing support that’s the most important.” (OT8) “I think initially, having someone specifically support you though that process for at least the first couple of times is really valuable.” (OT12) “Now it’s only when I have the really, really complex patients that I seek out a bit more help.” (OT8) “Now I realize that when they say they’re looking into capacity, it’s not this stressful thing. It’s work as per normal but just some additional information gathering.” (OT6)	Ask about learners’ prior experience and knowledge; match the type and amount of guidance to their needs i.e. assess learner readiness. Maximize opportunities for learners to be actively involved in authentic work tasks. Provide ongoing progressive support which is most intensive for the earliest and most complex tasks. Scaffold explicit links between new and existing knowledge; current and previous experiences. Start by giving learners responsibility for less complex steps while assisting with more complex steps of tasks.
Provide tailored guidance	“She’ll ask you, ‘what have you been doing so far?’ or ‘what things have you tried so far?’’’ (OT3) “(The person in the Role) would come to me and say ‘this is what’s expected of you’, or ‘here’s what you do’ … she will give you very clear direction and instructions.” (OT9) “The education sessions … helped guide me through the flowcharts and the resources that we already have, and really making it about the clinical reasoning and the justification for why we’re doing what we’re doing.” (OT8) “It’s definitely been extremely helpful just to get another perspective and support in terms of making decisions about, well, what assessments might be helpful and how they can be interpreted … and maybe help you consider some things that you haven’t thought of yet.” (OT10) “A couple of times (the Role) actually came and did the interview with me and we co-did the interview. I’m quite a visual learner and actually seeing someone do it was so powerful.” (OT6) “I think a lot of learning has come through the ability to talk through my clinical reasoning process, be challenged, and reflect on those as well.” (OT4)	First ask learners what they think they should do before offering advice or suggestions. If required, provide some direct instructions and specific advice about what to do and how to do it, but also provide in-depth explanations of why to do it. Explicitly articulate your clinical reasoning and decision-making process. Offer opportunities for learners to debrief about challenging work tasks and gain a second perspective. Develop resources such as guidelines, flowcharts, templates, worked examples, videos and simulations. Role model and demonstrate key knowledge, skills, attitudes and values e.g. during joint clinical sessions. Provide constructive feedback about learners’ knowledge, practical skills and clinical reasoning. Facilitate structured reflection on practice and ask learners to summarize “key take-home messages” of what they have learnt from each experience.
Foster a supportive learning environment	“Through those initial education sessions, I built rapport with the (person in the) Role, which I felt was really supportive and I felt more than comfortable calling her to be able to help me out with any particular hard cases.” (OT8) “It’s not expected that everyone should have this knowledge; it’s really acknowledged as a specialty area …” (OT4) “I was finding that if there was a question that I had, timeliness as far as the response goes has always been fantastic.” (OT12 “(The Role) is really removed, so people aren’t worried that feedback is related to performance or contracts or anything. It’s a really safe way to learn, make mistakes, get feedback, get supported, do joint sessions.” (OT4)	Build rapport with learners, e.g. by finding out about their interests and previous experiences. Normalize the challenges inherent in complex areas of practice and clarify expectations about proficiency. Be approachable and actively promote availability, e.g. by regularly visiting teams in their work area. Wherever possible, provide flexible and timely support when it is needed. Where possible, separate learning support from performance evaluation processes.

Themes

Illustrative quotes

Strategies

Structure a journey of learning

“I first started having these initial education sessions to set the scene, which really supported me and gave me the base knowledge to understand my role, then getting resources to follow up and read through … then consolidating that through practice, with constant support. It’s the ongoing support that’s the most important.” (OT8)

“I think initially, having someone specifically support you though that process for at least the first couple of times is really valuable.” (OT12)

“Now it’s only when I have the really, really complex patients that I seek out a bit more help.” (OT8)

“Now I realize that when they say they’re looking into capacity, it’s not this stressful thing. It’s work as per normal but just some additional information gathering.” (OT6)

Ask about learners’ prior experience and knowledge; match the type and amount of guidance to their needs i.e. assess learner readiness.

Maximize opportunities for learners to be actively involved in authentic work tasks.

Provide ongoing progressive support which is most intensive for the earliest and most complex tasks.

Scaffold explicit links between new and existing knowledge; current and previous experiences.

Start by giving learners responsibility for less complex steps while assisting with more complex steps of tasks.

Provide tailored guidance

“She’ll ask you, ‘what have you been doing so far?’ or ‘what things have you tried so far?’’’ (OT3)

“(The person in the Role) would come to me and say ‘this is what’s expected of you’, or ‘here’s what you do’ … she will give you very clear direction and instructions.” (OT9)

“The education sessions … helped guide me through the flowcharts and the resources that we already have, and really making it about the clinical reasoning and the justification for why we’re doing what we’re doing.” (OT8)

“It’s definitely been extremely helpful just to get another perspective and support in terms of making decisions about, well, what assessments might be helpful and how they can be interpreted … and maybe help you consider some things that you haven’t thought of yet.” (OT10)

“A couple of times (the Role) actually came and did the interview with me and we co-did the interview. I’m quite a visual learner and actually seeing someone do it was so powerful.” (OT6)

“I think a lot of learning has come through the ability to talk through my clinical reasoning process, be challenged, and reflect on those as well.” (OT4)

First ask learners what they think they should do before offering advice or suggestions.

If required, provide some direct instructions and specific advice about what to do and how to do it, but also provide in-depth explanations of why to do it.

Explicitly articulate your clinical reasoning and decision-making process.

Offer opportunities for learners to debrief about challenging work tasks and gain a second perspective.

Develop resources such as guidelines, flowcharts, templates, worked examples, videos and simulations.

Role model and demonstrate key knowledge, skills, attitudes and values e.g. during joint clinical sessions.

Provide constructive feedback about learners’ knowledge, practical skills and clinical reasoning.

Facilitate structured reflection on practice and ask learners to summarize “key take-home messages” of what they have learnt from each experience.

Foster a supportive learning environment

“Through those initial education sessions, I built rapport with the (person in the) Role, which I felt was really supportive and I felt more than comfortable calling her to be able to help me out with any particular hard cases.” (OT8)

“It’s not expected that everyone should have this knowledge; it’s really acknowledged as a specialty area …” (OT4)

“I was finding that if there was a question that I had, timeliness as far as the response goes has always been fantastic.” (OT12

“(The Role) is really removed, so people aren’t worried that feedback is related to performance or contracts or anything. It’s a really safe way to learn, make mistakes, get feedback, get supported, do joint sessions.” (OT4)

Build rapport with learners, e.g. by finding out about their interests and previous experiences.

Normalize the challenges inherent in complex areas of practice and clarify expectations about proficiency.

Be approachable and actively promote availability, e.g. by regularly visiting teams in their work area.

Wherever possible, provide flexible and timely support when it is needed.

Where possible, separate learning support from performance evaluation processes.