Allied Health at Northern Health has launched a new Point of Care Learning Framework that partners with health service consumers to change the way clinicians learn.

The new framework supports work-based learning that responds to patient needs and occurs alongside routine clinical care.  This learning approach allows clinicians to reflect, adapt, and build their skills while actively delivering patient care and strengthens clinical reasoning and decision-making, as well as improving patient experience and outcomes.

Teaching at bedside isn’t new, but a key strength of the framework is its co-design with consumers. Consumer advisors played an active role in shaping both the framework and its supporting tools, to ensure that clinicians consider what matters most to patients and their families. They reviewed the draft framework and provided invaluable feedback on how clinicians can sensitively explain the purpose of point of care learning and actively participate in the experience. A consistent message from the consumer advisors was that when learning occurs in the presence of patients, it must be done in a way that ensures they feel safe, respected, listened to, and valued.

This is what some of our consumer advisors have shared with us:

Gordon Dennis reflected, “To have the opportunity to have a voice on how the hospital approaches its education programs tells me that the hospital really cares about those who come for help. I feel proud to have been able to contribute.”

Jo Young highlighted the value of learning in the moment, “Learning alongside patients is such an important part of professional development. It was rewarding to know that lived experience is helping shape how care is delivered.”

Carol Burnett emphasised the importance of inclusion, noting, “We come from a very diverse community. By involving consumers, Northern Health ensures different perspectives are represented, improving the quality of care and the experience for all patients.”

Finally, Evan Bichara added, “Engaging consumers meaningfully allows us to be heard and valued as partners. It strengthens patient-centred approaches and ensures services reflect real community needs.”

The move to PoC model of learning was directly informed by clinician’s feedback indicating that they learn best through hands-on, workplace-based experiences embedded in their daily work.

Allied Health physiotherapy educator Stephanie Castagnini, said, “We can underestimate how much we learn from our patients. This framework helps guide clinicians to create positive, goal-oriented learning experiences that benefit both the clinician and the patient.”

While Rachel Nolan, Speech Pathology Clinical Educator, highlighted the importance of trust, “Through co-design, we developed ways to help clinicians clearly explain point of care learning to patients. This builds confidence and strengthens the clinician–patient partnership.”

The Point of Care Learning Framework marks an important step in embedding learning into everyday practice at Northern Health, ensuring education is not an added extra, but an integral part of delivering safe, high-quality, and person-centred care.

Pictured in featured image: Allied Health clinicians with Northern Health consumer advisors.