Responsibility and Development

Personal Responsibility and Development

Evidence 1: Knowing you limits of responsibility means you know when and how to ask for help when you are unsure of something. It also means that you do not do something that you are not competent to carry out in your role.

For this evidence piece start by trying to find 3 areas in your workplace – try and think of the separate benches you work on as a good starting point, for example:

GP bench processing bench
Inpatient / ward processing bench
Data entry

There could be other areas you routinely work in such as when issuing stores or taking samples to other areas through haematology and Biochemistry for example.

Once you have selected your three areas write a paragraph for each area to include the following:

Brief description of the area and what you do when working in it

Think of an example in the past when working in the area when you were not sure about something and had to ask for help or further clarification. This could also be when something went wrong and needed to be fixed.

Area: Data Entry (example number 1)

Data entry is another area that I work in. This is the process of inputting samples we have received into OmniLab before they can be tested in the other departments. This allows any requesting professionals to see results once they have been authorised.

I recently had to put a note in on the system for a wrong sample received. Once in the result entry section, the sample type that I needed to put in was not an option. I had to ask the duty Biochemists and what should I input, to which they created a new sample option so that the correct code could be put in.

Area number 2:

Brief description of the area and what you do when working in it

Think of an example in the past when working in the area when you were not sure about something and had to ask for help or further clarification. This could also be when something went wrong and needed to be fixed.

Area number 3:

Brief description of the area and what you do when working in it

Think of an example in the past when working in the area when you were not sure about something and had to ask for help or further clarification. This could also be when something went wrong and needed to be fixed.

Evidence 2: This piece of evidence will help you understand what the term reflective practice means and how you could use it in future to improve the way you work.

In its simplest form, reflective practice means looking back on your own way of working and thinking of ways to improve the way you could do things next time round (i.e. learning from experience). This is especially important if something went wrong!

Split this evidence into 3 parts as shown below and complete each section:

1. Reflective practice is:

Write a paragraph on your understanding of what reflective practice is – have a chat with one of your line managers in the first instance if you are not sure.

2. For the individual:

List different ways reflective practice could improve you as an individual, for example:

It increases my understanding and knowledge
Improves my self-awareness of when something has gone well or wrong

3. For other colleagues:

List different ways reflective practice could improve your work with other colleagues, for example:

It will help me fit in better with the rest of the team
It would improve my communication with other members of staff

Evidence 3: For this piece you will need to think of an action in the past when you did or said something that:

Made the situation better
Made the situation worse

So, have a think about 2 separate situations in the past, one positive and one negative, and answer the following:

1. Positive example:

Give a brief introduction to the situation:

How did your actions impact on others around you?

How did your actions impact on the service and / or your work?

How did your actions affect you?

Positive action and attitude examples:

Helping someone who needed help
Creating a positive environment
Communicating with another colleague to resolve a problem
Training someone to do carry out a task more effectively
Passing on some of your knowledge to another member of staff
Having a positive attitude that made a difference in the workplace

2. Negative example:

Give a brief introduction to the situation:

How did your actions impact on others around you?

How did your actions impact on the service and / or your work?

How did your actions affect you?

Negative action and attitude examples:

Ignoring someone else’s problem or mistake
Saying something that inflamed the situation
Making a mistake that caused a problem later on
Not concentrating on your work / or working efficiently
Blaming someone else
Creating a negative environment due of personal reasons / feelings

Evidence 4: For this piece of evidence you will need to understand what competence is in the first instance. You can think of competence as a combination of knowledge (theory) and practical ability (skill):

Competence = Knowledge + Practical Skills

Most competencies within your department will usually happen in the following order:

1. Training – this is when you learn or are shown how to do something (with another more competent member of staff). You are usually given the opportunity to ask questions at the start of your training (why, how, where etc.).

2. Consolidation – this mean applying all what you have leant over a number of weeks and months so that you are experienced and comfortable with carrying out the task.

3. Assessment – before to can be signed of as competent your knowledge and skills will need to be independently assessed. This could be in the form of an observation, discussion or answering set questions (or all three). Once your assessment has been completed you have completed your training plan and can be signed off as competent.

4. Competency re-assessment – you will need to assessed again at regular intervals throughout your career to ensure you have maintained your skills and / knowledge for each competency

Evidence for this piece will require you to demonstrating that you are continuously learning and developing (so if you have any evidence relating to any of the above 4 sections then you can use this).

Include 2 pieces of evidence that demonstrates how your competence and personal development has been maintained in the last 12 months (i.e. x 1 piece of evidence from the competence example list below and x 1 piece of evidence from the personal development example list below):

1. Example evidence piece that demonstrates your competence:

This evidence piece (photocopy) can be glued directly into your portfolio

Other competence evidence pieces you could use :

Departmental signed off competency
Departmental competency re-assessment
Mandatory training record (ESR)
Appraisal front sheet / objectives completed

2. Example evidence piece that demonstrates your personal development:

This evidence piece (photocopy) can be glued directly into your portfolio

Other personal development evidence pieces you could use:

Copy of your CPD wallet
Attendance to a CPD session (attendance record)
Attendance at a department meeting
Appraisal front sheet / objectives completed

Please ensure all inserted training / personal development evidence pieces are competed ones (i.e. not blank templates)

Sign off: After you have collected each piece of evidence, hand them into your trainer / mentor who will then countersign them. Please note that they may ask for additional evidence or ask you follow up questions. Also ensure that:

You have date and signed your work
You only submit evidence for checking once it is completed (you may take individual evidence pieces out of your portfolio)
Ensure any countersigned checked work is returned back (in order) to your portfolio

Try not to hand in multiple pieces of evidence for marking at once - this will create too much work for your trainer / mentor, instead spread your submissions out throughout your training.

Trainer notes: Ensure the candidates line manager completes the 'Line Manager's Comments' section as each module in the portfolio is completed - continuous assessment of the candidates work is required throughout the training period.