Observational practicums

Personnel rotations consist of short observation practicums that last from half a day to a full day. This program allows participants to make contacts with people who work at different resources.

For example, a nurse working in a psychiatry unit at the Douglas Institute may spend a day at a community resource centre such as L’Autre Maison or a substance abuse treatment centre such as the Centre Dollard-Cormier. This allows the nurse to make contacts at these centres and discover how their staff work with clients. This facilitates contact if ever the nurse needs to refer patients to that resource in the future.

Results from the evaluation of previous rotations

Feedback from participants:

• A satisfaction rate of more than 90% for five out of six questionnaire items.
• Comments indicated satisfaction, specifically concerning the host resource’s greeting and attitude as well as the knowledge gained from the experience.
• Comments indicated a need for improvement, specifically concerning how the rotations and activities offered are organized.

Feedback from those in charge of the rotations

• An enriching experience for both visiting staff and the host resources
• A positive impact for the paired teams
• Organization and planning by the host teams are points for improvement
• The main goals to pursue in the future are sharing knowledge about resources and sharing expertise