“Educators make education meaningful and relevant for themselves and their students by co-creating learning and sharing” (Nussbaum-Beach and Ritter 58). This opening sentence of chapter four in The Connected Educator provides the skeleton for what this chapter is all about--improving learning and learning environments through collaboration. Collaboration is a key component in any job or learning environment, and is an important skill to have in a globalized world. In order to develop strong collaboration, one must put relationships first and foster them through trust, collegiality, shared vision, and group development (Nussbaum-Beach and Ritter).
As a student studying to become an occupational therapist, all of the points made in this chapter
about collaboration not only apply to me, but are important skills that I will need to have in order to work effectively with my patients and with other healthcare professionals, both in and outside of my own field. In fact, one of my required undergraduate courses that I have to take is Teamwork and Collaboration in Healthcare. There are many different components to health, and people in different fields of healthcare all have different specialties or areas of focus, and it is important to be able to work collaboratively with each other in order to help a patient stay healthy in every aspect possible. We must also have this same perspective when it comes to working with patients. I chose the wording “working with” because, compared to other words such as “treating,” it allows the patient-provider relationship to be seen as mutual and helps avoid feelings of a power differential in favor of the provider. It often takes courage for a person struggling with something to ask for help, and that is why it is important to show that you are there to work with them and not for or against them. Though it may take place in stages, by developing trust, collegiality, shared vision, and group development with patients the same way you did with fellow health professionals, you can work together to find a treatment plan or method that works best for each individual.
Source:
Nussbaum-Beach, Sheryl, and Lani Ritter. Hall. The Connected Educator: Learning and Leading
in a Digital Age. Solution Tree Press, 2012.
Hi Jenna! I am taking Teamwork and Collaboration this semester and have learned a lot about collaborating in healthcare. Interprofessional communication is one of the first topics we discussed. I agree that as healthcare providers we need to work together for the health of the patient. As a future PA, I may work with future OTs as yourself if the patient would benefit from your work. Great post!
ReplyDeleteHey Jenna!! I agree that an important skill to have is being able to collaborate with others in any job or learning environment. Being a business major there will always be a better way of doing something to make sure you get the most you can out of it, so by collaborating with colleagues I would be able to find better ways of doing things all the time.
ReplyDeleteHi Jenna! Great post. I think it is awesome that even though that this class is education major based, somehow everyone is able to relate it to their field of interest. Collaboration in Occupational therapy is great not only among coworkers, but patients. I mention my one friend who is going to school to be physical therapist a lot in this class, but her career path relates a lot. She is currently working at a physical therapist office, and she says she has great relationship with her patients. She says she gets sad when it is their last session because of the bonds she makes with them. It is believable to because she works with them in a vulnerable situation.
ReplyDeleteHey Heather! Thanks for your comment :) I totally can relate to what your friend mentioned about getting sad at a patient's last session. I used to volunteer at an autistic school, and I miss the kids I taught still to this day. A few even wrote me letters and drew pictures for my last day there and I still have them! The relationships that can be developed in these types of settings really can be astounding sometimes!
DeleteHi Jenna! I think its a great idea that you are able to see beyond what you're currently learning in school and navigate your future goals to your own moral compass. Being able to relate and be vulnerable with your patients on a personal level will help you communicate and better treat them. Similarly within my industry, by forming close relations and decent contacts with one another, I will be able to communicate and better assist my clients. Relationships and connections are the backbone of our industries, and we will be able to better succeed in them if we understand that early on!
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