You and your Learning Partner

Working with a Learning Partner is one of the

requirements for completing your group 3 goals.

You need to work with someone to discuss the

review of your practice at the start of each three

year learning period, and each step of your Group

3 professional development goals.

This is a supportive friendly relationship

characterised by constructive discussion between

colleagues - there is no concept of a performance

appraisal or peer evaluation. You and your

partner will discuss your self-appraisal (the

structured exercise where you formally think about

what you do and how you do it relative to

standards), your strengths and those areas you

feel you want to improve. Feedback from your partner is a way to get additional insight about your practice and validate

your point of view, e.g. you might discover that you were too critical in your self-assessment.

Another point of view can help you to be more objective. A partner can also assist you to identify

strengths or gaps in your practice that you are not able to identify yourself.

Your discussions should cover your proposed learning, including assessment of your learning

needs, developing and implementing a professional development plan, your preferred learning

style, possible learning resources available and then the changes and improvements in how you

work as a result of your learning.

Who should be your learning partner?

Your learning partner should be an appropriate NZ registered

health professional, holding a current APC with no conditions,

who has a good understanding of your work, and your ENHANCE

requirements for recertification. They do not have to be a

pharmacist, but it is probable that they will be. (There may be

exceptional circumstances when your partner may not be a

health professional - if you think that someone else would be more

suitable for your role, please contact ENHANCE to discuss this).

Ideally, your partner should be a colleague and equal in a similar practice situation to you, but this

may not always be possible or appropriate. It is helpful if they understand your area(s) of practice

well, and be familiar with what you do, especially if you are in a specialised role, however the focus

of their role is to support you through the ENHANCE process and requirements. It is more important

that they understand this rather than the details of your learning.

If you work in a specialised role, you should identify a partner who you feel is able to comment on

your professional practice. If you cannot identify a pharmacist in a similar role, you might, for

example, choose another professional associate with whom you interact regularly, such as a

Specialist Diabetes Nurse, GP or Physiotherapist, if they are more appropriate for your particular

learning goal.

It is more important that your partner understand the ENHANCE

process and requirements than the details of your learning.

Almost always, working with another pharmacist is best.

Who don’t we recommend to choose as your learning partner?

Your partner should be your professional peer in all senses of the word. It is important that your

partner not be under any real or perceived pressure (financial, job security, emotional etc) to work

with you or ‘sign you off’. We strongly recommend that that spouses/life partners do not act as

Learning Partners for each other, or that ‘the boss’ choose to work with the junior/newly registered

pharmacist. In some exceptional circumstances, a junior colleague could act as a Learning Partner

for a more senior staff member if they have specialist knowledge or expertise.

The Learning Partnership

Getting Together with your Learning Partner

You and your Learning Partner will need to decide on how

this process will work best for both of you and agree on how

you will communicate to meet the specific obligations of

the partnership.

You can decide how you will meet - face-to-face in person

is ideal, but if this is not always possible then email, Skype or

telephone may be used. It is strongly recommended that, if

possible, at least some discussion occurs face-to-face,

because it may be difficult to attain an appropriate level of

trust if all communication is conducted remotely.

An important reason to meet face-to-face with your

Learning Partner, at least initially, is to build rapport. Good

rapport promotes trust and understanding which will make

it easier for both parties to share information.

At the start of your relationship with your Learning Partner we suggest you also discuss the following:

Expectations and understanding of your learning partnership

Confidentiality

How you are going to structure your discussions

What happens if the relationship is not working

Ideally, together you should have a discussion about:

your planned professional development, including assessing your learning needs

developing and implementing your professional development plan

how you best like learning and what type of learning suits this preference

suitable available learning resources

You can work with a different learning partner for

each Group 3 goal, but its best if you work with the

same Learning Partner throughout each goal.

You do not have to be their learning partner in return –

they can also choose to work with anyone they wish to

You do not have to actually work alongside your

Learning Partner, and if you have a specialised role, it

is possible that your Learning Partner will be in a

completely different geographical area.

You need to discuss your structured review of your

practice (however you have done it), your learning

goals, how you intend to approach them, and then

your actual learning and outcomes of that learning, at

each step of the CPD cycle.

Your responsibilities as the pharmacist half of a learning partnership

You are wholly responsible for meeting your Pharmacy Council

recertification requirements, (your own learning, all documentation

and for achieving the planned outcomes), including ensuring the

input of your Learning Partner, as required.

Your Learning Partner is not responsible for what you do (or don’t do!)

Your specific responsibilities are to:

select a suitable Learning Partner(s)

organise meetings (as many as are reasonably necessary) during each three year learning

period to discuss your practice review (at least once every three years), the application of

Competence Standards or other standards to your pharmacy practice and each of the four

steps of the CPD cycle (Reflection, Planning, Action, Outcomes) for each of your Group 3

(significant) learning goals.

keep brief notes of these meetings and document a summary of discussions held with your

Learning Partner (space available to record this online at the end of each step of the Group

3 goals) Refer to page 43 for what to document.

You may choose to include plans and goals for future practice roles and have an annual discussion

with them about your Professional Development Plan and how you are tracking with this.

What do your discussions have to cover for each step?

You need to discuss your progress at the end of each step – how you

are going and what more, if anything, you need to do, or do

differently to achieve what you’ve set out to achieve. You need to

summarise this in the learning partner meeting notes textbox at the

end of each step of your group 3 goal on the ENHANCE website.

Documenting your meetings - what do you have to document?

Only the pharmacist half of the partnership has to document anything. It may be helpful for you both

to use the suggested Learning Partner meeting template which can provide some structure for these

meetings, allow you to create action points from your discussions and then review those actions at

the next meeting.

Date: Purpose of Meeting (tick as appropriate):

Practice Review Discussion Professional Development Plan

Significant Learning Goal Step 1. Step 2. Step 3. Step 4.

Significant Learning Goal Step 1. Step 2. Step 3. Step 4.

Discussion Points Action Points

Next meeting:

You can download this from www.psnz.org.nz >

ENHANCE > How to allocate points

Each step also has some specific requirements:

Step 1 Reflection

Talk about the review of your practice, however you have done it, and how that

has impacted on what you have decided to focus your learning on.

Record in the Learning Partner Step 1 meeting notes section on the ENHANCE website what you

discussed together about:

your planned professional development, including how your learning partner helped you

assess your learning needs

how and why you identified your learning needs or wants

why this will be significant for you (include your LIFT score in this)

what your learning partner thinks about the relevancy and importance of your intended

learning

developing and implementing your professional development plan

Step 2 Planning

This meeting could be held concurrently with the Step 1 meeting. They two steps

fit together well, and it’s often easier to cover all of this in one meeting. You’ll just

need to separate out your comments for each step.

Record in the Learning Partner Step 2 meeting notes section on the ENHANCE website what you

discussed together about:

the suitability of your proposed learning

how you best like learning and what type of learning suits this preference

suitable other available learning resources and where you could access these

any other comments made by your LP, or anything else you talked about

Step 3 Action

This meeting must occur after the last date of all your included learning

activities.

Record in the Learning Partner Step 3 meeting notes section on the ENHANCE website what you

discussed together about:

how your learning went – how successful and useful it was

whether your resources were adequate or appropriate

if you need to do any more learning – if so what other resources you could use, and where

you could possibly find these

any other comments made by your LP, or anything else you talked about

Step 4 Outcomes

This meeting should not be held for at least three months after the meeting for

Step 3.

You need time (up to several months) to put your learning into practice and to

gather evidence examples of what this looked like.

Record in the Learning Partner Step 4 meeting notes section on the ENHANCE website what you

discussed together about:

what you actually learned

how the learning has made a difference in what you do and how you work (changes and

improvements)

your specific examples of practice improvement and change (these should be reviewed

and discussed with your LP)

where to from here?

Your responsibilities in being a Learning Partner Your role is to affirm, encourage and where appropriate and required, advise or challenge your

partner, providing support, feedback and encouragement about their planned and completed

learning. You must clearly understand the role they have as a pharmacist and what they do on a

day to day basis. You must hold a current APC with no conditions over the entire time you are acting

as a learning partner.

Your specific responsibilities are to:

be available for meetings with your partner (as

many as are reasonably required)

affirm, encourage and where appropriate,

advise or challenge your partner

discuss the process and outcomes of the review

of their day to day work (however they have

done it), the application of Competence

Standards or other standards to their professional

role and provide feedback about whether this

has been appropriate and how they have

selected accepted standards and used them to

review their work

discuss the results for each step of their Group 3

goals – this doesn’t have to be (and is not

intended to be) onerous. Think of yourself as a

sounding board.

review the final outcomes of their group 3 goal –

where are they going from here?

You may also:

advise on the choice of learning resources

discuss the relevance of their chosen learning goals to their current or future practice

discuss their Professional Development Plan on an annual basis, and how they’re tracking with

that

You do not have to:

be accountable for their activity (or inactivity!) There is no concept in this relationship of peer

appraisal, evaluation or peer review

have them as your learning partner – you are free to choose anyone you like to work with for

your learning

be their learning partner for all of their group 3 goals –being their learning partner for just this

one is OK

work with them or even live in the same town

What if your pharmacist really isn’t that motivated? – What do you have to do then?

Well - actually – nothing. Every pharmacist is responsible for their own and ongoing professional

development. As a learning partner you are not (and won’t be held) accountable for their

activity or inactivity…….but you could try to encourage them by providing help and advice as

best you can to support and motivate them to participate and achieve their professional

development goals.

Is this possible? Yes maybe. Try some of these suggestions:

“Excuse me John…. I know that you don’t like to be disturbed when you’re in the middle of playing solitaire….but as your colleague, I was thinking that you might…. well perhaps I could make a few suggestions regarding your CPD….if you don’t mind.?”

Have that hard conversation – take some time to try

and discover if there really is a problem. Ask them how

they see their level of progress and achievement and

provide some honest (but kind) feedback about how

you see their motivation levels and lack of progress.

Try and keep the connection and relationship alive -

connecting with others can motivate the unmotivated.

Try to provide positive suggestions for a way out of the

situation - encourage your colleague to begin and give

them a framework to work in.

Try to find out what interests them - if you can find the

right match that sparks someone’s interest, the results

can be surprising – and exceptional.

You don’t have to do this by yourself!

The ENHANCE cavalry is here! We’ve got more resources about how

to motivate people, and to support you.

Either suggest they contact the ENHANCE team directly if they need

help or perhaps you could do it for them (with their permission). This

is especially important if you don’t know the answers to their

questions. Don’t guess or worry - the ENHANCE team are here to

help.

Contact us at enhance@psnz.org.nz or (04) 802 0030 ext 5

Giving and Receiving Feedback

Giving feedback

Giving positive feedback is relatively easy but if the feedback process is diluted, it may simply

become a mutually supportive praise session for friends. Positive feedback alone is non-productive;

it needs to be objective, constructive, and requires preparation. The process should be mutually

supportive and focus on sharing and developing practice to the advantage of both parties and,

ultimately, to the service user.

You may feel reluctant to provide critical evaluation to your partner, therefore, learning partner

meetings should be structured, voluntary and done with an atmosphere of cooperation, mutual

learning and with a view to sharing evidence-based practice.

The ‘STAR’ Tool can give you a framework to work with, especially if you are uncomfortable with

giving negative feedback.

Specify the exact nature of the situation - Focus on facts, not the person.

Choose positively phrased statements, such as "Forgetting to do that

caused a delay," rather than saying "You're completely disorganized."

Talk it through to establish each of your views and discuss possible causes.

Share your thoughts on alternative approaches while remembering to

seek the other person's ideas.

Agree an action plan, including a review date. Provide your partner with

support to act on your feedback.

Review the situation at the agreed time.

Although the thought of having a Learning Partner may feel daunting, it can in fact be an excellent

mechanism for giving and receiving feedback between peers, and can help increase confidence

and willingness to share good practice. This can be particularly valuable for pharmacists working

in more isolated environments.

Receiving Feedback

Take time to listen carefully, understand and consider what is being said,

then reflect on whether or not you think it is a fair comment. It is

important to be honest with yourself.

Allow the other person to finish giving their opinion before you say

anything.

If the feedback is negative, try not to become defensive or take it

personally. Your self worth is not diminished by suggestions for

improvement.

Ask questions to clarify information and for more specific examples if you

think what is being said is vague.

Summarise your understanding of the main points of the feedback. This

can achieve a number of things: this demonstrates that you are listening

and helps you to avoid sounding defensive and provides an opportunity

for your partner to clarify their feedback if you have misinterpreted it.

Discuss a possible way forward with your partner, create some action

points and take responsibility to move forward.

Your Professional Development Plan

Your Professional Development Plan (PDP)

describes specific learning goals and

provides structure and focus for your learning,

ensuring you make the most of your learning

opportunities. It is never ‘finished’ – if you want

to continue moving forward, you must

continue growing your knowledge and skills.

Learning is a lifelong process, and your PDP is

a career-long tool. As long as you’re a

professional, your PDP should be as essential

component of your learning.

A good professional development plan focuses on improving knowledge and skills as the overall

goal of professional development, and connects your individual goals with your plans for the future.

It will be based on your understanding of where you are in your career cycle, what motivates and

demotivates you, your values and your skills/competencies.

It is intended to help you identify and concentrate on the learning opportunities that will be of most

benefit to you and what you do to best assist you achieve your professional goals. Use it primarily

to identify, plan and achieve your significant Group 3 goals (at least two significant Group 3 goals

within each a 3-year learning period).

If you do not already have a PDP we recommend that you develop and then review this within the

first few months of each new three year learning period and that your first PDP looks 3 years ahead,

Remember that a PDP is not written in stone – goals shift, people change, circumstances present

new challenges and opportunities. It is a living document, responsive to the particular needs of

your ever changing practice environment. It can - and should - be reviewed on a regular basis.

February or March (just before applying for your APC) or your annual performance review is a good

time to do this.

Four steps to developing a Professional Development Plan

STEP 1:

ASSESS WHERE YOU

ARE NOW

ASK:

What skills/knowledge do I currently have?

What skills/knowledge do I need in my current role?

What are my particular areas of interest?

What part of my work brings the most satisfaction?

What areas am I struggling with?

STEP 2:

THINK ABOUT WHERE

YOU WORK

ASK:

How can I improve or strengthen my practice?

How does my practice impact on the community where I work?

What do I know about my community’s needs?

How do local, regional and national goals/initiatives impact

upon my learning goals?

STEP 3:

DECIDE WHERE YOU

WANT TO BE

ASK:

Where will the pharmacy profession be in five year’s time?

Where do I want to be in my profession in five years time?

What skills/knowledge will I need to be effective in that role?

STEP 4

HOW ARE YOU GOING TO

MEASURE YOUR

SUCCESS?

ASK:

How will I judge the quality of my work?

How can I work with others to address my goals?

How will I know I have accomplished my learning goals?

Are my learning goals SMART – specific, measurable,

achievable, realistic and timely?

How can I embed the professional development strategies I

choose into my work day?

Using a tool such as a SWOT analysis can be useful as it matches internal strengths and

weaknesses with external opportunities and threats. It can help you get a balanced perspective

of your internal strengths and weaknesses and external opportunities and threats to develop an

effective learning strategy.

STRENGTHS

What advantages do you have that others don't have (eg skills, education, or connections)?

What do you do better than anyone else?

What personal resources can you access?

What do other people (especially your colleagues) see as your strengths?

Which of your achievements are you most proud of?

What values do you believe in that others fail to exhibit?

What can do you do that no one else can?

What do other people compliment you on?

WEAKNESSES

Do your colleagues consistently outperform you in key areas? What do you lack in comparison with them? Be realistic – it's best to face any unpleasant truths as soon as possible.

What tasks do you usually avoid because you don't feel confident doing them? What tasks fill you with fear?

Are you completely confident in the education and skills you currently have? If not, where are you weakest? Is there some more learning you need to do?

What are your negative work habits (eg are you often late, disorganized, short tempered, or poor at handling stress)?

What do people around you see as your weaknesses? What negative feedback do you get at work?

What do you enjoy least about your job?

What are the roots of your failures?

OPPORTUNITIES

Look at your strengths -what can you do well that others can’t? Do these open up any opportunities?

Look at your weaknesses – what do others do better than you? Could you open up opportunities by eliminating those weaknesses?

Is there dissatisfaction or complaints complain about something in your workplace? Could you create an opportunity by offering a solution?

Is there a need in your workplace or profession that no one is filling? Perhaps a new role or project that forces you to learn new skills, like public speaking or CPAMs?

Are any of your colleagues failing to do something important? Can you take advantage of their omissions? Is there a potential new role for you?

Do you have a network of strategic contacts to help you, or offer good advice? Do you attend educational or networking events (Branch meetings,

conferences, Symposia)? What new technology can help you? Where else can you get help? How can you take advantage of the current environment? Is someone leaving soon? Could you take on some of this person's

responsibilities to gain experience? Where do you want to be in three/five year’s time? What do you need to do to

get there?

THREATS

Could any of your weaknesses lead to threats? Is your work performance poor? What obstacles do you currently face at work? What challenges and obstacles are you afraid of? What can complicate your career development? Is your job (or the demand for the things you do) changing? Are there any impending changes at work? Does changing technology threaten your position? Are any of your colleagues competing with you for projects or roles?

Together with your learning partner, decide on and prioritise the activities or strategies to include

in your plan to accomplish your goals. Ideally the creation of your PDP should be an important

focus of your first meeting with your Learning Partner and they should then have at least 3-yearly

input thereafter. A 3 year plan coincides with the requirement to undertake a three-yearly Practice

Review which may identify new learning goals which can be incorporated into your PDP.

Finally - evaluate your plan -

ASK

Are my goals clear?

Does my plan reflect new learning and growth, not just time

and effort?

Do the goals and the plan reflect my needs as well as those

of my organisation and community?

Does my plan include reflection on its outcomes?

The following template may be helpful in creating your plan.

You can download this from www.psnz.org.nz >

ENHANCE > How to allocate points

Date PDP written

Dates PDP reviewed

What do I need to

learn?

How am I going to

do this?

Realistic

timeframe

for

completion?

How will I know I

have achieved this

objective?

Where to from here?