Today myself and my colleague had the pleasure of delivering the presentation 'Sowing creativity, scaling impact: a journey in digital curriculum innovation', at the East Midlands Ambulance Service (EMAS) Practice Educator Conference.
This originally came about as an absolute surprise invitation:
Michael Robinson, Practice Placement Lead, East Midlands Ambulance Service - "I recently had a conversation with Lynne Thompson about technology and simulation training, and she spoke very highly of the innovative work you are doing, including initiatives such as HAPTown and HAPVille. It sounds fantastic, and I would like to invite you to deliver a session at our Practice Educator Conference on 17 June at the Kegworth Hotel.
This would be a valuable opportunity for our practice educators and senior management team to learn more about your approach and explore potential collaborative projects."
Of course we accepted, we would love to come and talk to colleagues more about what we have been doing in terms of digital learning innovation and all things VR/immersive learning. Likewise, it would be great to explore collaborative opportunities with yourselves.
The general aim was: to showcase how the Digital Curriculum Team has creatively embedded digital innovation into a variety of healthcare curriculums. From immersive learning and Virtual Reality-based experiences to online asynchronous interactive learning, to enhance engagement, learning outcomes and workforce preparedness within healthcare Higher Education.
As a triple-act we co-delivered a 30 minute showcase and then held a 10 minute Q&A. The first few slides I delivered fast-paced, so that more attention could be paid to the online asynchronous learning and simulation-based projects. Some are not explicitly paramedicine, but can be applied to other curriculum contexts. The audience ranged from practice educators, lecturers and paramedics. When it got to the Q&A there was a great variety of questions asked on the value of immersive learning and the impact it has on students. Especially on how modern it is and meeting the psychological safety needs of Generation Z, in preparing them practically, socially and technically beyond 'on the job' learning. Great reception and engagement to our work - the response we received was very positive and impactful. We acquired new contacts, questions and ideas to follow up with - including some potential digital capabilities-related collaborations with EMAS. We both really enjoyed it and very happy to represent our department. Below is our presentation.
Sukhbir Kaur Khatkar (RMN), Practice Placement Manager - "Thank you very much for your continued support and for your valuable contributions—whether you are delivering a workshop or speaking on key topics. Your involvement plays a vital role in making this event meaningful and impactful.
This conference is an important opportunity to showcase the strong collaboration we have with all our stakeholders. Your commitment and engagement are truly valued and greatly appreciated."
