Student and trainee essentials

Students and trainees on a placement with ACT Health must show the same standards of conduct and behaviour as ACT Health staff.

All students and trainees will be orientated to the placement area they will be working in to become familiar with the layout of the area and to discuss relevant policies and procedures. Students and trainees are to download an Orientation Checklist from their InPlace/InPlace Network account, complete this with their clinical supervisor and upload it to their InPlace/InPlace Network account within two weeks of starting their placement.

Professionalism

Professionalism affects your reputation as an individual, as well as the reputation of ACT Health. It also supports the duty of care you provide to patients. Professional and ethical conduct is expected whilst you are on placement with ACT Health.

As a student, you show professionalism by:

  • Following the ACT Health Care Facilities - Code of Practice.
  • Clearly wearing student identification
  • Introducing yourself as a student or trainee
  • Gaining permission from your patient/client or the responsible staff before giving treatment
  • Maintaining confidentiality of information given by or about patients/clients
  • Acknowledging legal responsibilities for child protection under the ACT Health Child Protection Policy
  • Accepting responsibility for all relevant aspects of patient/client care within the limitations of the student role as determined by the student supervisor
  • Attending relevant department, ward or clinic meetings and contributing effectively when required
  • Behaving in a manner which is not disruptive to patients and staff, on and off duty
  • Behaving in a respectful manner to colleagues, supervisors, patients and their families
  • Acknowledging and responding to constructive criticism
  • Acknowledging and responding to individual needs which respect culture, age, state of health and authority among hospital, health centre or clinic personnel and patients
  • Demonstrating an understanding of the facility’s approach to patient/client care, and showing willingness to work within this framework
  • Demonstrating an awareness of individual health workers roles and referring to them appropriately
  • Being aware of and maintaining appropriate professional boundaries

Professional Appearance

Dress standards during your placement should be appropriate to the work you perform, occupational health and safety, cultural diversity and local community standards. You may or may not need to wear a uniform.

Attendance

If you are ill or need to attend other commitments during your placement, please inform your clinical placement coordinator as soon as possible. ACT Health will contact your education provider if you fail to contact your supervisor or the CPO during your absence.

Workplace Health and Safety

ACT Health minimises risks in the public health care system by offering a safe and secure environment for staff, patients, visitors and contractors. There are also various policies and procedures in place to support this.

Feeling Safe and Supported at Placement

As a student/trainee on placement, you have the right to feel safe from undesirable behaviours, including discrimination, harassment and bullying. This guide offers a summary of different types of undesirable behaviours and actions you can take if you feel you experience these whilst on placement with an ACT public health service.

Reporting of incidents involving clients, patients and members of the public

If an incident occurs during your placement that involves clients, patients and/or members of the public, you should immediately report the incident to your supervisor. These incidents are officially reported as part of ACT Health’s risk management strategy.

You should also report the incident to your education provider or the CPO.

For more information, please see the ACT Health Mandatory Reporting of Significant Incidents Policy and Work Health and Safety Act 2011.

Accident, injury or incident to students

During placement, you must comply with all health and safety instructions, policies, programs and procedures outlined at orientation. This includes acting to avoid, eliminate or minimise hazards.

Any accident, incident or injury that you receive during placement must be immediately reported to your supervisor. They will help you complete an ACT Government Accident/Incident Report. This is a requirement under the Work Health and Safety Act 2011.

You should also report the incident to your education provider.

For more information, please use our Workplace Health and Safety Policy. 

Manual handling

ACT Health aims to achieve and maintain the best possible standards of health, safety and welfare for staff and clients. It is also responsible for developing and maintaining safe work systems that prevent risks from manual handling.

Students and trainees must follow safe manual handling work practices outlined in the ACT Health Manual Handling Policy.

Infection Prevention and Control

Infection prevention and control aims to minimise the infection risks linked to the delivery of healthcare. Please ensure you are familiar with the requirement for Standard and Additional precautions in your relevant area.

For more information, please see the ACT Health Infection Prevention and Control Policy.

Emergency and security

All ACT Health sites have emergency and security procedures in place to reduce risks to staff, visitors, patients and ACT Health property and equipment. You will be informed of these at the start of your placement.

Non-smoking

All areas of ACT Health buildings and grounds are smoke free. For more information, please see the Smoke Free Environment policy.

Confidentiality, privacy and related matters

Student responsibilities to confidentiality and privacy are included in the Deed of Agreement for Clinical Placement and the Acknowledgement form.

During your placement with us, you have a responsibility to respect confidentiality and abide by all the laws governing the use of information. These include:

Documentation and health records

During your placement, you must not access patient records or write in them without the consent of your supervisor.

You must not disclose any ACT Health information obtained during your placement without prior written consent through ACT Health CPO.

You must also take all reasonable measures to ensure any ACT Health information you access, or hold is protected against loss or unauthorised access, use, modification, disclosure or other misuse.

Consent

Consent is a major part of consumer and patient rights, responsibilities and risk management. ACT Health aims to ensure all consumers and patients have a clear understanding of the risks and benefits, as well as alternate options to the healthcare they receive. Client consent must be obtained by your supervisor before you perform any clinical procedure on a client during placement.

Conflict of Interest

A conflict of interest can occur when a student is placed in a position where their private interests improperly influence the performance of their duties and responsibilities.

You must notify your supervisor immediately in any circumstances that you feel you have a conflict of interest. Your supervisor will ensure appropriate arrangements are made to safeguard the interests of everyone involved.

Page last updated on: 31 Mar 2022