Critical Reflection on Placement Experience: Knowledge, Skills, Values

This report provides a critical reflection on a student's placement experience, focusing on the knowledge, values, and skills developed throughout the process. The report begins with an overview of the placement, defining the roles and responsibilities of both mentors and students, and the specific context of Sinan Care Limited. It examines the induction and orientation process, highlighting areas for improvement. The main body of the report delves into the roles and responsibilities of mentors and students, including an analysis of the mentor's strengths and weaknesses. The report further explores the development of teamwork skills, referencing Belbin's nine team roles. Finally, the report concludes with a reflective account of the placement experience, summarizing key learnings and insights gained, emphasizing the importance of knowledge, skills, and values in professional development. The report underscores the value of placement in bridging the gap between theoretical knowledge and practical application, contributing to the student's readiness for future employment. This is a detailed analysis of the placement experience, offering valuable insights into the development of professional skills and knowledge.

CRITICALLY REFLECT ON THE KNOWLEDGE, VALUES AND
SKILLS DEVELOPED THROUGH THE EXPERIENCE OF
WORKING IN A PLACEMENT

TABLE OF CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................2
MAIN BODY...................................................................................................................................2
Overview of placement................................................................................................................2
Roles and responsibilities of Mentor and student........................................................................3
Role of Sinan Care Limited Agency............................................................................................5
Reflective account while working in a placement.......................................................................7
CONCLUSION................................................................................................................................9
REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................10

Topic: Critically reflect on the knowledge, values and skills developed through the experience of
working in a placement
INTRODUCTION
Placement is defined as the assignment of roles, responsibilities, tasks in accordance to
the specific designation or rank in a professional set-up. Herein the work placement is refereed as
a defined duration of work under supervision of qualified professional to give work experience to
the students. It helps them in gaining practical knowledge and enhanced understanding of
conceptual frameworks to polish their skills set and value after completion of the professional
courses. This is the extension of an extended internship to gain knowledge in order to build
credibility and skills. It sometimes considered as the assignments allotted to know about the
challenges, issues and approaches used to use the work experience. This assignment is based on
a critical analysis of the role of placement in a student's life which is the opportunity for
experiencing the real life work. It also focuses on improvising the decision making and adopting
pre-planned strategies to make better choices.
MAIN BODY
Overview of placement
Placement is the opportunity for all the students to develop knowledge, competencies and
skills. This is the platform for the formation of resourcing of the professional lives to give
guarantee to individuals of a secured future in terms of finance. This process is restricted by few
internal and external factors such as lack of channels or frameworks, geographical boundaries
and lack of availability of resources and planning which might prove detrimental to the brand
image of the university in the counterparts that are situated at both local and global levels
(Thompson, 2015). Moreover, this is offered when the students are give podiums to showcase
their knowledge and skills to acquire a job for claiming their future. The resources and other
information are important in making the learning more convenient and accessible to the students.
This makes them understandable about the significance of a job and having a respectable
position in the field they have studied.
Knowledge- This is the element that is related to the information and understanding the facts to
bring improvement in the skills. It is moreover related to the familiarity and using the education
to help others and gain new things in terms of behavioral approaches. Moreover, this refers to the
practical implementation or theoretical execution or facts or descriptions about particular subject.

This is crucial in understanding the fundamentals and key principles about the healthcare sector
and related conceptual frameworks. This component helps, directs and guides the students
through channels of communication via teachers, mentors and counselors to complete the
assigned tasks to use it for smooth running of operations and effectual job prospects.
Skills-This has both positive and negative impact on the way students use it and conduct it to
gain profits and maintain the productivity. In regard to this, it helps all the students in shaping
and structuring the interactions that takes place while learning and gaining knowledge about
professional aspects (Schön, 2017). They are encouraged to stay committed and passionate and
give their best efforts in attain the objectives and gain jobs at the end of completion of their
professional careers. However, this act as hindrance for those students who lack the basic
knowledge and are unable to finish the tasks.
Value- It is the abstract idea that is held to deserve and focus on the usefulness of the efficacy to
know about the degree of importance. This is effective in gaining knowledge and skills to
complete action plans and help individuals in maintaining the judgments. On the other hand, it
leads to restrictions in terms of the moral values which impacted the collective safety and
freedom of people on the whole while taking services from any professional of healthcare sector.
This is shedding light on violating the constitutional rights which led to negative influence on the
health of people and hamper the credibility of individuals.
Induction and Orientation
My induction and orientation was way better than I expected. I was given a brief about
the organization, rules and regulations that we needed to follow. I was explained my job role and
responsibilities that I need to fulfil and what were their expectation from us. This induction
helped me understand the high standard that were expected from me in a better way (Pinheiro
and et.al., 2018). It also helped me to rehabilitate at the new working place by making us
understand integration of workers within an organization. This induction and orientation helped
me to understand Health and Social Care placements and job responsibilities related to them.
There are following ways through which this induction program could have been
improved like: Preparation of an induction checklist could have helped in understanding what all
points and things are needed to be covered in the induction to make everyone understand about
the organization, their roles and responsibilities in a better way (Lynch, Lynch and Clemens,

2018). By communicating main core values of the organization and answering all kinds of
question of people they they want to be answered.
Roles and responsibilities of Mentor and student
A mentor is that individual who looks after the management of works and tasks assigned
to different people. He is refereed as the experienced adviser who gives guidance and counseling
to the other younger subordinates. In terms of placement, their role includes making the entire
planning for companies to hire students and later coordinate with the students on their overall
learning skills and knowledge levels. Alongside, they also oversee on the matters related to the
anti discriminatory practices and promote equality and fraternity for better execution of
operations in the agencies or any other organization (Moon, 2016). They act as bridge to provide
information about medical fieldwork and customized alerts via texts or emails. Nonetheless, their
job role reflects upon the spread of positive learning experience in the specified area to
encourage students in improving skills, knowledge and value. Their approachibility depends on
many external factors such as type of organization, management, students skills set etc. but it is
demonstrated that they are the key to learning.
Their responsibilities has been outlined for identification of needs, skills and expertise in
the relevant developmental area. For instance, students need their counseling time with mentor to
make them understand about the struggles, challenges and obstacles. Their role has been
reflected upon by recognizing the interests, existing skills, knowledge etc. for improving the
personal development of such students. Furthermore, these students are guided on adapting to the
growing competition by gaining momentum over the prevailing challenges in context to
digitization and understanding component. Moreover, they conduct pre initial meeting and other
stages of placement procedure including the group discussion and interview process. The pre
initial meeting can be defined as a two way between the mentor and students to exchange
opinions and viewpoints. This step helps the mentor in analyzing the strengths and weaknesses
of each student and accordingly providing the evidence of practice to use the knowledge and
skills in order to maintain the value.
In addition to this, student is the one who is in the process of learning and applying the
concepts, principles etc. in the real life by taking jobs or internship through the process of
placement. The major responsibility is to learn the theoretical concepts that they might be able to
use or execute in the real challenging situations and help the public. Moreover, their moral

obligation is based on attending on the teachings and lesson plans for gaining knowledge and
improving the skills set to become an asset for the welfare of the society. When a student is
forced to attend a placement program, the focus is on getting hired to know about the ongoing
trends and negotiate the working practices and get desirable job. However, the student's role is
essential in underpinning the appropriate sessions that has been formulated to engage them while
reflection upon their own capabilities in assessing the conceptual systems and become job ready.
This facilitated the students to get hired in Sinan Care Limited.
Additionally, these students played safe and observed the operations and other related
activities at this agency. This gave them experience and an upper hand on the maintenance and
management of the working practices of the organization. Students get an opportunity to use the
knowledge and skills with improving the learning about the effective ways and approaches. It
helps in communicating and collaborating between the employer which is the agency and the
employees which are the students (Cottrell, 2015). This paves the path of loyalty and
transparency and helping such students in promoting equality and inclusiveness. They further
undertake research studies on the latest discoveries and read about the placements. Nevertheless,
students are the most profitable audience of this placement process who gets an option to attend
these processes and help the agency to achieve the aim and objectives. It helped in developing
the skills and assessing the review about the performance levels while conducting the tasks or
assigned jobs.
Mentorship and Mentee-ship
My Mentor helped me in understanding all challenges, struggles and obstacles that we
can face during these placement activities (Caruso and et.al., 2019). They also helped my
understand my role and responsibilities in my placement. They also conducted initial meetings at
each and every stage of placement where they addressed strengths and weakness of each and
every student.
Strengths of Mentor:
Main strength of my mentor was that they were quite an easily approachable person. They easily
understood their mentee's problems and and the challenges they were facing and helped them to
resolve those problems and challenges. They also provided support and all the required resources
to their mentee's which helped them to fulfil their task, roles and responsibilities.
Weaknesses of mentor:

One of the main weakness of mentor was that lack of time i.e. they were not able to give proper
time to their mentee's. They use to get offended unintentionally due to their poor listening as they
lacked in time. They were quite dominating and wanted all the things to go according to their
way.
They could have done their job in a better way by improving their listening ability i.e. by
giving proper time to their mentee's. They could have been more flexible by observing and
giving attention to all the important details, then taking decisions. They could have paid attention
to individual tasks of their mentees individually so that their issues and challenges could have
been reduced.
Mentors can explain role of Sinan Care Limited Agency in placement in a better way so that all
the individuals involved in placement could have understood their roles and responsibilities in a
better way.
Skills in team working
If we want to work in an efficient team then it is quite important develop an effective
team so that skills of all the team members working in a team can be used. For building an
effective team such that all the staff team members can contribute equally in placements. This
can be explained through Belbin's nine team roles where strengths and weaknesses of all the nine
roles will be explained:
 Resource Investigator:
Strengths: develops contacts and explore all opportunities
Weakness: they are quite over optimistic
 Team worker:
Strengths: they are good listeners, co-oprative and diplomatic
Weakness: they are indecisive in tough or typical situations.
 Co-ordinator:
Strengths: they can easily clarify goals and promote decision making
Weakness: they many times offload personal work. They can be manipulative many times.
 Plant:
Strengths: they solve difficult problems easily and are quite creative and imaginative.
Weakness: many times they are too pre occupied to communicate efficiently.
 Monitor Evaluator:

Strengths: They see's and judge all options according to the requirement.
Weakness: they lack the ability to inspire others.
 Specialist:
Strengths: They provide knowledge and skills in rare supply.
Weakness: They only contribute to narrow front.
 Shaper:
Strengths: A shaper is quite challenging, thrives pressure and is quite dynamic. They have the
courage to overcome all obstacles.
Weakness: they are quite prone to provocation and generally offends people's feelings.
 Implementer:
Strengths: They are quite disciplined, efficient and reliable. Turns all kinds of ideas into practical
actions.
Weakness: they are quite inflexible and are quite slow to respond to new possibilities.
 Complete Finisher:
Strengths: They try to omit errors and deliver the task or project on time.
Weakness: they are reluctant to delegate.
Role of Sinan Care Limited Agency
Overview of chosen agency:
This agency is headquartered at London, United Kingdom and is dealing with taking care
and provide support to the people who are in need of socio-physical and psychological
requirements. Its major functions include giving services to the elderly or younger adults who
need to live independently and also provide support in terms of maintaining well being, safety
and qualitative services with proper delivery. It is done through establishment of friendly and
personal space via residential space. Their focus is to give assistance to everyone, especially the
ones with any learning or physical disabilities such as dementia etc. This agency was registered
in the year 2016, June under the Care Quality Commission, who gave the overall rating of
'requires improvement'. However, they have several services that are provided under caring for
adults over 65 years and below 65 years as well, people with dementia and learning disabilities
as well. Its tailor made services build a friendly environment for the needy and allow to make the
people independent with the help of professionals who maintain the standards and try to give the
best care possible.

In regard to the above agency, the placement is pivotal in making the services more
accessible and approachable to the needy people who need complete support and assistance.
Their encouragement is required to make the students better learners and ensure proper
implementation of the theoretical knowledge. It aids in covering the instructions in context to the
health and safety of the patients and provide a platform for such students and their mentors.
Primarily, they together can work to bring substantial changes by identifying the problem areas
and assign the specific student as an intern to solve it. This makes them learn and enhance
knowledge on daily basis and make them learn on the significance of organizational learning.
Moreover, the agency helps in providing the students to learn and practice about the
organization's policies, practices and legislation. This makes them understand the responsibilities
in more clear and better manner.
Moreover, such placement gives the students an opportunity to gain knowledge and
improve their concepts by applying their teachings in practical scenarios. They increase the
experience and allot the tasks to be completed on time with optimization of resources and
Illustration 1: Rating of CQC for Sinan Care
Limited
(Source: Sinan Care Limited, 2019)

energy. Such processes help in understanding the value and worth of the practical
implementation of knowledge to know about the concepts and anti-discriminatory practices in
the health and social care sector. There is sometimes requirement of need of temporary
workforce on the basis of demand and thus, such placement helps them in hiring qualified people
on low wages to give them real life experience. In addition to these, the hired trainees also get a
chance to use their skills and knowledge to implement it by redesigning the existing systems and
help the needy people (Bolton and Delderfield, 2018). It also benefits both the agency and the
students studying in a university to know the positive outcomes for the right job position at the
right time.
Sinan Care Limited received low rankings in the survey conducted by CQC and thus in
need of volunteers to maintain the quality standards of their residency homes. Nevertheless, the
focus is on enhancing the safety and delivery of services to create loyalty and friendly
environment for the elderly people. This procedure is useful in terms of elimination of the
barriers and using the features for future prospects of attracting more number of people to their
agency. Here the role of such students has brought them additional hands to overcome the
challenges efficiently and building an atmosphere of quick decision making and monitoring the
ongoing activities.
Professional boundaries
There are several issues and challenges associated with the health and social care. One of
the such barrier is the communication and diversity. When professionals does not have wide
knowledge and understanding of the communication skills then they may fail to recognise the
needs of service users. It also influences the decision making process. The cultural diversity not
only affects the thinking capabilities of an individual but it also affects the decision making and
interaction of individual with others. The interaction is an integral element of the social and
health care services and thus professionals must address these barriers. Another barrier which is
faced by the professionals is lack of experience among transition period professionals. In the
transition period this barrier can affect the quality of services and confidence level of individuals
(Van Mol and et.al., 2015). In the first few years of placements novice professionals may find it
hard to cope up with the timings, complex schedules, team work and collaboration.
Contrary to this my personal experience was good because of my strong communication
skills. My effective communication abilities helped me to understand the needs of my patients. I

also received support from the other team members and by working in the healthcare
organisation I learned to work in teams. My interaction with the patients and other staff members
helped me to overcome the barriers of professional expertise. In addition, my in depth knowledge
on basic medical concepts also assisted in addressing professional barriers. Limited interaction
with the colleagues and patients can also serve as one of the critical boundary which prohibit the
learning. For instance when seniors are not supportive to the new interns or trainee's then it
becomes very hard for them to understand the ethics and principles of professional workplace
which they must follow for the effective and efficient working.
Job related skills
The placement taught several competencies and skills which are significant in improving
my professional efficiency. While working in the health care, I learned to interact with patients
of diverse cultural values. In certain situations it becomes very challenging for me to assess the
needs of my patients and to make suitable decisions so that their health outcomes can be
improved. In my profession it is also expected by the professionals to be calm, cooperative and
understanding. In the placements I got the opportunity to work with dementia patients which
have sever issues in memorisation and understanding.
Thus, practising with such patients gave me valuable teaching that how care and attention
along with the medication can help health professionals to improve the health outcomes of the
patients. The regular interaction with the dementia patients, observation of fellow professionals
and experience from team work have been crucial factors which assisted in developing learning
(Lawton, Manning and Lawler, 2017). There are several factors which contributes to the positive
learning experience.
One of such factors is the motivation. Since the placement includes working with various
health professionals who were highly expertise in their work it encouraged me to enhance my
learnings by learning from them. The suitability of learning environment are also crucial for
enhancing learning. The environment in which I was learning my senior fellows always
supported me to increase my professional skills. For instance their encouragement motivated me
to learn evidence based practices or the reflective practices.
Diversity and compliance
Diversity is the core element of H&SC services and thus for delivery of quality services
health professionals. Along with the diversity of the patients it is also expected from the health

professionals to work in the environment in which all professionals respect each other and their
diversity. For instance there are individuals who does not support the decisions of health care
professionals due to their cultural or religious beliefs. In such circumstances as health
professional I try to assure that I can convince my patients and carers that the decisions taken for
them are for their benefits.
However, professionals must also assure that their practices are in compliance with the
healthcare regulations. During my study and learning phase I learned about variety of
compliances such as need of maintaining privacy of patients and importance of written consent
from the patients. Learning the significance of these compliances I always tried to follow such
regulations so that effective, safe and quality care can be provided to individuals. There are
incidences in the health care profession when equal treatment and care opportunities are not
provided to patients (Freund and et.al., 2015). Similarly, there are instances when individuals
may refuse to receive health care services on the basis of gender or religion of the health
practitioner. For avoiding such discriminatory practices health care organisation have well
defined set of rules and monitoring system so that such practices can be avoided. These learnings
were provided to me by my seniors and personally on my ethical perspective also I always try to
avoid such practices.
Reflective account while working in a placement
When I started my work at one of the organizations in the health and social care, I applied
my knowledge and skills that I have learned and acquired in placement. Now, as I worked in
Sinan care I gained some other knowledge as well. Like I got to know that how to analyse a
person's health conditions and then what care services is provided. Moreover, I learned that how
each individual person care assessment needs should be identified and what factors has to be
included in it. Besides this, I improved my decision making area by taking help of my colleagues
and supervisors. In this I used several methods and techniques. This was helpful for me to
analyse decisions and then select the best one. However, it also enhanced my short and long term
decisions. I was able to develop plans accordingly.
Apart from this, I was able to determine what changes are required in handling of patients
and how records are accessed. For this technology is used and in an application in which data is
stored and updated. So, by using these all I acquired technological knowledge and skills. I
evaluated that there were many values that has been followed. Therefore, it was helpful for me to