The Pan London Practice Learning Group (PLPLG) represents 14 Approved Education Institutions (AEIs) across London. The group promotes best practice in, and a standardised approach to, Nursing and Midwifery programmes in the capital.  

Partnering with MyKnowledgeMap, the PLPLG AEIs implemented MyProgress to transition from paper-based assessments to an electronic system to support the education of Nursing, Nursing Associates, Specialist Community Public Health Nurse (SCPHN), and Midwifery. 

Thanks to the successful rollout to Nursing and Midwifery, MyProgress is now used to support other disciplines (not standardised in the PLPLG) including Teacher Education, Specialist Practitioner Qualification (SPQ), Speech and Language Therapy, Diagnostic Radiography, Optometry, and Therapeutic Radiography and Oncology. 

Background

Having successfully introduced the standardised Pan London Practice Assessment Document (PAD), the PLPLG then progressed the project away from paper to an online solution; the so-called Pan London ePAD. The ePAD enables AEIs to meet the requirements of the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) in the assessment of nursing and midwifery students during their practice placements.    

MyKnowledgeMap’s MyProgress tool was selected as the solution to make this shift from paper to the digitised ePAD. The MyProgress ePAD is a SaaS solution, offering offline mobile assessment and an ePortfolio solution that can be tailored to an AEI’s requirements.   

The Pan London Universities using MyKnowledgeMap’s MyProgress are:   

• Brunel University London 

• Buckinghamshire New University 

• Canterbury Christ Church University 

• City St George's, University of London 

• Kingston University London 

• London South Bank University 

• Middlesex University 

• University of East London 

• University of Greenwich 

• University of Hertfordshire 

• University of Roehampton London 

• Middlesex University in association with Guernsey Institute 

• University of Greenwich in association with Truro & Penwith University Centre 

• University of Sunderland (London Campus) 

Following the successful rollout of the Pan London ePAD for Nursing in 2020, Midwifery was next. Once the standardised Midwifery Ongoing Record of Achievement (MORA) had been agreed by the universities in and around London, and received approval from the NMC, efforts began to digitise the MORA into the electronic version, the eMORA. 

University of Hertfordshire and Middlesex University rolled out MyProgress to Midwifery in September 2022, then to Kingston University, London South Bank University, Buckinghamshire New University, City St George's University of London, University of Greenwich.  

The PLPLG chose MyProgress to support practice education because: 

• An at-a-glance dashboard provides instant overview of progress across a cohort of students, saving educators time. 

• Practice staff can self-register for an account, saving university admin time. 

• A single secure platform across all practice areas, so practice staff only ever need to learn how to use one system and have one account. 

• The mobile app seamlessly updates a feedback form into a student's portfolio when completed. 

• The mobile app works offline, so there is no interruption connecting to a network. 

• MyProgress reflects the student’s programme, making it intuitive and user-friendly.  

• Educators and assessors in practice required access to real-time dashboard data on learner progression to better support students. 

• It was crucial for PLPLG that Practice Staff would have their own accounts. This would enable them to carry out a summative assessment at a time that suits them, rather than with the student present, and see students associated with them to monitor their progression. 

• Timesheet functionality provides students with an intuitive way to log practice hours. 

"On behalf of the Pan London Consortium I’m delighted that we are now in partnership with MyKnowledgeMap to deliver the ePAD. This will represent a major step forward in providing effective support to student nurses during their practice placements."  

Nicki Fowler, Deputy Chair of the Pan London Practice Learning Group, on the partnership with MyKnowledgeMap.   

Design 

MyProgress was meticulously designed to meet the needs of the Pan London consortium of universities in a collaborative effort involving every stakeholder group - students, practice staff, academics, and administrative teams. The design process was highly inclusive and participatory, ensuring that the platform could effectively support the diverse requirements of each group. 

The at-a-glance dashboard provides instant overview of progress across a cohort of students, saving educators time. 

The design stage involved a series of workshops where representatives from all key stakeholder groups were actively engaged. These workshops were central to the platform’s development, providing a space for dialogue and collaboration. Students, practice staff, academics, and administrators each brought their unique perspectives, allowing for a comprehensive understanding of the varied needs and challenges associated with practice-based education and assessment.   

Students contributed insights on usability and accessibility, ensuring that the platform is intuitive and supports their learning and reflection processes. Practice staff emphasised the need for streamlined processes that align with real-world workflows, ensuring that the platform supports practice assessments efficiently. Academics focused on the alignment of MyProgress with curriculum goals and assessment criteria, while administrative teams highlighted the importance of robust data management and reporting capabilities. 

By incorporating feedback from these workshops, the result is a flexible and user-friendly tool that aligns with the operational realities of all stakeholders. This collaborative approach ensured that the platform not only supports educational objectives but also enhances the overall experience for everyone involved in the assessment and feedback processes across the Pan London consortium.

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Implementation

The rollout of MyProgress across the PLPLG was such an exceptional project to implement and rollout due to its unique nature and scale, it required a 12-month implementation and development project, and a two-year rollout. 

The project involved a close collaboration with an initial group of six universities to implement MyProgress to support all nursing students with a common set of learning objectives, outcomes, and processes. MyKnowledgeMap provided the initial training to support the project, performing over 100 Teams online training sessions during a 12-month period as well as developing comprehensive training and support collateral. Training material included video content tailored to each stakeholder group; university faculty, practice assessors, practice supervisors, administrators, and students. Ongoing refresher training sessions continue. 

The implementation process, while initially complex, has now been streamlined for subsequent rollouts.  

Timesheet functionality enables students to record the hours they spend in practice

Usage 

Many of the features Pan London use are enjoyed by all users. For instance; 

• MyProgress can be used via a smartphone or tablet app, as well as online. This keeps learners in control of their learning as they always have their assessment and feedback forms to hand.  

• The app has offline capability so MyProgress can be used even when students are in an area without internet connectivity or phone signal, so learning can take place uninterrupted.  

• The dashboard gives an instant view, reducing time spent reviewing student portfolios. 

• The system supports logical flows through the practice assessment templates and gives notifications of any potential problems or actual problems arising with student performance. 

• Timesheet functionality enables students to record the hours they spend in practice.  

On the other hand, some of the features the Pan London AEIs requested were quite unique. One major consideration was how the Pan London group requires consistency of the assessment framework, whilst each of the AEIs in the group also needs a certain amount of customisation. For example, each AEI can maintain AEI specific branding and general or module-specific guidance that is displayed only to their staff and students. Each discipline has its own design based on the requirements of the programme. For example,  

• SCPHN programmes use Progress Views to attach evidence to the proficiencies framework. Progress Views provide a visual representation of the student’s proficiency achievement. 

• The Midwifery eMORA uses Cumulative Tallies to track the number of women with additional care needs a student worked with whilst in practice. 

• Nursing uses the Ongoing Achievement Record to enable students to be signed off for proficiencies that crossover between parts 1 / 2 and 2 / 3. 

• Nursing Associate programmes have Protected Practice Learning (PPL) hours setup to be tracked independently from Practice Hours, which enables Academics to easily track the required number are being completed. 

The statistics for the Pan London Practice Learning Group’s use of MyProgress are impressive. 

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​​​​​​Benefits 

Feedback from users, including students, educators, and practice staff, has been overwhelmingly positive. Users have commented on how user friendly and intuitive MyProgress is to use. 

Illegible handwriting was a common issue when paper PADs and MORAs were used. The switch to MyProgress means that’s no longer an issue, reviewing documents is now much faster. The ability to use device function like speech-to-text has made it easier and faster for users with dyslexia. 

The real-time dashboard view of student progression has helped educators identify students who are struggling and enabled them to provide targeted and timely support. 

Practice assessors appreciate the flexibility of conducting assessments at their convenience, enabling them to carry out a summative assessment at a time that suits them, rather than with the student present. 

The offline capability has been widely appreciated. As well as providing seamless assessments, the offline functionality also means students can switch their device to Aeroplane Mode when in practice, so that no notifications interrupt their learning or assessments. 

Another benefit to the PLPLG approach is that MyKnowledgeMap centrally manages all course and form templates for all the universities. This ensures consistency for external assessors and supervisors across London. The initial rollout challenges have paved the way for faster implementations in the future, reducing the typical four-month timeline to two months for established programmes. 

"The ePAD/eMORA group have been working successfully across London with MyKnowledgeMap since 2020 and have a strong partnership to deliver a robust assessment for nursing and midwifery. Staff report the accessibility and viewing assessments in real time plus ability to see a dashboard of their students has been invaluable in their supporting and NMC roles. Students benefit from the accessibility, ease of access via devices and repository of their assessments as essential in achieving their goal to become a nurse or midwife. The ePAD/eMORA group and MKM meet regularly throughout the year and, with excellent support and contact, develop and respond to NMC and users feedback in ensuring the student’s practice assessment is enhanced."

Justin McDermott

ePAD/eMORA Chair Pan London

Challenges 

The primary challenge was the initial transition from paper-based assessments to a digital solution. Training thousands of students, educators, and practice staff was time-consuming and required significant effort. However, as familiarity with MyProgress increased, the need for training diminished. Comprehensive guides are now available on the PLPLG website to support users, and refresher training sessions are ongoing. 

The volume of Pan London users led us to make capacity improvements in databases and infrastructure. High-demand periods place additional load on the system, requiring us to ensure optimal performance and reliability during these times. To address this, we have implemented measures such as server optimisation, scalable infrastructure, and some software re-development to ensure a seamless experience for users even during peak usage hours. Understanding these usage patterns enables us to continually refine our system and prioritise resources to meet user needs effectively during these key periods. 

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Impact Analysis 

The most significant impact of MyProgress has been its ability to enhance support for students by providing real-time feedback. The previous paper-based system often resulted in delays between patient treatment and assessment completion, limiting timely interventions. The digital system captures feedback instantly, allowing all parties to access it immediately, leading to improved student support and reduced attrition rates. This transformation has empowered academics, educators, and practice staff to better assist students throughout their educational journey.  

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Lessons Learned 

The key learning from the PLPLG project is the importance of universities ensuring they have prepared with sufficient resources to support the system effectively. Including ensuring user support, change management, and resource allocation. By preparing with sufficient resources and planning strategically, universities can maximise the benefits of the digital system and ensure a successful transition, ultimately enhancing the educational experience for students and staff. 

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Conclusion 

The Pan London Practice Learning Group (PLPLG) successfully transitioned nursing and midwifery assessments from paper-based to digital systems using MyKnowledgeMap’s MyProgress tool. This initiative involved 14 Approved Education Institutions (AEIs) across London and aimed to standardise and enhance the learning and assessment process for students in nursing, nursing associates, specialist community public health nursing, and midwifery programmes. 

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Key Findings

1. Digital Transition

• The PLPLG replaced the paper-based Pan London Practice Assessment Document (PAD) with the electronic Pan London ePAD and digitised the Midwifery Ongoing Record of Achievement (MORA) into the eMORA. 

• MyProgress, a software-as-a-service (SaaS) solution, facilitated this transition by offering offline mobile assessments and customisable ePortfolio capabilities tailored to each AEI's needs. 

2. Implementation Process

• The project was a large-scale undertaking, requiring 12 months for development and two years for rollout. Initial implementation involved six universities and extensive training sessions. 

• The implementation process was streamlined for subsequent universities, involving project planning, data import sessions, and pre-go-live checks. Integration with existing systems was essential for some universities. 

3. Usage and Features

• MyProgress is accessible via smartphones, tablets, and online, providing students with continuous access to assessments, even offline. 

• The tool facilitates communication between students and staff and offers notifications for potential issues with student performance. 

• Each AEI can customise the system for specific courses, maintaining consistency across the assessment framework while allowing for individual branding and guidance. 

4. Benefits

• User feedback has been positive, with the system praised for its user-friendliness and intuitive design. The digital format eliminates issues like illegible handwriting and accelerates the reviewing of documents. 

• Real-time feedback and visibility into student progression have enhanced the ability of educators to provide timely support, reducing student attrition. 

• The ability for practice staff to create their own accounts has reduced admin for the universities.  

• Assessors benefit from the flexibility to conduct assessments at their convenience, and the offline capability ensures uninterrupted assessments. 

5. Challenges

• The primary challenge was the initial shift from paper to a digital system, requiring extensive training for thousands of students and staff. Over time, familiarity with the system reduced the need for ongoing training. 

6. Impact 

• MyProgress has significantly improved support for students by enabling real-time feedback and immediate access to assessments. This transformation has empowered educators and practice staff to better assist students, ultimately contributing to reduced attrition rates and more effective student support. 

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Overall, the PLPLG's implementation of MyProgress has been a major advancement in standardising and enhancing Nursing and Midwifery education across London, benefiting students, educators, practice staff, and ultimately the healthcare workforce alike.