Conduct and standards for student and trainees

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

On your first day of placement, you will be orientated to your placement area to become familiar with the layout and discuss policies and procedures.

You must complete the orientation to placement checklist and keep for your records.

Nursing and midwifery students

Nursing and Midwifery students are expected to follow the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Australia’s (NMBA) Codes of Ethics and Code of Professional Conduct for Nurses and Midwives.

The NMBA National Competency Standards for a Registered Nurse, Enrolled Nurse and Midwife are used to support work practices that offer the expected core standards of care to patients and clients who require a provision of service by ACT Health staff.

All ACT Health student nurses and midwives are expected to understand and use these standards during their clinical placements.

For more information on these standards, go to the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Australia.

Allied health students

Allied Health Professional students and trainees are expected to follow their individual discipline’s code of conduct and ACT Health’s Standards of Practice for ACT Allied Health Professionals.

Professions regulated under the Health Practitioner Regulation National Law Act need to abide by the standards, codes and guidelines of their respective National Board.

Self-regulated allied health professions act in accordance with accredited qualifications, codes of conduct and continuing professional development specific to their discipline as determined by their respective peak professional associations.

Medical students

Medical students are expected to abide by the Medical Board of Australia’s Codes and Guidelines in addition to ACT Health’s Code of conduct.

Go to the Medical Board of Australia website.

Overseas medical students

ACT Health and Australian National University (ANU) Medical School accept a small number of overseas elective students each year.

Placements are arranged for students through the education provider’s placement office or course convener.

If you would like to undertake an elective placement with ACT Health, discuss your placement query with your clinical placement coordinator and apply through ANU Medical School by emailing elective.medicalschool@anu.edu.au.

Acknowledgement form

You must sign your acknowledgement form. This demonstrates you have read and understand the responsibilities while on placement.

You must complete this form annually (every 365 days) in your HRIMS Learning account .

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 while 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 or clients.
Acknowledging legal responsibilities for child protection under the Child Concern Reporting Policy.
Accepting responsibility for all relevant aspects of patient and 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 that is not disruptive to patients and staff, on and off duty.
Behaving respectfully 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 and client care, and showing a willingness to work within this framework.
Demonstrating an awareness of individual health worker 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 your work, occupational health and safety, cultural diversity and local community standards. If a student has been issued with an education providers uniform, it should be worn unless advised otherwise by your placement area.

Attendance

If you are ill or need to attend other commitments during your placement, 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

You have the right to feel safe from undesirable behaviours, including discrimination, harassment and bullying.

Find out more on feeling safe and supported on clinical placement.

Reporting of incidents

If an incident occurs during your placement involving clients, patients or public members, 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 Clinical Placement Office (CPO).

For more information:

download the ACT Health Mandatory Reporting of Significant Incidents Policy
go to Work Health and Safety Act 2011.

Accident, injury or incidents to student

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.

You must immediately report any accident, incident or injury you receive during placement 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 read the Workplace Health and Safety Policy.

Manual handling

ACT Health aims to achieve and maintain the best possible health, safety and welfare standards 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 healthcare delivery. Please ensure you are familiar with the requirement for Standard and Additional precautions in your relevant area.

For more information, go to the ACT Health Infection Prevention and Control Policy.

Emergency and security

All ACT Health sites have emergency and security procedures 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, read 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 are responsible for respecting confidentiality and abiding by all the laws governing the use of information.

These include:

The Public-Sector Management Act 1994 (ACT) that states that disclosure or misuse of confidential information held in official records is illegal
The Health Records (Privacy and Access Act) 1997 regulates the privacy and integrity of, and access to, personal health information of consumers of health services. Penalties are imposed (both financial and imprisonment) for offences under this legislation
The Privacy Act 1988 (Commonwealth) sets down detailed information about the Privacy Principles that regulate the handling of personal information by ACT Government Agencies.
ACT Health patient/client confidentiality for students and their supervisors factsheet.

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.

Your supervisor must obtain client consent 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 if you feel you have a conflict of interest. Your supervisor will ensure appropriate arrangements are made to safeguard the interests of everyone involved.