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JCPSLP
Volume 17, Number 1 2015
41
pathologists in this study reported that having students
increased their access to the latest theory and evidence-
based practice, as well as encouraged them to reflect on
their own work practices, improving their standard and
quality of clinical practice.
A benefit reported by Group A only was that having
students in private practice increased productivity of their
service. Participants reported that with students, they
were able to provide extra services to their clients at no
extra cost or reach more clients, run group programs and
quality assurance projects, and develop resources that
would have otherwise not have been possible due to time
constraints. To illustrate, a speech pathologist who worked
in a school setting noted that “alone I can only cover [years]
K–2. With [the students] we serviced [years] K–6; [students
on placement] increased my capacity for advocacy for the
children” (Participant 2) by supporting the clinician to run
teacher training in-services and information sessions.
Group A clinicians found that students in private practice
could also reduce a clinician’s workload, in contrast to
the perceived barrier expressed by Group B clinicians
(see Table 3) that supervising student placements would
increase their workload. Students not only increased
clinicians’ service output in terms of producing programs
and resources: “we get things done we otherwise wouldn’t
have time for such as parent handouts, visual resources”
services, most of the challenges identified by the private
practitioners are common concerns for clinical educators
in public settings also (McAllister, Higgs, & Smith, 2008).
Many of these barriers could potentially be addressed with
information, briefings, training, and support from university
staff. Concerns regarding potential loss of income appear to
have been managed by those private practitioners who had
supervised students. This knowledge of how to structure
student placements in private practice so that income is
not reduced needs to be documented and shared within
the profession through professional activities (e.g., interest
groups) and further research.
Potential benefits of placements
Table 4 shows that both groups of clinicians reported actual
(Group A) or potential (Group B) benefits for their clients in
having students on placement. Both groups of participants
reported that supervising students fulfils a professional
responsibility and obligation while making an impact by
supporting the training of the future generation of clinicians.
Also, both groups reported that student supervision
brought with it, or could bring with it in the case of Group
B, opportunities for professional development. Consistent
with the findings of previous studies involving physio-
therapists and occupational therapists (Doubt et al., 2004;
MacPhail et al., 2011; Sloggett et al., 2003), speech
Table 3. Participants’ perceptions of the challenges and barriers associated with having students
in private practice
Category
Subcategory
Found in Group A: those
who had taken students
on placements
Group B: those who
had not taken students
on placements
Organisational challenges
Time commitment
*
*
Finding space for students to work
*
Difficulty managing student in a mobile
practice
*
Finding enough parents to agree to having a
student clinician
*
Increased workload on top of an already
busy workload
*
Finding enough/suitable clients for the
students
*
Legal and financial concerns
Medicare and private health rebate
restrictions
*
*
Professional indemnity
*
Uncertainty about fees for student delivered
services – a reduced fee or no fee?
*
Concerns for the client
Potential disruption to client care
*
Knowing what to/ should expect
Uncertain about students’ knowledge and
skill levels, and university requirements
*
Uncertain of own competency as a clinical
educator
*
Weak and failing students
*
Maintaining income
*
* = found in data from this group