Work-based learning and internships are essential components of healthcare education. Students often complete multiple study modules in real-world clinical settings. Additionally, the healthcare industry primarily employs professionals with formal degree requirements, leading to strict regulatory standards for internship management.
For academic institutions, overseeing healthcare internships can be challenging. Many conventional learning management systems offer only limited tools for tracking and managing work-based learning.
Workseed is a specialized healthcare LMS designed to streamline internship management in complex regulatory environments. It is widely used by higher education institutions to oversee and support student internships effectively.
In this article, we explore how the South-Eastern Finland University of Applied Sciences has leveraged Workseed healthcare LMS to enhance internship management across various healthcare and social welfare degree programs.
Tools for managing and monitoring healthcare internships were insufficient
South-Eastern Finland UAS has used Workseed for managing internships in healthcare training since 2017. It is utilized across multiple degree programs, including nursing, EMT, physiotherapy, and others.
Workseed healthcare LMS has also played a key role in developing standardized monitoring and assessment practices across campuses. All four campuses of South-Eastern Finland UAS use Workseed.
When South-Eastern Finland UAS first set out to improve internship management, the following areas of development were prioritized.
Reducing administrative work. Teachers faced a significant administrative burden when managing internships. Manual administrative tasks were time-consuming and increased the risk of human error. Managing internship contracts, interim assessments, and approving completed internships were particularly demanding.
More than anything, teachers felt there was no efficient process for reporting and assessing learning. Accumulating transparent information for internship assessment was difficult, and data collection did not fully comply with GDPR standards. Reporting and recording working hours were especially important due to regulatory requirements.
Improving tools for self-assessment. It was crucial to find tools that motivated students to assess their own learning. In healthcare training, students are expected to work independently, making it more challenging for teachers to identify competencies acquired during work-based learning.
At the same time, students often felt they received limited support from their teachers during internships. It was difficult to identify when students were struggling. This highlighted the need for better tools that allowed students to reflect on their learning and communicate their self-assessments to teachers.
Better tools for monitoring learning. During internships and work-based study modules, teachers had limited ability to monitor students. Improved tools for setting individual learning goals and documenting progress were needed. These tools had to be both flexible and easy to use.
A better process with Workseed was created
Workseed played a crucial role in developing an improved process for managing internships. Implementing it in healthcare training delivered several key benefits.
The management of internships was streamlined. South-Eastern Finland UAS manages all aspects of internships through Workseed, including tasks such as approving and archiving contracts, defining and approving individual learning goals, monitoring students during their internships, and assessing internships upon completion. Workseed is integrated with other information systems, eliminating the need for manual data entry.
“The process for managing internships is significantly easier with Workseed.”
Defining learning goals became easier. Teachers observed that work-based learning became more goal-oriented with Workseed. The ability to plan studies individually based on competency goals has made it easier to support learning and increased student motivation. The monitoring tools enhanced transparency and enabled teachers to provide more effective formative assessments.
“Work-based learning is more goal-oriented on Workseed.”
Transparency was improved. Teachers use the Workseed LMS not only to manage but also to monitor individual students and student groups. The graphical user interface allows teachers to stay updated on their students’ progress, improving situational awareness and making it easier to assess the impact of internships.
Implementation was swift. The barrier to using Workseed healthcare LMS was lower than South-Eastern Finland UAS expected. According to user feedback, the platform was easy and comfortable to use. The vendor’s support during the implementation phase helped South-Eastern Finland UAS avoid potential challenges typically associated with adopting new technology.
“Implementing the Workseed LMS was the best reform we had in a long time. The initial steps were surprisingly easy.”
Reporting working hours became more straightforward. Besides tracking study progress and offering support, South-Eastern Finland UAS uses Workseed to report and document internship periods. It is now easier than ever to transparently document the effectiveness of internships. Documenting working hours has been one of the most valuable features for healthcare education programs.
Workseed is a powerful healthcare LMS
Workseed is a flexible learning management system extensively validated for healthcare training. It simplifies the management of work-based learning and internships, reduces administrative workload, and enhances transparency in learning.
With Workseed healthcare LMS, educators can streamline the documentation of learning, provide real-time formative assessments, and support students throughout their internships. Features such as the learning place register and working time reporting are specifically designed to meet the unique demands of healthcare training.
If you’d like to learn more about Workseed’s healthcare LMS features and how it can improve the management of work-based learning in your organization, feel free to book a demo with us. Our experts can help you identify ways to reduce administrative tasks and enhance teaching.
If you’re already comparing alternatives for a healthcare LMS, we recommend checking out our popular blog article on choosing an LMS based on user needs.
