Developing Professional Practice

Are you an experienced health or social care professional looking for a reflective space to examine your practice? This module supports your critical reflection by providing a structured framework which will encourage, guide and deepen your reflective process.

You can take a deep dive into your practice through the analysis of a therapeutic or other intervention, an aspect or sequence of service delivery or the organisation of service delivery within a defined area.

This module will help you evaluate your current practice and reflect on your identity as a professional contributing to greater self-awareness and understanding which will contribute to more effective care and better self-care.

The module fits well within our MA Professional Practice pathway.

Learning outcomes

After this module you will be able to:

• Identify, in a given situation, the unique contribution made by a named professional group towards the health/social care of service users.
• Demonstrate the professional basis for decision making within a given situation.
• Provide evidence in support of decision-making.
• Evaluate the effectiveness of interventions with service users.
• Recognise professional limitations and access support networks.

Our expert staff

The module is led by Penny Hodgkinson, the Co-ordinating Lead for Interprofessional Learning for the School; academic and research supervisors are drawn from across our expert team of staff from nursing, allied health and social care professions well as from those with research backgrounds.

You must be:

• a practising professional (health or social care)
• familiar with, and able to undertake, self-directed study
• bring to the course a wealth of practical experience
• require primarily guidance and support whilst undertaking the course.

Module Outline

Students will be encouraged to undertake personal study in the following areas through tutorials.

Each student's project will be unique, focusing on the practice environment as experienced by the practitioner.

However, the following areas may be considered:,

• The development of professional practice
• Expanding and extending roles
• Legal aspects of professional practice
• Autonomous practice
• The practitioner as professional
• Strategies for decision-making
• Evidence-based practice
• Protocols and guidelines
• The client as service user
• Health care needs and social care needs
• Advocacy
• The Health/Social Care Environment
• The influence of the environment on health and social wellbeing.

In this module you will work independently under the supervision of an academic.

We understand that deciding where and what to study is a very important decision for you. We’ll make all reasonable efforts to provide you with the courses, services and facilities as described on our website. However, if we need to make material changes, for example due to significant disruption, or in response to COVID-19, we’ll let our applicants and students know as soon as possible.

Assessment strategy

A 6000 word portfolio with associated appendices and documents.

Our CPD Funding page has more information on fees for our modules and potential funding sources.

We have guidance on making your application and the forms to download on our how to apply page.