Participant Information
Australian paramedic understanding of the purpose of continuing professional development (CPD) and mandatory CPD requirements – a qualitative study using a doctrinal framework for comparative analysis
Chief Investigator:
Annabel Bennett
Paramedicine honours student
Email: annbennett@csu.edu.au
Project Supervisors Contact details:
Primary Supervisor: Supervisor: Supervisor:
Dr Natalia Bilton Mr Robert Bear Dr Ruth Townsend
Charles Sturt University Charles Sturt University Charles Sturt University
Port Macquarie Port Macquarie Bathurst
Email: nbilton@csu.edu.au Email: rbear@csu.edu.au Email: rtownsend@csu.edu.au
Phone: 02 65829359 Phone: 02 65829438 Phone: 02 63 384 350
Invitation
If you are a paramedic registered with the Australian Health Practitioner Regulatory Agency (AHPRA), you are invited to participate in a study about continuing professional development (CPD).
1. What is the purpose of this study?
This research will produce a clear analysis of the current legal doctrine covering CPD requirements for paramedic professional registration in Australia. Secondly, this study will produce contemporary information about the current understanding of the purpose of CPD from individual paramedics, and how this relates to paramedic professionalism.
2. What does this study involve?
The research involves an interview (approximately an hour of your time) via Zoom or other agreed means in keeping with COVID-19 pandemic risk mitigation. The interview will be audio-recorded and later transcribed for analysis. The interviews will be confidential. The interview will comprise of a set of open-ended questions that will explore your understanding of the purpose of CPD and the mandatory CPD requirements.
3. Are there risks and benefits to me in taking part in this study?
A possible risk of participation in this study is that during the interviews sensitive topics may arise which may have the potential to cause you emotional distress and unrest dependent upon your own professional and personal experiences. If this occurs you will be offered the option to pause or cease the interview and you will be offered access to counselling or mental health support services should you desire.
Lifeline, a free, confidential, anonymous 24-hour telephone counselling service for people of all ages: 13 11 14
No ambulance organisation or university will be privy to who has participated in the study. You can withdraw from the study at any stage until the point that data analysis commences, cease the interview or choose whether to discuss in-depth areas that may be sensitive. The interview will be completely confidential. Any potentially identifying information will be de-identified. Benefits of participation are the potential of this research to contribute to the currently limited body of knowledge in the field of paramedicine education.
5. What if I don’t want to take part in this study?
Participation in this research is entirely your choice. Only those people who give their consent will be included in the project. Whether or not you decide to participate is your decision. If you do decide to participate, you may withdraw from the project at any time up to the end of the interview by simply informing the interviewer. It will not be possible to withdraw individual data after the transcription process has commenced because all data will be de-identified.
6. What if I participate and want to withdraw later?
If you start the interview but decide that you do not want to complete it, then you can withdraw up to two weeks after the interview has taken place..
7. How will my confidentiality be protected?
Your information will only be used for the purpose of this research project and other future related research and it will only be disclosed with your permission, except as required by law. There are limits on the assurances of confidentiality as the law may subpoena research data/records.
The data including consent forms will be retained for a period of 5 years from the date of publication. Access will be restricted to only those who are directly involved in the research. The data will be stored in locked filing cabinets at Charles Sturt University and on secure network drives that require passwords to access electronic files (through the Charles Sturt University secure network). The interviews will be confidential. Any personal information that the research team collects will be limited to general demographic information about your age range, gender, professional experience, location, etc to ensure you remain anonymous. The data collected from the interview will be ‘de-identified’. This means that while personal identifying information will be removed in the transcription process, we will use participant numbers to differentiate participant responses should we need to do so during the analysis process.
Any identifying information obtained in connection with this research project will remain confidential. Your name and any other identifying information will be removed from your interview transcript in the transcription process.
No ambulance organisation or university will be aware of who has participated in the study.
8. What will happen to the information that you give me?
The results of this study will form the basis of an honours thesis and a paper, or papers, for publication in a peer-reviewed journal in the field of paramedicine. If participants request access to these materials, they will be given a copy of the dissertation when completed, and they will also be given the link to the journal that papers will be published in if they are open access.
9. What should I do if I want to discuss this study further before I decide?
If you have any questions about this study please contact Annabel Bennett by email (annbennett@csu.edu.au).
10. Can I keep a copy of this information statement?
Yes, it is encouraged that you keep this for your records so that you can refer back to it at any stage.
11. Who should I contact if I have concerns about the conduct of this study?
Charles Sturt University’s Human Research Ethics Committee has approved this project. If you have any complaints or reservations about the ethical conduct of this project, you may contact the Committee on (02) 6933 4213 or ethics@csu.edu.au. Any issues you raise will be treated in confidence and investigated fully, and you will be informed of the outcome.
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If you agree to participate, please click the link to the initial survey questions. A researcher will be in contract with you to provide you with a consent form and to arrange an interview time.