Training activity information
Details
Produce appropriate documentation for a piece of software or pipeline, provide training and gather user feedback
Type
Developmental training activity (DTA)
Evidence requirements
Evidence the activity has been undertaken by the trainee​.
Reflection on the activity at one or more time points after the event including learning from the activity and/or areas of the trainees practice for development.
An action plan to implement learning and/or to address skills or knowledge gaps identified.
Reflective practice guidance
The guidance below is provided to support reflection at different time points, providing you with questions to aid you to reflect for this training activity. They are provided for guidance and should not be considered as a mandatory checklist. Trainees should not be expected to provide answers to each of the guidance questions listed.
Before action
- Why is documentation important for users of software? How can training and feedback improve the usability and impact of software?
- Are you familiar with different types of software documentation? Do you have experience in providing training or gathering feedback?
- What makes documentation ‘appropriate’? How will you structure your training? What methods will you use to gather effective user feedback?
- Will you review examples of good software documentation? Will you think about the key information a user would need for your pipeline? Will you consider different training delivery methods?=
In action
- What aspects of the softwareare you choosing to document? What level of detail are you including, and why?
- As you create the documentation, are you anticipating the needs and understanding of the intended users? Are there any areas where the documentation might be unclear? How are you addressing this?
- During the training, how are you adapting your delivery to the audience’s level of understanding and engagement? What questions are they asking, and how are you responding?
- As you gather user feedback, what themes or recurring points are emerging? How are you interpreting this feedback in the moment?
On action
- What key aspects of the software did you document? What was the user feedback you received during and after the training? Were there any common questions or areas of confusion? What did you notice about the users’ understanding?
- What did you learn about the importance of clear documentation and effective training in software deployment and usability? How did user feedback highlight areas for improvement in your documentation or training approach? What skills related to technical communication, training delivery, and user engagement did you develop or improve? How did your reflect-in-action during the documentation creation and training delivery (e.g., adapting to user questions) influence the effectiveness of your communication?
- What will you take from this experience regarding how to create effective software documentation, deliver engaging training, and utilise user feedback for continuous improvement?
- How did you manage version control during the development of your tool or pipeline? What systems (e.g., Git) or strategies (e.g., commit messages, branching, tagging) did you use to track changes and collaborate effectively? What did you learn about the importance of versioning for reproducibility, collaboration, and auditability in a clinical context?
Beyond action
- Reflect on your experience of creating documentation, delivering training, and gathering user feedback. How has your understanding of effective communication with different stakeholders and the importance of user-centred design evolved through subsequent experiences where you had to communicate technical information or solicit feedback?
- Have you learned about different documentation styles, training techniques, or methods for gathering and incorporating user feedback since completing this DTA?
- Review the user feedback you initially gathered. In light of your subsequent experiences, do you now have a different perspective on that feedback or how you might address it?
- Consider the importance of clear documentation and effective training for the successful adoption and sustainability of bioinformatics tools in a clinical setting. How does your experience in this DTA highlight these needs?
- How will your developing skills in technical communication, training delivery, and user engagement contribute to your ability to effectively deploy and support bioinformatics solutions in your future practice?
Relevant learning outcomes
| # | Outcome |
|---|---|
| # 5 |
Outcome
Identify and ensure the needs of stakeholders and patients are met in the development of software, maintaining patient safety and confidentiality. |
| # 6 |
Outcome
Appraise the application of the software development and management cycle in a healthcare environment. |