Training activity information
Details
Liaise with third party software providers or an external provider to solve system development or technical issues
Type
Entrustable training activity (ETA)
Evidence requirements
Evidence the activity has been undertaken by the trainee repeatedly, consistently, and effectively over time, in a range of situations. This may include occasions where the trainee has not successfully achieved the outcome of the activity themselves. For example, because it was not appropriate to undertake the task in the circumstances or the trainees recognised their own limitations and sought help or advice to ensure the activity reached an appropriate conclusion.
Reflection at multiple timepoints on the trainee learning journey for this activity.
Considerations
- Use of third party software for logging technical support queries
- Adapting communication to the audience
- Incident reporting
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
- What does success look like for liaising with external providers? How does this activity contribute to implementing new applications and upgrades using controlled methodology, particularly when external support is needed? What is the specific system issue or development task requiring external liaison? What is the desired outcome of the interaction (e.g., issue resolution, clarification, specific action from the provider)?
- What is your prior experience with interacting with external vendors or support teams? Are you familiar with ticketing systems, service level agreements (SLAs), or communication protocols with external parties? What potential challenges might you face, such as technical jargon, differing priorities, communication delays, or getting the necessary information? When might you need to seek advice, e.g., on escalating issues or understanding contractual obligations? How do you feel about contacting and working with external providers?
- What specific skills do you want to develop in professional communication, problem description, or tracking external dependencies? What insights do you hope to gain about managing external relationships and coordinating support for healthcare systems?
- Have you gathered all the necessary information about the issue or requirement (e.g., error logs, system details, desired outcome)? Who is the correct contact person or team at the provider? What are the agreed communication channels and expected response times?
In action
- As you are liaising with a third-party software provider or an external provider to solve a system development or technical issue, are you encountering anything that feels surprising or different from what you are anticipating? For instance, are there unexpected delays, communication barriers, or is the provider misunderstanding your message or requests? How does this liaison experience compare with your previous experiences of similar activities?
- As you encounter an unexpected challenge during liaison, such as a communication barrier or lack of necessary information, how are you reacting and adapting your approach? For example, if the provider doesn’t understand, how are you rephrasing the issue or providing different details in the moment? If they are not providing the information you need, how are you adjusting your questions or requests? Are you considering other ways you could approach this liaison, such as using a different communication channel or involving another team member? Is this affecting your ability to solve the issue independently? Are you feeling confident you can reach a successful conclusion despite the unexpected issue, or are you finding it difficult to adapt? Are you recognising when you might need to involve your training officer or escalate the issue during this interaction?
- What new insights or lessons are becoming apparent to you as a result of the unexpected development and your reaction to it during the activity? For example, what are you learning about the provider’s process or the nature of the issue during the liaison? Are you recognising how you are working within your scope of practice, for example, by knowing when to pause or seek immediate advice regarding the technical issue or the liaison process?
On action
- Summarise the interactions you had with the third-party provider to address the issue. What specific communications or exchanges felt most important, productive, or difficult? Recall any moments during the liaison where you had to change your communication style or the information you provided based on the provider’s response.
- What did you learn about effectively communicating with external providers to resolve technical or development issues? What strengths did you demonstrate in clearly describing the problem, providing necessary information, or managing the interaction? What skills or knowledge gaps were evident, perhaps regarding technical terminology when speaking to vendors, understanding their processes, or negotiation/escalation points? How did this liaison experience compare to previous interactions with external parties? Did you apply learning from prior reflections on communication or collaboration? What challenges did you face during the liaison (e.g., communication barriers, delays, unhelpful responses)? How did you react to these? Did you need to seek advice from your training officer on how to interact with the provider or escalate the issue?
- What actions or next steps will you take to improve your skills in liaising with external providers? What aspects of external communication, issue management, or understanding vendor processes do you need to practise or learn more about? How will you approach future interactions with third-party providers differently based on what you learned?
Beyond action
- Reflecting on your liaison with third-party providers, how would you evaluate your communication strategies and problem-solving approach? What would you do differently now? Have you interacted with external providers or stakeholders since this training activity? How has your approach to these interactions evolved? If you discussed this training activity with peers or your training officer, did their insights or subsequent learning highlight alternative strategies for managing relationships with external providers? Revisit your reflect-on-action notes for this training activity. What aspects related to technical communication, negotiation, or issue resolution now seem more or less significant in light of subsequent experiences?
- How has your experience liaising with external providers influenced your understanding of the dependencies and challenges involved in implementing system changes that rely on third parties? How has it contributed to your appreciation of the importance of clear communication and expectation setting when working with external organisations? Did this experience help you understand the different perspectives and priorities of external providers compared to internal teams? Has it influenced how you approach troubleshooting or escalating technical issues involving external systems or services?
Relevant learning outcomes
| # | Outcome |
|---|---|
| # 6 |
Outcome
Implement new applications and upgrades to an existing application using controlled methodology. |