Health Technology Innovation —
Training activity: 1

Details

Create a detailed functional specification for a healthcare technology development through discussion with the clients/users, e.g., clinicians and/or patients and their carers.

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

What are the intended outcomes of the training activity?

• Have you reviewed the learning outcomes to ensure you are prepared to engage in the translation pathway for healthcare technology developments?
• How do you plan to demonstrate your ability to generate a specification that serves as a robust foundation for design, prototyping, and feasibility assessments?
• What essential knowledge have you identified as necessary regarding clinical requirements and technical standards before you begin your discussions with stakeholders?

What do you anticipate you will learn from the experience?

• What specific insights do you hope to gain regarding how effective stakeholder engagement influences the final technical design and feasibility of a solution?
• In what ways do you expect this activity to improve your proficiency in translating subjective user needs into clear, actionable technical specifications?

What actions will you take in preparation for the experience?

• What specific points have you prepared to discuss with your Training Officer to gain a clarity of understanding regarding the technical scope of the project?
• What possible challenges have you identified—such as conflicting priorities between clinicians and patients—and how do you plan to handle them?
• How have you identified your feelings about taking on the professional responsibility of capturing requirements that will drive a development project?

In action

What are you doing?

• How are you currently approaching the discussions with clients, and why have you chosen this particular communication style to elicit their requirements?
• What decisions are you making in the moment as you filter user feedback into the draft functional specification?
• Which aspects of your communication feel intuitive, and which require more conscious effort to ensure technical nuances are fully captured?

How are you progressing with the activity?

• How effective are your current engagement strategies in identifying the core service needs to be addressed by the development?
• What challenges are you facing right now—such as navigating technical jargon or user expectations—and what are you learning from them as they unfold?
• In what ways is this activity connecting to your existing knowledge of healthcare technology design?

How are you adapting to the situation?

• Are there alternative approaches you should consider mid-discussion to better explore the relationships between system elements?
• What immediate support or guidance might you need from a senior engineer or clinical lead to resolve an ambiguity in the user requirements?
• How are you ensuring that your advice and documentation remain strictly within your professional scope of practice?

On action

What did you notice?

• How would you summarise the key technical and clinical points of the experience, specifically regarding the themes that emerged during user discussions?

What did you learn from the activity?

• What specific skills or knowledge did you develop regarding the ability to assess the feasibility of a development based on user feedback?
• In what ways did your reflection-in-action during the discussions—such as clarifying a requirement in the moment—influence the final specification?
• How does the experience of generating this integrated technical narrative relate to the requirements for your future post-programme practice?

What will you take from the experience moving forward?

• What specific areas for continued development in stakeholder liaison or prototyping have you identified as a result of this activity?
• How can you apply the learning from this specification project to your routine practice in the department?
• What are the specific ‘next steps’ you will now take, such as exploring specific software development methodologies, to support the assimilation of what you have learned?

Beyond action

Have you revisited the experiences?

• How have you re-evaluated your initial design decisions in light of subsequent prototyping or feedback from colleagues?
• Comparing this experience with your Observed Training Activities (OTAs), what specific observable behaviours in technical communication have you now fully assimilated?
• In what ways has discussing this experience with peers regarding your engagement strategies changed your view on how to navigate complex service needs?

How have these experiences impacted upon your current practice?

• How has this specification activity supported your development in wider professional areas, such as writing technical reports or presenting findings to the MDT?
• How have you developed your skills since the original experience, particularly in aligning technical solutions with patient requirements?
• In what ways has the cumulative learning from this activity supported your preparation for ‘in-person’ assessments, such as Case-based Discussions?

How might these experiences contribute towards your future practice?

• What transferable skills in strategic design and translation pathways have you developed that will help you lead future innovations?
• How will your mastery of generating functional specifications help you contribute to future service improvements as a Clinical Scientist?
• What clear actions for continued professional development have you identified to ensure your skills in stakeholder-led design remain current?

Relevant learning outcomes

#	Outcome
# 1	Outcome Engage in the translation pathway for healthcare technology developments.
# 2	Outcome Generate a specification, develop a design and prototype, and assess the feasibility of a healthcare technology development.
# 7	Outcome Employ and adapt communication skills to effectively engage stakeholders in the design, development, and introduction of solutions to address service needs.