Inspiration in Education nomination – Benjamin Hubbard and Simon Jassel
Inspiration in Education nomination – Benjamin Hubbard and Simon Jassel
Radiographers from University Hospitals of North Midlands NHS Trust have developed an innovative app to give students and apprentices instant access to clinical learning resources anytime and anywhere.
Aware that learners couldn’t access educational material when studying away from the Royal Stoke University Hospital, Benjamin Hubbard, practice educator for therapeutic radiography, and Simon Jassel, advanced practitioner in imaging and IT, developed the app to include documents, videos, presentations, workbooks and quizzes designed to support the development of clinical skills.
The app went live in July after being made in-house and is already being used by students from Birmingham City University and apprentices from Sheffield Hallam University who split their learning between the Royal Stoke’s Cancer Centre and remote study.
Benjamin said: “We had wanted to create something for a long time that would support students and apprentices in our department. Other Trusts were beginning to use apps to give learners easier access to information and we knew we wanted to do something similar here at UHNM.
“After exploring commercial app development, we realised it would be extremely costly. That’s when I brought Simon into the conversation and he found a way to utilise Microsoft Power Apps, already available to us under our existing licences. We were able to develop the app ourselves during our protected advanced practice time, meaning the only cost to develop the app was our time.”
The app is secured with UHNM Trust login credentials, so users can securely access trusted material even when away from the hospital site.
Benjamin said: “It’s ideal for students who’ve spent the day on placement and want to reflect at home or on the move. It puts all the content in one concise, easy-to-access space and is interactive too, as learners can request additional resources. Thanks to built-in analytics we can also track usage too to better its efficiency.
“There is also the possibility going forward that in-house apps like this could be extended to other areas across UHNM to support students, apprentices and preceptorships more broadly.”
Simon, who led on the app’s development, said: “It was very much a case of how we can replicate something useful without incurring costs to the NHS. There was a lot of trial and error at first, but now students and apprentices can download materials to their phones, listen to tutorials or read documents on the go. The positive feedback has been great to hear and it’s really streamlined and efficient for everyone.”
One of the first to benefit from the app is therapeutic radiographer apprentice Jasmine Humphries.
She said: “The app is very good, especially the feature to submit forms and request specific information. It’s clearly set out, easy to navigate and includes up-to-date content.”
Carolyn O’Donovan, Radiotherapy Service Manager, said: “I’m incredibly proud that Benjamin and Simon had the foresight, ideas, innovation and skills to create something truly transformational for our students and apprentices that come through the department.”
Benjamin Hubbard and Simon Jassel have been nominated in the Inspiration in Education category of the Your Heroes Awards.