Entrustable Professional Activities

LG9: Promote improved outcomes in child and adolescent health and development

Learning Goal 9

Promote improved outcomes in child and adolescent health and development

Take actions to promote improved health and developmental outcomes for paediatric patients in healthcare systems and the community

This activity requires the ability to:

  • identify strengths, capacities, and barriers to health at individual, family, community, and policy level
  • identify and manage child and adolescent safety concerns
  • actively work to improve health equity and address barriers to health at an individual, family, community, and policy level
  • provide effective holistic care for children and adolescents with consideration for their family, community, and cultural context
  • take a leadership role in advocating for improved health and developmental outcomes for paediatric patients

Professional practice framework domain

Medical expertise

confident
Ready to perform without supervision

Expected behaviours of a trainee who can routinely perform this activity without needing supervision

The trainee will:

  • provide specialised holistic paediatric care to address the needs, according to local, national, and international guidelines and best practice, of:
    • children from low socioeconomic backgrounds
    • children from rural and remote areas
    • children in out-of-home care
    • children with disability
    • children with diversity
    • Māori and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples
    • refugee and asylum seeker children, and children with refugee-like backgrounds
  • provide goal-directed care, aiming to improve function and quality of life, to patients with complex needs
  • devise strategies that consider and improve the social and emotional wellbeing of patients
  • provide medical evidence, assessments, and correspondence to support patients to access disability, mental health, and other support services
  • support strategies that promote inclusion and participation
  • identify and refer patients to appropriate early intervention and developmental services
  • devise a strengths-based approach to the care of patients with developmental or behavioural challenges, neurodiversity, or disabilities
  • advocate for the effective mitigation of risks in patients’ physical and social environments
  • identify and address, or advocate for reducing, individual barriers to health, including adverse childhood experiences
  • advocate for conditions that promote optimal child and adolescent development across the age range
  • undertake screening and develop management plans for psychosocial risks of adolescents

direction
Requires some supervision

Possible behaviours of a trainee who needs some supervision to perform this activity

The trainee may:

  • identify children with specific vulnerabilities
  • identify barriers to health
  • address and manage patients with child protection and safety concerns
  • undertake screening for psychosocial risk factors with adolescent patients
  • identify patients needing to access disability and other support services
  • identify risks present in children’s physical and/or social environments

Communication

confident
Ready to perform without supervision

Expected behaviours of a trainee who can routinely perform this activity without needing supervision

The trainee will:

  • prioritise positive and strengths-based language in communication regarding patients
  • practice trauma-informed care
  • sensitively and constructively explore barriers to health and adherence to management plans
  • provide opportunistic health education to families and carers, and promote optimal patient health
  • safely and appropriately communicate with police and statutory child protection agencies, including limitations of knowledge, evidence base, and expertise

direction
Requires some supervision

Possible behaviours of a trainee who needs some supervision to perform this activity

The trainee may:

  • explore socioeconomic backgrounds with patients
  • refer to local service providers

Teaching and learning

confident
Ready to perform without supervision

Expected behaviours of a trainee who can routinely perform this activity without needing supervision

The trainee will:

  • educate families, carers, medical students, other health professionals, and/or community members about strategies to improve child health in all domains
  • build knowledge of community resources that support patients' health and wellbeing within community of practice

direction
Requires some supervision

Possible behaviours of a trainee who needs some supervision to perform this activity

The trainee may:

  • provide health promotion education to families and carers

Research

confident
Ready to perform without supervision

Expected behaviours of a trainee who can routinely perform this activity without needing supervision

The trainee will:

  • contribute to research that improves health equity, where applicable

Cultural safety

confident
Ready to perform without supervision

Expected behaviours of a trainee who can routinely perform this activity without needing supervision

The trainee will:

  • collaborate with families and communities to optimise patient health outcomes in a culturally safe manner
  • use qualified language interpreters or cultural interpreters where appropriate
  • support improving patient health and development within the patients’ cultural and family context
  • advocate for cultural safety in clinical settings
  • link patients with culturally appropriate support services

direction
Requires some supervision

Possible behaviours of a trainee who needs some supervision to perform this activity

The trainee may:

  • demonstrate cultural safety

Ethics and professional behaviour

confident
Ready to perform without supervision

Expected behaviours of a trainee who can routinely perform this activity without needing supervision

The trainee will:

  • practice advocacy with respect for patient confidentiality, autonomy, and dignity
  • facilitate and advocate for the safety and rights of children, including adherence to child protection laws and policies
  • support and empower families and carers to provide optimal care for children

direction
Requires some supervision

Possible behaviours of a trainee who needs some supervision to perform this activity

The trainee may:

  • adhere to child protection laws and policies

Judgement and decision making

confident
Ready to perform without supervision

Expected behaviours of a trainee who can routinely perform this activity without needing supervision

The trainee will:

  • practice patient-centred care, considering the family, community, and cultural context in establishing management plans
  • demonstrate an understanding of relevant consent and information-sharing laws
  • demonstrate an understanding of the role and requirements of paediatricians as expert witnesses in cases of child maltreatment

direction
Requires some supervision

Possible behaviours of a trainee who needs some supervision to perform this activity

The trainee may:

  • seek support to manage patients in challenging contexts

Leadership, management, and teamwork

confident
Ready to perform without supervision

Expected behaviours of a trainee who can routinely perform this activity without needing supervision

The trainee will:

  • work collaboratively within teams that aim to improve patient health and developmental outcomes
  • advocate for quality, safe, and effective care in the best interest of patients and health priorities

direction
Requires some supervision

Possible behaviours of a trainee who needs some supervision to perform this activity

The trainee may:

  • advocate for appropriate care for patients

Health policy, systems, and advocacy

confident
Ready to perform without supervision

Expected behaviours of a trainee who can routinely perform this activity without needing supervision

The trainee will:

  • advocate for child and family friendly clinical and support services
  • seek to address, or advocate for addressing, the determinants of health of the population
  • advocate for, and promote, child safety and the rights of children
  • participate in health promotion, disease prevention and control, screening, and reporting notifiable diseases
  • demonstrate an awareness of population health priorities
  • contribute to advocacy or policy activities to improve child health and developmental outcomes nationally and globally
  • direct families and carers to resources and services targeted at improving child health
  • advocate for, or contribute to, systems or structures that provide equitable access to care for all paediatric patients
  • apply knowledge of long-term impacts of adversity and methods to ameliorate harm to health policy and advocacy

direction
Requires some supervision

Possible behaviours of a trainee who needs some supervision to perform this activity

The trainee may:

  • demonstrate an awareness of activities that promote health and prevent disease in children and young people
  • support patients to link with relevant community services
  • identify systems or structures that are a barrier to equitable access to health care