The aim of this Network is to explore and develop values-based practice within paramedic practice, and specifically how this may be taught within paramedic education. Since the large-scale failings of the Mid Staffordshire Hospital Trust were highlighted in the Francis Enquiry, the National Health Service has adopted a series of values that are seen as the ‘foundational’ values of healthcare. Whilst these were developed specifically for nursing and midwifery (the two professions on which the Francis Report focused), this value framework is applicable to all health professions. It has recently been applied to the paramedic profession, specifically in the recruitment of paramedics, which has shifted to a national model of values-based recruitment. This approach recruits employees into healthcare roles on “the basis that their individual values and behaviours align with the values of the NHS Constitution”. In identifying core values that health professionals must exhibit whilst performing their role, it seems that these are set out as the only values to which students in these roles are expected to subscribe. However, we believe that values learning for paramedics needs to be deeper than enforcing values behaviour based on a recruitment initiative. In exploring and developing the place of VBP within paramedic practice, this network aims to provide a framework and toolkit to enable all paramedics to learn, develop and appreciate the values at play during every clinical encounter, including their role in shared decision-making.

The Values Based Practice in Paramedic Practice Network has three principal objectives:

• To develop knowledge about values-based practice within paramedic education.
• To provide support and opportunities for how values-based practice is taught within paramedic education.
• To provide a forum to bring together network members to develop the understanding of VBP within paramedic practice.

The objectives will be taken forward through workshops and the development of a toolkit to aid the implementation of VBP within the paramedic curriculum, hosted by the Education Advisory Committee within the College of Paramedics. VBP will be an agenda item on every Education Advisory Committee meeting.

Workshops and Meetings The Network was formed after an initial introductory workshop at St Catherine’s College on 24/04/2019. The day was planned and implemented by Georgette Eaton and Bill Fulford and Ashok Handa (Collaborating centre for Values-based Practice). The purpose of the day was to bring interested members of the College of Paramedics together to increase knowledge and awareness of values-based practice in paramedic practice. Twelve members, including three students, attended. The timetable can be viewed here Following on from this, group members worked collaboratively to develop and refine a toolkit to support the inclusion of VBP into paramedic education. This toolkit is as an adjunct to the Paramedic Undergraduate Curriculum and will be published alongside the curriculum in Autumn 2019. Face-to-face workshops to review the proposed toolkit for implementation to support the paramedic undergraduate and postgraduate curriculum will also be on offer.

The list of members can be viewed here