Context

Within my Faculty, I identified that existing workplace-based assessments (WBAs) in clinical placements were administratively burdensome, inconsistently administered and collected, and often missed critical learning moments. Feedback to students was frequently delayed or lost, and opportunities for reflection on authentic clinical performance were under-realised. In response, in 2017 I led the conception and delivery of the Clinical Workplace-Based Assessment App (CWAapp)—a UNSW-developed digital solution replacing paper-based assessments with a secure, real-time mobile assessment platform. The project was initiated through an educational grant ($45k) I secured through PVCE, and co-designed with students, clinical supervisors, and IT specialists to ensure user-centred design and pedagogical integrity. This initiative directly advances Faculty of Medicine & Health education objectives by embedding digital innovation and reflective learning into clinical education practice .

Initiative

The CWAapp enables students to complete authentic clinical assessments in real and simulated clinical workplaces, receive instant structured feedback, and reflect within the app, thus closing the loop between experience, feedback and reflection. Key features include:

• A unified digital platform for relevant clinical assessments e.g. Mini-CEX, SOCA (our bespoke communication skills assessment)

• Immediate supervisor feedback captured at the bedside or in clinic.

• Integrated guided student reflection. 

• Automated integration with Faculty systems for tracking of student progress - and indicating placement quality.

Between 2017 and October 2025, over 18,400 clinical assessments have been completed using the CWAapp, including 9,700 SOCAs and 8,700 miniCEXs, indicating how firmly embedded the application has become in the Medicine program and its widespread use throughout.

Additionally, this initiative embodies UNSW’s principle of Students as Partners, amplifying student agency in designing learning systems and personalising their feedback experience - and students and supervisors have continued to co-develop interface improvements over time.

Impact

The CWAapp has generated measurable educational benefits across several dimensions:

For Students

• Authentic learning: Engages students in genuine clinical tasks that reflect professional practice, consistent with UNSW’s emphasis on work-integrated learning and employability.

• Feedback literacy: Promotes reflective capability and self-assessment in line with the Academic Expectations Framework 2024 focus on enhancing learning through evidence-informed feedback.

• Accessibility and equity: By digitising assessments, students in all clinical campuses gain equitable access to consistent supervisor feedback which contributes to program requirements and populates the student portfolio.

For Clinical Supervisors and Faculty

• Efficiency and reliability: Simplified workflows allow supervisors to focus on formative feedback, while also reducing administrative workload.

• Data-informed decision-making: Faculty can now identify students needing early support, monitor placement quality, and address systemic inequities in training access.

• Scalable innovation: The CWAapp infrastructure supports broader UNSW ambitions for digital transformation, aligning with the Strategy’s aspiration to “harness AI, data and emerging technology to enrich learning and teaching” .

Societal Impact: This initiative advances UNSW’s Societal Impact Framework by:

• Contributing to “Enabling Healthy Lives” through better clinical training and patient care quality.

• Supporting “Advancing Economic and Social Prosperity” by fostering skilled, reflective health professionals who can improve community health outcomes.

• Strengthening “Societal Resilience” through evidence-based education and health system capability building .

At Faculty level, it aligns with Education Objectives ED2–ED5, promoting equitable access and lifelong learning through digital innovation, and can in future contribute to interprofessional collaboration and education.

Reflection

Leading the development and rollout of the CWAapp has deepened my understanding of how digital transformation can amplify feedback, reflection, and belonging in clinical education. The initiative has evolved from a technological solution into a pedagogical framework—supporting reflective practice, professional identity formation, and more equitable access to feedback.

In future iterations, my focus is on:

• Embedding AI-assisted analytics to support longitudinal feedback and student self-assessment.

• Integrating Indigenous health contexts and assessments infused with First Peoples perspectives in the reflection framework, aligning with Faculty priorities for allyship and self-determined curricula (ED1, PC1) .

• Expanding use of the app across interprofessional and community-based settings to further UNSW’s goal to empower learners through transformative education and partnership for societal impact .

Through this work, I have demonstrated Professor-level attributes expected in the Academic Expectations Framework: sustained educational leadership, cross-disciplinary collaboration, creation of scalable digital innovations, and demonstrable impact on student learning, professional practice, and societal outcomes.