| Trainer Newsletter |
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Summer 2011 Dear Trainers Thank you all for your magnificent efforts in completing the Educational Supervisor Reports of your Trainees in ST2 and ST3. I know it is an immense amount of work in a short space of time, either towards the middle of May or the middle of June, but hopefully it seems a little bit easier each year we do it. The Deanery panel processes seem to be slicker each year and the Trainees seem to be happier with the outcomes. This Summer we have seen a number of extensions for ST3 Trainees failing either the CSA or the AKT. The Programme Director Team have taken this on board and this week have put together a number of initiatives to improve the pass rate. The first initiative will include using two of our ST3s who passed the CSA with extraordinary results. Siobhan Gill and Selina Sawhney attained scores of over 105 and it was noted in the College feedback that only 20 Trainees gained scores over 100. As they are obviously quite expert at passing this exam they have kindly agreed to share their expertise with the study groups that automatically start working together from August 2011. The key, as I see it, is with a study group of 3 – where one of the Trainees is role-playing the patient, the other the Doctor or exam candidate and the third is the observer. I think in the past the Trainees did not have the skills to be the observer and give clear developmental feedback and it is in this area that we are using Selina and Siobhan. The Programme Director Team are also starting a new initiative, as a result from requests from newly qualified GPs, to continue the Day Release Course small groups once per month, for the first 6 months from August through to February for those who gain their CCT in July. The GP Education Unit is providing a facilitator for open access to a group so that newly qualified GPs, who have come off of the Southampton Day Release Course, can discuss issues related to current work and clinical practice. This comes out of the feeling that once they have finished the ST3 year they are suddenly out in a rather scary world with very few support networks and we are hoping that we can provide some early support. The research that Dr Sam Scallan helps the Southampton GP Education Unit with is going from strength to strength. This year we have had one publication already and one currently in press. Rachel Owers our Education Fellow is presenting at the Association of Medical Educators in Europe conference in Vienna in August 2011 and we are preparing presentations for the 15th International Ottawa Conference in 2012. The Wessex Deanery GP School as a whole and especially Southampton GP Education Unit, is getting quite a name for itself on the National and International Medical Education circuit for its research work in General Practice education. If any of you are interested in getting involved please let me know and we can meet up to discuss it further.  As all of you at the Trainer Away Day will know, Doug Campbell, who has been a Course Organiser for 20 years is retiring at the beginning of August 2011. Doug has been a role model and a driving force to the GP Education Unit and the Day Release Course Team and personally I would like to express my thanks for the inspiration and creativity that Doug has given me over the last 15 years.I would like to introduce two new Programme Directors to the team, Dr Jonathan Rial and Dr Rachel Owers who are both currently Education Fellows. They start in August 2011 and have great skills that we can all learn from. In addition Dr Tara Walford is joining us as a new Education Fellow for a year and she will be with us at the next Trainer’s Away Day. On that note, the next Trainer’s away day is on Wednesday 25th January 2012 and we are attempting to secure an expert on international medical graduates and how to help them overcome some of the communication difficulties they have with patients. I think as Trainers we all have insights into particular challenges that graduates who have not trained in the UK have, when consulting patients and some simple interventions can often make that process very much easier. Thank you again for all your hard work with the Trainees and have a great Summer. With kind regards Yours sincerely Professor Johnny Lyon-Maris Associate GP Dean |
