Rhubarb, Rhubarb ...

Revalidation for trainees

2013-04-08T04:27:00.000-07:00

All doctors with a licence to practice and that includes GP trainees will have to revalidate, usually every five years. In addition when you receive your Certificate of Completion of Training (CCT), at the end of your training programme, the Deanery will revalidate you for five years.

Inorder for this to happen all trainees need to complete the enhanced Form R a couple of weeks before your ARCP panel takes place and upload it to your eporfolio. For more information and to find a direct link to Form R click here.

You should already have received a revalidation date from the GMC and if it is the same as your expected CCT date then you don't need to do anything more.

If your expected date of completion of GP training is incorrect then email Joyce Yates and she will correct it.

If you have not not received a revalidation date you need to contact the GMC directly on 0161 9236277 or by email.

Welcome to newly appointed trainees

2013-03-21T08:31:00.002-07:00

A very warm welcome to everyone who has recently been appointed to the Dewsbury, Wakefield and Pontefract GP Training scheme. Congratulations on joining the best scheme in the Deanery and we look forwards to seeing you in August.

The scheme communicates with our trainees and trainers via a private Google group. I have invited all new trainees to the Google group but if you want me to invite you again then email me by clicking here.

Warm Welcome

2012-08-02T01:53:00.002-07:00

A very warm welcome to all the new doctors on our training scheme. Just a quick reminder that if you are new to scheme you need to register with the RCGP to get an ePortfolio. You need to do this NOW because otherwise you won't be able to progress towards MRCGP - to register click here.

For trainees in general practice the first Tuesday half day release is on Tuesday 7th August. For trainees in their first GP post the meeting is at Adwalton Surgery, Driglington and for those in ST3 the meeting is at Kings Medical Practice, Normanton - click here for directions.

For trainees in hospital posts for those in Group A the first meeting is on Thursday 16th August and those in Group B on Thursday 23rd August. Click here to see which group you are in. Hospital trainees are meeting at Adwalton surgery in August, September and October and then we are moving to Kings Medical Practice at Normanton over the winter period. Click here for directions.

I look forwards to meeting you!

Yorkshire and Humber Policy on MRCGP fails

2012-07-09T12:35:00.001-07:00

We have had an email from the Deanery today advising the approach that the Yorkshire and Humber Deanery is taking to patients who have failed MRCGP either because they have failed WPBA, CSA or AKT. The Deanery has agreed the following approach:

1. Trainees who have failed CSA will be offered up to a 5 month GP based extension to enable them to complete CSA again
2. Trainees who have failed AKT only will be offered a 6 month hospital based extension to training
3. All trainees who have failed can apply for LTFTT, through the normal process, as extending training may allow extra attempts at the exams.

If you have any queries about these options then talk to a TPD ASAP!

Yorkshire and Humber Local Education and Training Board

2012-05-25T06:21:00.001-07:00

I am the West Yorkshire GP representative on the interim Yorkshire and Humber Local Education and Training Board. This board will be responsible for commissioning training and education across Yorkshire and Humber to ensure a competent current and future workforce. Clearly to deliver patient care in the future we need to ensure that there is a secure primary care workforce. It is increasingly become apparent that this will have high priority for the LETB board, but in case it does not I see my role as continually reminding the board about primary care.

To read more about the LETB click here http://www.yorksandhumber.nhs.uk/what_we_do/workforce_education_and_training/

The board has recently produced its first newsletter - click here to read it http://www.yorksandhumber.nhs.uk/document.php?o=8648 about the board members, background and work programmes.

Call me vain but none of the GP members had their photo taken! If you want to see a pretty picture of me click on my blogger profile!

http://www.blogger.com/profile/17493517836158922375

Get your ESR done now!

2012-05-17T00:42:00.002-07:00

Just a quick reminder that the local ARCP panel for trainees on the DWP scheme is Tuesday 12th June. The panels will look at every ones ePortfolios electronically to determine whether you have made satisfactory progress and whether you can be signed off and either get your CCT or move to the next year of training.

In order to do this all your workplace based assessments need to have been completed, all the NOE requirements need doing - click here for a link to the NOE requirements on the Deanery website, you need to have a Clinical Supervisors report and then to tie it all together you need to have a completed Educational Supervisors report. In order for ARCP panel members to have time to have read your ePortfolio and assessed your progression your ESR needs doing by the end of the May.

Take home message is you need an ESR meeting by the end of May and if you have not arranged it yet do so now!

Study Leave

2012-04-23T05:32:00.003-07:00

The TPDs met last week and clarified the rules about trainees claiming study leave. Briefly we agreed that:

The budget for individual trainees is per ST year and will run for 12 months when you joined the scheme e.g. if you joined the scheme in August the year for your study leave budget will run from 1st August to 31st July
Currently you can claim up to £450 per year.
The individual study leave budget will be reviewed in the light of the outturn for our educational budget.
Study leave claims must go through the approved hospital and Deanery procedures
The TPDs have discretion to approve study leave that goes above the annual limit in exceptional circumstance e.g. additional CSA training course for a trainee who has failed CSA.

Hope thats clear!

Less Than Full Time Trainees now only have to do pro rata number of assessments

2012-03-28T08:27:00.002-07:00

Good news for ‘less than full time trainees’ - you now only need to do a pro rata number of assessments and the new rules apply from now! Below is the full text of a press release from the RCGP:

'Trainees will continue to have regular educational reviews (usually a minimum of once a year). For these interim reviews, supervisors make a judgment of progression for stage of training normally based on pro rata evidence as a minimum. However, there may be situations dependent on individual trainees performance and progression where more than the minimum evidence is required.

'The General Medical Council (GMC) has offered interim guidance to say that for those trainees who are ‘less than full time trainees’ (LTFTTs) evidence can be gathered on a pro-rata basis. This approach means that LTFTTs will collect the same amount of evidence as full time trainees, but over a longer period of time.

The RCGP is in full agreement with the GMC that this recommendation is a fairer approach for those trainees affected and is encouraging GP Deaneries to implement the guidance as soon as possible.

At present, LTFTTs have to collect the same amount of evidence for their ARCP as their full time peers. The RCGP agrees that the new approach will ensure that assessment does not take up a disproportionate amount of trainee learning time.

The purpose of the ARCP is to ensure that trainees are engaged with the training process have undertaken appropriate workplace-based assessment and are making satisfactory progress for their stage of training.

The RCGP Postgraduate Training Board (PTB) has agreed that for gateway ARCP reviews between specialty training years, a trainee must provide the minimum amount of evidence specified by the RCGP. For example, for a trainee working at 50 per cent of full time the required evidence at the end of their ST1 year may be compiled over the equivalent period - i.e. two calendar years.

The RCGP Assessment Committee recommends that this guidance be applied immediately. Since many LTFTTs are not synchronised with the usual assessment cycle of transition in specialty training years in August, the RCGP recommends that the Workplace Based Assessment guidance be applied from the next review scheduled. For the majority of LTFTTs this will be a ‘gateway’ ARCP in the summer of 2012.'

The full RCGP guidance can be viewed here: http://www.rcgp-curriculum.org.uk/Docs/WPBA%20%20LTFTT_guidance%20January%202012.doc

The GMC guidance document can be viewed on the GMC website at http://www.gmc-uk.org/LTFT___WPBA_and_ARCP___Additional_position_statement___Feb_2012.pdf_48095387.pdf'

New Stuff to Download!

2012-02-24T05:48:00.001-08:00

I have just put a load of 'stuff' on the website for you to download. To get to the download page click here. What I have put on the website is really, really useful:

HDR and whole day attendance sheet - compulsory for ARCP panels - less than 14 weeks away now!
Whole day training programmes for Group A and Group B hospital trainees
HDR training programme for trainees in GP1
Resources used in a recent Prospective Trainers Workshop - PowerPoint's, CBD documents, and MRCGP Competency Framework document
AND
Feedback and evaluation forms for Thursday whole days and the HDR sessions at Drighlington and Normanton - remember Moira's job depends on this ...

Well, to be truthful it is not really that excited, but at last it is one click from everything you need to know!

Making it easy ...

2012-02-09T02:21:00.000-08:00

I have just updated the website. You will have seen lots of posts from Terry and me about links to our online evaluation pages for the Thursday Whole Day sessions for hospital trainees and the Tuesday HDR sessions for GP ST3 trainees at Normanton and Drighlington.

Well I have made it so easy for you now. I have added a link to both Evaluation Forms from the 'Download' page on our website.

To get to the Evaluation Forms click here - it is so easy....

Hands-Only CPR

2012-01-15T04:57:00.000-08:00

The British Heart Foundation has started promoting 'Hands-only CPR' for people who have not been trained in Basic Life Support. We looked at the You Tube videos at our Whole Day Training Session on Thursday and I thought they were worth sharing. The BHF has been running a TV advert campaign staring Vinnie Jones - the advert is really funny. To watch just the advert on You Tube click here.

For more information about this then click here for the British Heart Foundation website.

New Year Resolutions!

2012-01-03T05:49:00.000-08:00

I hope several of you have made New Year resolutions to keep up to date with your ePortfolio and make lots and lots of entries and loads of WPBAs...! That is perhaps not a New Year resolution and more wishful thinking along the lines of 'if pigs could fly' ... But never mind there is always a time to start and the time to start is now. So the next milestone is meeting your Educational Supervisor to sign off your current post before you finish it. If you have not arranged a meeting then do it now so everything is on track for the last six months.

Happy New Year

Merry Christmas

2011-12-20T03:05:00.000-08:00

Just a quick message to wish all our trainees, trainers, admin staff and other' list-lurkers' a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.

There are no teaching sessions next week, but Tuesday small group teaching sessions for trainees in general practice starts again on Tuesday 3rd January and the whole day teaching sessions for our hospital trainees start on Thursday 12th January.

I wish you all the best for the festive season.

Feedback about hospital posts

2011-12-12T06:34:00.000-08:00

At the end of each six months rotation I try and get feedback from trainees about their experiences at our whole day training session, our help in preparing you for MRCGP and of course some feedback about your hospital posts. This time round feedback was generally very good about most of the hospital posts and there were no major issues about workload. Most of you are getting to the whole day training sessions and attendance is nearly 70% on average.

Of course, things can always be improved and there were some specific issues about speciality training in A&E and Medicine and increased workload at DDH when Pinderfields is on GP Divert to DDH. I hope to raise these issues with the relevant people at Mid Yorks but if you have any more issues you think need raising please let me know. Click here to send me an email directly.

What a difference three years make!

2011-12-02T07:01:00.000-08:00

The Deanery have recently been looking at attendance at our small group training sessions. They last looked at attendance in 2008 when GP HDR attendance rate was 73%, A&E 12 %, Paeds 40%, O&G 20%, Psychiatry 72% and Medicine 35%.

This time they have looked at 3 months attendance, May to July, 2011 and for hospital specialities the rates have massively increased. In GP HDR rate was 67% but in A&E it ws 60%, Paeds 66%, O&G 65%, Psychiatry 71%, Medicine 71% and Palliative Care 114%.

The target to attend small group teaching sessions is 70% and I think that we are almost hitting that target now.

It is a huge change in attendance for our hospital trainees since 2008, so obviously a whole day works!

Modular posts

2011-11-18T08:09:00.000-08:00

We have had a few queries recently about whether doctors can undertake modular posts. Being able to do a modular post is a 'privilege' and not a 'right'. They can be undertaken in the second post of ST3 IF:

You have successfully passed AKT
Taken CSA
Your trainer, educational supervisor and TPD have no concerns about your progress

No concerns about your progress means precisely that; you are up to date with your ePortfolio and not been to panel or have had comments made about your progress. You will not have had got your CSA result before you start your modular post but we would expect you to pass. If you fail it then you need to leave the modular post and start doing full time general practice again.

Its easy - modular posts are for high flyer's who are at the top of the game!

Ponte A&E to close at 10 pm and then permanently ....?

2011-11-07T08:02:00.000-08:00

Mid Yorks Hospital Trust, which is the organisation that runs our local hospitals has recently announced that Pontefract Accident and Emergency Unit is to temporarily close overnight from 10 pm. To read the full story click here. But essentially it is because there are not enough junior doctors to work in all three Accident and Emergency Departments to maintain a safe level of service to patients. The Trust denies that it is accelerating the closure of Pontefract A&E.

But a week later at the Trusts Public Board meeting it announced that it is considering proposals to change the way it provides services to patients in Dewsbury, Wakefield and Pontefract. To read the full briefing paper click here. In order to become a Foundation Trust, Mid Yorks needs to demonstrate that its services are financially and clinically viable. In a nutshell that means that it can live within its financial means (ie save £30 million a year) and make sure that its clinical services are safe and effective. The current configuration of services does not allow it to do this.

The Trust has produced five proposals that will reconfigure services. All of the proposals have Pontefract A&E becoming a Minor Injury Unit only and In-Patient Paediatrics being centralised at Pinderfields. Three of the options have the Consultant Obstetric Unit being centralised as well. To make room for all these services the options have various surgical units moving to Dewsbury and Pontefract. The Trust is currently consulting with staff and GPs to produce one preferred option that it will take to public consultation next year.

So, .... watch this space (again!).

DWP Vacancies in 2012

2011-10-25T04:25:00.000-07:00

In 2012 the GP Training School in Yorkshire and Humber will be offering 309 vacancies (compared with 255 eventually filled in 2011). Of these DWP has been asked to provide 35 rotations beginning in August 2012 and a further 4 beginning in February 2012. I have put the rotations together and you can view more details about our posts by clicking here

The rotations all have 18 months in hospital and 18 months in general practice. The last 12 months of the rotations are in one general practice training post. If you are interested in applying the deadline for applications is noon on Friday 9th December. If you would like anymore information about any of the posts then contact me by clicking here.

And of course DWP is a great scheme to apply to for many reasons - one of the best being that we have never had a single trainee fail because they failed CSA!

Smug eh!

2011-10-10T06:38:00.000-07:00

Congratulations to all our trainees who have recently successfully passed CSA. We still have got a 100% pass rate with CSA (eventually ...). Or to put it a different way all of our trainees have eventually passed CSA and no one has failed to get a CCT because they have not passed CSA. A huge well done to our trainers, trainers and of course the TPDs who have been drilling our ST3 trainees in how to pass CSA.

Today I got some national CSA results sorted according to each Deanery. The mean pass mark was 55.2% - this is quite a bit lower than those in February or May - mainly because the September cohort is usually full of trainees who are resitting and the pass rate with CSA does not increase the more times you take it. But in this mean there were huge variations. For example in Oxford the pass rate was only 12.5% whereas in Yorkshire and Humber the pass rate was 64.7%.

One of my colleagues said today that all schemes should adopt our system. Train you like dogs and get you all to successfully jump through the hoops! But the real take home message to a wider audience is that if you are thinking of joining a GP Training Scheme then come to DWP because you will pass CSA. And that is a guarantee ...!

PSQ Fraud

2011-10-05T02:30:00.000-07:00

Just a quick reminder that PSQs need to be completed solely by patients and then every one that is completed needs to be entered onto your ePortfolio by an independent person ie not you.

Just for complete clarity it is fradulent to (1) help patients complete them (2) complete any yourselves (3) get a member of staff to complete them. These actions will get found out and will then inevitably lead to a referral to the GMC and some disciplinary action.

This should not need to be said but I thought I needed to make the above patently clear so that there is no doubt about this matter.

Oh dear, oh dear ....

2011-09-21T06:26:00.000-07:00

The overall pass rate for CSA in Yorkshire and Humber Deanery in 2010 was 84.5% according to the RCGP MRCGP Annual Report - click here to read the report in full. In the past no one on the scheme has failed CSA - but they may have had to take it several times to eventually pass it. The Training Programme Directors advise you to take the CSA at a stage in your training when you are able to have two attempts before the end of your scheme. This means that if you are finishing in July you should take it in February so that if you are not successful first time you have a second chance in May.

This will maximise your chances of passing it first time because you will have had more than six months in ST3 in preparation for CSA. I have heard of trainees who are in ST3 and have applied to do it in September or November. I wish you the best of luck but this is an expensive and high risk strategy. Remember you are only allowed four attempts so you could theoretically use all your attempts up in ST3 and have none in reserve.

I have in ST1 and ST2 tried to play down trainees anxieties about CSA but I think I may have been too laid back. Nearly one in eight trainees won't pass it without an extension of training so you need to treat the exam with respect and take it when you can maximise your chances.

Remember your TPD's know best!

Small Group Sessions on the website

2011-09-12T12:10:00.001-07:00

The programmes for the Thursday Whole Day Teaching sessions for hospital trainees and also the Tuesday afternoon Teaching session for trainees in their first GP training post are now up on the scheme website. To access the programmes click here for our download page and choose the one you are interested in.

I have got it!

2011-09-07T00:22:00.000-07:00

In the practice we have a 'Wednesday file' where we put random stuff that comes in the mail and once in a while we go through it at our Wednesday meeting - hence the name! Last week we were going through it and I came across a leaflet from Sheffield about how to obtain the Diploma of the Faculty of Sexual and Reproductive Healthcare. This explained very clearly the steps you need to take. My five point check list is:

Register to do the DFRSH - click here for link - £60 registration fee
Successfully complete e-learning course e-SRH - free
Successfully complete 'Course of 5' seminars - typically £350
Complete clinical part of training - typically four sessions at £50 per session

You need to do them in the correct order and pass each component to get to the end and your DHSRH - easy peasy ...!

Or you could click here for more information from Sheffield Contraception and Sexual Health Services website.

New to scheme - you should have registered by now!

2011-08-30T02:17:00.000-07:00

Just a quick reminder that if you are new to the scheme you should have registered with the RCGP by now. You need to be registered to get and ePortfolio and start completing WPBA. If you have overlooked this then click here and register NOW!!!

The admin staff will shortly be chasing up new doctors who not registered, it will save us time and effort if you do it. You know it makes sense!

Educational Supervision

2011-08-16T04:00:00.000-07:00

All trainees are allocated an educational supervisor. Click here to go to our downloads page to obtain the list of supervisors and their supervisees. If you are new to the scheme you should contact your supervisor so that you can arrange a face to face meeting with them before the end of September. Click here to get to the GP Posts page on the website to find their contact details. If you are not sure where they are then the Google search button works on the website for trainers names.

You need to register with the RCGP NOW and once you have registered it takes a few days for the Deanery to up date your ePortfolio so that your educational supervisor can see your ePortfolio. If you have not yet registered with the RCGP then click here to get registered that you are undertaking GP training.