Medical students to have more ‘hands on’ experience
Professor Jim McKillop, Chair of GMC Undergraduate Board
Written by: Andrew Vinent, Medicology Ltd. Published: 3rd June 2010
Today’s undergraduates – tomorrow’sdoctors – will see huge changes in medicalpractice. Becoming a doctor today is aboutso much more than understanding howthe body works and developing technicalskills . The demands of a doctor mean theymust be excellent communicators, leadersand negotiators. They need to understanda condition in relation to a patient’senvironment, beliefs and outlook andcommunicate with them in a way that thepatient understands.
To help doctors with this daunting prospectthe GMC has just launched an updatedversion of Tomorrow’s Doctors which setsout the outcomes medical students shouldachieve at medical school and what theyneed to know for their first posts as a traineedoctor. The guidance will ensure medicalstudents have the right mix of medicalknowledge and clinical ability as well asimportant communication skills.
In the new Tomorrow’s Doctors there arestandardised lists of practical diagnosticand therapeutic procedures that studentswill learn with lay descriptions of what theprocedures involve. Students were, of course,often taught these procedures before,however in this new version of Tomorrow’sDoctors the GMC is being more explicitabout which procedures (including somenew additions) need to be taught. The newlist of specific clinical procedures ensuresstudents are able to take advantage ofadvances in medical technology that allowsincreasingly lifelike training mannequinsto be used for clinical procedures, as wellas developing skills on real patients withconsent and under supervision.
When drafting the guidance the GMC alsoresponded specifically to concerns abouteducation of medical undergraduates in thescientific basis of medicine, partnership withpatients and colleagues, and commitmentto improving healthcare and providingleadership. The guidance sets down newrequirements to prepare ‘The doctor as ascholar and a scientist’ covering sciences suchas anatomy, genetics and molecular biology.
New standards have also been set out forthe delivery of medical education, withindications of the respective responsibilitiesof students, Medical Schools and healthcareproviders. There is an emphasis on equalityand diversity, involving employers andpatients, the professional development ofteaching staff, and ensuring that studentsderive maximum benefit from their clinicalplacements. Examples of these includesupporting students with disabilities bymaking appropriate adjustments, collectingfeedback from patients and employers aboutthe preparedness of graduates and staffdevelopment programmes which promoteteaching and assessment skills which all staffmust attend.
Tomorrow’s Doctors introduces the conceptof student assistantships which are newplacements undertaken before a studententers ‘Foundation 1’ as a trainee doctor.They will help students to become moreeffective in using their knowledge and skillsin clinical environments such as a hospitalor community setting and to understandpractical tasks such as filling in a prescriptionform or ordering a blood sample. Studentassistants will assist a junior doctor, becomefamiliar with the workplace and undertakesupervised procedures.
Graduation is an early threshold in doctor’scareers. We do not expect new graduatesto have the clinical experience, specialistexpertise or leadership skills of a consultantor GP. But they must be able to demonstrateall the outcomes in Tomorrow’s Doctors inorder to be properly prepared for clinicalpractice and the Foundation Programme.The Foundation Programme builds onundergraduate education, allowing newdoctors to demonstrate performance in theworkplace.
The outcomes set out what the GMC expectsmedical schools to deliver and what theemployers of new graduates can expect toreceive although medical schools are freeto require their graduates to demonstrateadditional competences. These outcomesmark the end of the first stage of acontinuum of medical learning that runsfrom the first day at medical school andcontinues until the doctor’s retirement fromclinical practice.
It is clear that meeting these outcomes andstandards will be challenging and thereare implications for resources and prioritiesboth for medical schools and for the healthservice. But the benefit will be a furtherenhancement of the knowledge, skills andbehaviour which new graduates will bring totheir practice.
Tomorrow’s Doctors will be implementedover the next two years and will apply from2011-2012. For further information pleasevisit www.gmc-uk.org
