Network principles for prevocational medical training - HETI

Specific assessable assignments as part of term-specific teaching are recommended (eg, case
presentation to peers, teaching medical students).
• z Supervisors who understand the importance of teaching and providing feedback to trainees.
This requires that supervisors:
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zz
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have sufficient time and resources to fulfil these responsibilities
are supported with training in core skills of supervision and teaching
are provided with feedback about their performance as supervisors.
• z A workplace culture supportive of training and education, with training and support for all
levels of the workforce and a commitment to continuous professional development. Good
prevocational training cannot occur in a vacuum: the understanding and support of all staff from
the Chief Executive down are required. This requires a significant commitment of resources,
including for the Director of Prevocational Training in each facility to fulfil the responsibilities of
the position description and support term supervisors and trainees.
Network lecture series
The education portfolio group of the JMO Forum has outlined a lecture series for JMOs to ensure
that JMOs receive lectures on the most pressing topics early in their intern year, and to promote
concordance between the lecture series of different training sites, so that JMOs don’t miss topics or
repeat topics when they go on rotation.
The Prevocational Training Council of NSW endorses the unified lecture series as a concept, and
recommends it to DPETs as an aid to coordinating JMO education across each training network.
Several training sites and networks have adopted the unified lecture series for their education
program. Others are adapting the series to suit local circumstances, and a third group are
continuing with their own lecture programs.
The essential features of the network lecture series are:
• z All trainees have access to the lectures. Usually, this is because the lectures are held at the
local facility, but it can be because trainees are able to travel to another facility for lectures (eg,
a trainee on a GP rotation returns to the hospital for lectures), or because trainees at a small
facility are able to attend lectures elsewhere by videoconference.
• z Lectures are held in protected teaching time. This means that trainees are released from clinical
duty to attend, and that somebody holds their pagers for them during lectures to prevent
interruptions.
• z Lectures are organised locally by DPETs, but there is coordination at a network level to
avoid trainees missing topics or repeating topics when they go on rotation. This may not be
completely avoidable, but networks should be developing options to overcome the problem,
such as recording lectures or providing online tutorials for trainees who cannot come to the live
event.
• z Trainee evaluations of the lectures are routinely collected and used to improve the series.
• z Trainee attendance at the lectures is recorded and reported.
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