GP Trainers and Educators

TA Zero-Pre-Approval form: Trainer and Practice Information (Old TA8 Form) Prospective trainers need to fill out the form and send it to their local PDs for approval, who then will send it to GP admin to prompt the approval

TA1-Training Practice Approval Form For first approval only. Needs to be submitted to england.gpadmin.tv@nhs.net at least two weeks before the date of the approval meeting. Please Note that Training Practice approval in the old format/version will no longer be accepted.

TA2-Re Approval Form For Reapproval Only. Needs to be submitted to england.gpadmin.tv@nhs.net at least two weeks before the date of the reapproval meeting. Please Note that form will not be accepted if is either in the old format or/and information is missing (please refer to guide below).

Guide to completion of TA2

TA3-TRAINEE FEEDBACK QUESTIONNAIRE Needs to be submitted with TA1/TA2 to gpadmin.TV@hee.nhs.uk at least two weeks before the approval / reapproval meeting.

TA4-PD Question GP admin will ask the PDs to fill out the form ahead of the approval / reapproval meeting

TA5-Feedback Form for completion after the approval / reapproval meeting https://forms.office.com/r/UH5m1pAQgy

TA6: Supported Review Form This form is for use during a triggered review to help offer additional support. (For an educational/ clinical supervisor or training practice)

Dear Educational Supervisor,

There now are so many options for support for trainees and different options can be accessed at different stages of training.

We felt this template might make it easier to document what has been offered to your trainee and at what stage of training.

This Template can be discussed with your trainee ideally at regular educational intervals and can be uploaded to the e-portfolio in educators notes with Trainee permission to aid completion of ESR/ARCP.

There is a supporting guidance document with links to the sources of support.

To see up to date F2 Guide for Wessex and Thames Valley please click here.

FAQs for Training Quality (Re-)Approval visits. NHS England. Thames Valley

Commonly used acronyms

TPD: Training programme director

AD: Associate Dean

TL: Team Leader

PM – Practice manager.

ES -Educational Supervisor (trainer)

VTS – Vocational Training Scheme

BECOMING AN EDUCATIONAL SUPERVISOR OR CLINICAL SUPERVISOR:

First please check you meet the essential criteria to become a trainer. These are:

• Been working in your current practice for at least 6 months

• You work a minimum of 4 clinical sessions a week in your practice

• Be working as a GP in good standing

• You have a minimum post CCT experience of 2 years if you have been based in a training practice or 3 years in a non-training practice.

• The practice you work in needs to be CQC approved (may or may not be an existing training practice)

The next step is to seek support from your practice team (to make sure you will receive adequate protected time and that the members are willing to engage with training) and ensure that the practice have capacity to accommodate a learner. You will also need to speak to your local TPDs about your intentions. The contact details can be found here.

You can then apply to complete the ES (educational supervisor) course (Email GP Admin). In the meantime, we recommend that you start to engage with your local trainers’ group (the TPDs can give you the contact details).

If you have completed a Post Graduate Certificate in Medical Education or have done an equivalent ES course recently, in another area please submit your documents to the Quality Team and they will be reviewed to decide on further next steps.

Once you have completed the ES course you will need to gain approval for both yourself and the practice you work (unless your practice is already approved).

To gain this you will need to:

• Complete a TA0 form (Old TA8 form)and email to GP Admin

• Attend your local trainers group meetings (minimum of 50% of meetings)

• Attend the 2 Nuts and Bolts courses (the CBD/ COTS one as a minimum, the ESR/ learning logs one can be planned)

• Write an Educational PDP – please see appendix 1 and 2 for a template and an example

• Speak to your local TPDs or AD to ensure you and the practice are ready for an approval meeting.

You will then be booked in for your approval.

This process may take 6-12 months.

• Complete the TA1 form (Part 1 for the Practice assessment if needed, and part 2 for the Trainer assessment)

• Ensure you have TA3 forms completed (Trainee feedback questionnaire forms) for all your trainees in practice

• Inform your Team Leader of the number of sessions you work

• On the day of the the approval you will need a video of a teaching session (with any clinical health professional in a learner role but ideally a trainee) lasting no more than 10 minutes. Ensure that you include the beginning and the end of the session within this, to help demonstrate your ability to use a learner centred teaching style which considers the learners agenda and needs. A COT / CBD assessment is usually not appropriate to demonstrate these skills, but a problem case analysis would be.

• If the approval is on Microsoft Teams, book a time to test sharing your video online with GP Admin (this is very important to ensure smooth running on the day of your approval). Please ensure you practice using the same device and set up that you plan to use on the day.

Please ensure all your paperwork is received 2 weeks in advance. It is your responsibility as a trainer that all forms are collated and sent over.

Please note that any ‘copy and pasting‘ from other trainers forms will be not acceptable and highlighted by our plagiarism software

Ensure you have no clinical responsibilities on the day as the approval is expected to be carried out in practice time.

• Trainers weekly timetable.

• Trainers Equality and Diversity Certificate

• Trainers PDP (Personal Development Plan)

• Trainee Induction Timetable

• Trainee Timetable

You will be invited on an online meeting with a Team Leader (Often a GP trainer and may be part of the HEE Educator team) and a visiting trainer may also be present. If your practice is becoming a training practice for the first time, then a Practice Manager will also be part of the approving team.

If this is the first approval for a GP practice, then your local Associate Dean will arrange a short physical visit to assess your premises.

Sample timetable for a Microsoft Teams Trainer assessment visit:

In advance of the day of the approval, the approving practice manager will have arranged to speak to host practice manager and will have fed back to the team leader.

9.00 – Approving team meet to discuss approval.

9.15 – Trainer joins meeting.

We will look at the completed forms and your feedback

We will view your teaching video

We will discuss: Your approach to training / teaching methods and style, use of the e-portfolio, curriculum planning/ coverage, assessment methods and arrangements for GP trainee workload.

We may discuss your SEAs and QIPs

10.30 – Comfort break.

10.45 – Continue meeting as above.

12.00–Trainer leaves meeting for 15 mins for approving team to discuss.

12.15 – Trainer re-joins for feedback

• CS course completed

• Nuts and Bolts (COTs and CBDs) completed

• Engaged with a trainers group and attended at least one meeting before approval request

• Nominated a mentor (who is an approved ES eg another ES in the same practice or on in PCN)

• Working in a training practice (otherwise if not an existing training practice, will need to apply for practice approval, including site visit from local TPD/AD team)

• Working a minimum of 4 sessions a week in practice

CAN DO

• Look after ST1 or ST2 GP trainees for 6-month placements.

• We would expect (recommend) that a CS would upgrade to ES approval (with relevant training) 2-3 years after approval as a CS.

• WPBA: COTs, CBDs, CEPS, CSR, Educators notes

• Also: able to supervise FY2 trainees. (BUT would recommend attending the half day foundation trainers course)

CANNOT DO

• Supervise ST3 trainees

• Mark and comment on log entries

• Mark QIPs

• ESRs

• Receive ES grant for remote supervision of trainees

• Minimum of 2 hours protected time a week for a tutorial plus some time allowed for tutorial preparation

• Practice to receive trainers grant to support training, supervision and tutorials in the practice

• Will not be eligible for £750 CPD grant but can access all free NHS England courses

• Will need to the nuts and bolts every 5 years

• Faculty day attendance and trainers group engagement as per ES’s. (protected time to be granted from practice)

• To nominate an approved ES as their mentor

BEING A TRAINER:

• Attend Faculty days – We would encourage you to attend all faculty days if possible but as an absolute minimum would be 2 over 3 years.

• Attend Trainers meetings – each area has a minimum number of meetings that you are required to attend. We would recommend you attend as many as possible for peer support and personal development.

• Other development appropriate to your learning needs as a trainer – this may have been highlighted in your ES course by a tutor or in your approval visit. Please ensure that you have a PDP that is SMART and active.

• You will need to maintain your Equality and Diversity training.

• Attend regular training in calibration of WPBAs (this may take place in trainers’ meetings, or NUTs and BOLTs courses)

• NEW REQUIREMENT: Attend the experienced trainer’s course at a minimum of 5 yearly post initial approval.

The RCGP offers some guidance on writing PDPs which can be found here.

Appendix 1 offers you a sample template.

Appendix 2 shows an example of an educational PDP.

Yes you can. If you have not had a FY2 before we recommend you read the guide for training FY2 doctors which we can email to you on request if you have not already received this from your TPD team.

We also recommend to attend the half day Combined Supervisor Course-Foundation Stream

We require you to support an approval meeting out of your VTS area but within Thames Valley, a minimum of once every 5 years.

Your contribution is very much valued, sharing ideas from different organisations and areas provides richness. The team leader will contact you in advance of the meeting to discuss your role in the approval process. Most visiting trainers also find it a very useful learning experience.

STAYING A TRAINER (RE-APPROVAL):

The approval schedule is detailed as below:

Year 0: 1st approval for 2 years – Microsoft teams (TA1). Practice and Trainer approval (unless existing training practice)

Year 2: 1st re-approval for 5 years – TA2 with online interview (45-60mins) Trainer approval only

Year 7: 2nd re-approval for 5 years – TA2 with online interview (45-60mins) Trainer approval only

Then an ongoing 5 yearly cycle.

All approvals need TA3 questionnaires completed.

Please note that any ‘ Copy and Pasting ‘ from other trainers forms will be not acceptable and highlighted by our plagiarism software.

Practices do not need to be re-approved after the initial approval. Any concerns raised about the quality of learning environment in training practices will be addressed by the TPD team and Patch AD, and information submitted to the Quality team for review (TA6 will be used).

We are frequently looking to enhance our fantastic approvals team so would welcome your interest. Please email us on england.gpadmin.tv@nhs.net

Once you have support from your new practice to train (checked for space etc), please contact your local VTS team (TPDs and ADs) in the first instance. If everyone is in support, then your local AD will contact the Quality team.

We will need to see your approval paperwork from your last trainer approval. The approval system varies enormously from area to area so your paperwork will be reviewed by the Quality team and an ongoing re-approval plan will be made.

If you are moving to an existing training practice once your paperwork has been approved, you will be able to start training. If you are moving to a non-training practice you will need to apply for a practice approval via the TA0 form.

As the new practice is not an approved practice, GP trainees should not work in that site until the whole organisation is approved. Please inform the quality team.

This may occasionally be possible depending on your experience as an educator and practice factors. Please inform the quality team of what work you are doing in those sessions and how you will support your trainee and they will make a decision. 

Please give VTS team as much notice as possible, ideally 6 months.

Please inform your TPDs if you think you will be off from work for more than 3 weeks. Ensure your trainee is receiving supervision and support in practice (a plan should have been made in advance for this). With long term trainer sickness, if there is no other trainer in the practice to support the trainee, we occasionally may need to move the trainee to another training practice temporarily.

We will aim to support practices via the local TPD team and Patch AD. A TA6 will be completed, shared and stored with the Quality team confidentially.

We would be very sorry to lose you. We require 6 months notice. Please give notice to the quality team and your local TPD team.

Contacts – Working across Thames Valley (hee.nhs.uk)

FOR FOUNDATION TRAINERS:

• You will need to attend a Combined supervisor course (1day). Please register your interest for this with GP Admin as soon as possible.

•  You will need to apply for a practice and trainer approval via email to GP Admin.

•  You will need to complete the TA1 form and submit this 2 weeks before your approval date.

•  TA3 forms will need to be completed for re-approvals

•  The schedule for re-approval will be a follows

o   Year 0 – 1st approval for 2 yrs. (TA2)

o   Year 1 – 1st re-approval for 5 yrs (TA2)

o   The cycle will then continue every 5 years.

•   You will be emailed the guide for foundation training

The approval paperwork you will need to complete can all be found here: GP Trainers and Educators – Working across Thames Valley (hee.nhs.uk)

Appendix