Introduction to Work-based Leadership Project

The aim of this project is to introduce GP trainees to the concept of leadership and to develop the competencies needed to be a leader in their workplace and ultimately the wider NHS. The qualities to be assessed are derived from the Model of Medical Leadership developed by the NHS Institute for Innovation and Improvement and the Academy of Medical Royal Colleges. This can be accessed at www.institute.nhs.uk and is illustrated below. They build on the GMCs 2012 paper, “Leadership and Management for all Doctors”.

ST3 GP Projects

General Directions

At ST3 level the trainees will be expected to look at an area of service within the practice that could be changed. They will discuss this with their trainer and their half-day release peer group at intervals through the process of undertaking the project. The delivery team will support this process, helping them to identify the skills that will use useful e.g. negotiation skills, time management, presentation skills, obtaining meaningful feedback etc. Previous projects will also be discussed.

Having identified an area to develop, the trainee will need to work within their practice team to prepare and implement their project. This will generally include a presentation to the practice team and assessing the impact of the project.

They should refer to the competencies to be discussed and demonstrated for the Leadership Project. These may be harder to demonstrate in day-to-day clinical practice but are an important part of practicing as an independent GP.

Preparation for Assessment

The trainees will be expected to write up and present their project and self evaluate the competencies of leadership that they have demonstrated. They can write their evidence in the relevant sections of the structured question guide form. They should present these 2 documents to their GP trainer and a second local trainer and 1 peer GP trainee, 1 week in advance of an arranged assessment date.

The assessment will take the form of an oral discussion and will normally take 30 minutes to complete, including feedback.

The assessors will review the written summary of the project in advance and can use the attached structured question guide to from appropriate questions. After the discussion the assessors complete the competency marking schedule which the trainee will attach to their portfolio in the Learning Log as a “Professional Conversation.” They can also attach their self-evaluated evidence.

The trainee can use the evidence for their self-rating of the RCGP competencies, which can be validated by their Educational Supervisor when writing the end of post review.

Assessor Training

This will be delivered through Trainers Workshops where groups of assessors will discuss high, low and middle levels of project performance and identify behaviours that are characteristic for each one. This will be repeated annually to help develop rater skills for all WBPA assessors.

Assessment

·  Take time to familiarise yourself with the descriptors for each section of evidence on assessment form.

·  Use this structured question guide to develop appropriate questions to seek evidence about trainees competencies and record evidence

·  Allow 20 minutes for questioning and 10 minutes for feedback

·  At the end record a judgement on the marking schedule along with recommendations for further development. These should be attached to the e-portfolio by the trainee as a Professional conversations.

·  Note numbers in brackets refer to the related RCGP competency sections, details below, onto which evidence can be also mapped by the trainee in their self-rating or the educational supervisor in their end of post report.

Competency / Questions / Evidence
Demonstrating Personal qualities (12)
-manages own time, health, learning needs?
Aware of own performance and takes steps to maintain and improve?
Developing self-awareness and impact of self on others.
Acting with integrity
Working with others (8)
Working co-operatively with other members of the team, uses their skills, encourages their contribution, communicates effectively? Helps maintain and develop team performance?
Builds and maintains relationships?
Managing Services (9) (10)
Identifies important elements of healthcare for their community, (social, ethnic, economic factors) uses services appropriately, balances needs of individuals and the community,
contributes to improving local delivery.
Engaged in managing people, resources or performance?
Improving Services (5) (7)
Identifies and encourages development of new resources
Critically evaluates services, helps ensure patient safety, encourages and facilitates development of services?

RCGP Competency sections:

(5) Clinical management

(7) Primary care administration and IMT

(8) Working with colleagues and in teams

(9) Community orientation

(10) Maintaining performance, learning and teaching

(12) Fitness to practice