Annual Scottish Medical Appraisers Conference 2019
The annual Scottish Medical Appraisers Conference was once again held in parallel with the Scottish Medical Education Conference at the EICC, Edinburgh. The Medical Appraisers Conference took place on 10th May 2019, with “Reflection” being the key theme this year.
Drs Maurice Conlon (Clinical Advisor, Professional Standards Team, NHS England) and Rob Hendry (Medical Director, Medical Protection Society) were the guest speakers and presented on “Appraisal: A Soft Reboot” and “Reflective Practice” respectively.
Six workshops were organised and all of them repeated to give delegates the opportunity to attend as many of the workshops as possible:
- Difficult appraisals
- GMC update on supporting information guidance and consultation on changes to patient feedback requirements for revalidation
- Role of reflection in quality improvement activities
- Humanising health care through values based reflective practice
- Supporting doctors who undertake a low volume of clinical work
- Supporting doctors in difficulty
Details of the workshops, along with materials and presentations on the day, are available on our website:
www.appraisal.nes.scot.nhs.uk/i-want-access-to/appraiser-conferences/20192020.aspx
Conference feedback
87 of the 165 conference delegates provided feedback about the day. The two objectives for this year’s conference were:
1. To review and discuss current issues and concerns surrounding Appraisal and Revalidation, and the role of Reflection.
2. To provide delegates with the opportunity to network with fellow Appraisers outside their health board and specialty.
84% of respondents agreed that we achieved this, while 16% felt it was partially achieved.
The one overwhelming feedback from facilitators and Appraisers was that the workshops were too short. We will take
this (and other feedback) on board and incorporate it into our planning to try and strike the right balance for next year’s conference. Both Drs Conlon and Hendry were very well received by our Appraisers, with 85% of the audience providing a positive score in both sessions.
Comments included:
Liked the focus on achievements, challenges and aspirations without losing the need for the assessment element required for the GMC.
Good speaker (Dr Conlon) - refreshing to hear appraisal being described as a potential force for good and a means of retaining doctors.
Helpful to have clarity around some of the recent issues in reflective practice from Dr Hendry who clearly has a lot of experience. I feel more confident in talking to appraisers and appraisees about the need for reflective practice and the fact that this can be done in a safe and confidential manner.
Workshop feedback
The workshops were well received as well.
Other comments included:
Always good to openly discuss challenges and experiences in appraisal.
Useful to hear GMC thoughts and get ideas from colleagues.
I was amazed at how the small group exercise appeared to be beneficial to all present.
Both these sessions were interesting and informative - actually told you something that would be of use to you. I thought the explanations before and after the obviously compulsory audience participation was really good.
Really useful practical advice regarding low clinical volume work.
Save the Date!
Next year’s Scottish Medical Education Conference (SMEC) will be held on 30th April and 1st May 2020 at the EICC, Edinburgh. The Scottish Medical Appraisers Conference will take place on 1st May 2020 as part of the SMEC. If you have suggestions for Appraiser workshop topics, please send them to us no later than end of October 2019. Visit the website for more details
www.appraisal.nes.scot.nhs.uk/i-want-access-to/appraiser-conferences.aspx
NHS Education for Scotland
Westport 102
West Port
Edinburgh
EH3 9DN
© NHS Education for Scotland 2019. You can copy or reproduce the information in this document for use within NHSScotland and for non-commercial educational purposes. Use of this document for commercial purposes is permitted only with the written permission of NES.