Medical Education

Medical Education - Introduction

Medical Education is a rapidly expanding area establishing itself alongside clinical research as a special interest. There is a minimum requirement set out in the generic curriculum but many trainees are electing to do additional experience in medical education.

Additional experience in medical education is a very rewarding and in addition helps develop personal and professional skills. There are many different experiences and options available which are outlined in this section.

Why should I gain experience in Medical Education?

As consultants, it is likely that we will all be expected participate in medical education for undergraduates as well as postgraduates and is therefore essential that we all have relevant experience as specified on out curriculum. Our generic curriculum specifies competencies in knowledge, skills, attitudes and behaviours that we should achieve in preparation for this (ST trainees have a good number of competencies to reach).

However, for interested individuals it is possible to spend extra time in medical education that may or may not extend your training. This type of experience enables the trainee to take up a consultant post with a substantial role in Medical Education as there is a growing recognition that experienced educators are needed to take a teaching lead role in departments, which does not need to be a senior lecturer.

Most of all medical education is a very fun and rewarding part of training and is a valuable part of a CV.

How can I gain experience in Medical Education?

There may be local courses within the postgraduate deanery to help achieve these competencies but these should be complemented by practical experience in teaching.

There will be many opportunities both within Medicine for the Elderly and General Medicine, both formal and informal, and you should make contact with the undergraduate co-ordinators for these subjects.

Also your University will no doubt run skills programmes for medical students which are quite generic eg clinical or communication skills, which are very interesting as these are taught using very specific and well proven methods.

Of equal experience are the postgraduate opportunities such as formal and informal teaching of junior staff such as ward rounds, PACES teaching, being an ALS instructor etc.

What specific posts are available in Medical Education?

There are a variety of different posts available in different hospitals.

•  There are some specific clinical lecturer posts, commonly 3 year posts funded by the local university, which usually involve an MD.

•  There are a number of fixed term full-time posts (often 1-2 years) as Teaching Fellows. These have a variety of funding sources but may come from ACT funding (Additional Cost of Teaching) in Scotland. It is usual in these posts to gain an addition qualification in teaching e.g. certificate, diploma or masters.

•  There are also some part-time posts in medical education, e.g. 2 days a week for 6 months that may or may not extend your training.

All posts should allow you to retain at least 20% of your time in clinical work.

What is involved in a specific post in medical education?

There are a number of different aspects to medical education and it is usual to spend time in a number of different areas. General experience would include:

•  Teaching and Learning

•  Assessment

•  Curriculum Development

•  Research

•  Education Management

•  Student Support

It is a very different working environment from clinical work and very much parallels clinical research, spending time in front of the computer preparing material and organising teaching.

What can I gain from a specific post in Medical Education?

There are many specific and generic benefits including:

•  Working alongside and learning from experienced educators, formally and informally (very valuable experience)

•  Management experience

•  Leadership and team working experience

•  Research experience (education research)

•  Time management

•  Self Direction

What formal courses and degrees are available?

These are split into 2 categories:

•  Medical Education courses (Certificate/ Diploma/ Masters)

Currently these are on offer in Dundee and Edinburgh. Certificate courses costs around £1500, and vary in content, contact (distance/day-release) and structure. It is not only for medics who enrol but also dentists, nurses and AHPs. These courses are rarely funded.

•  Generic Education course (Mainly certificates)

These are offered by all Universities and are for all faculties. This means there may be engineers or social scientists on the course with you. They are often cheaper Medical Education courses and may be funded by the University if you can prove you are regularly involved in teaching.

The two main considerations before matriculating:

•  Do I have enough practical teaching experience to reflect on? Otherwise coursework becomes harder and takes longer.

•  Does the course I am considering have the right balance of teaching opportunities to match my learning styles? Distance learning might suit some but not everyone.

If you have any questions please email me on james.shaw@nhs.net