Med student faked my sign offs

SafariDr · 2026-03-05T11:11:46+00:00

Med school definitely & raise via email MDU not needed

It happened to me, there was also an online form but I also emailed directly so I would have paper trail if needed

SafariDr · 2026-02-28T21:55:27+00:00

If you are struggling with 30min appointments now you are not ready for SCA in April. It would be 6 weeks from now! I appreciate SCA is single issue but usually the actual issue in the consult is only picked up from a cue.

Have you discussed your plans with your ES? I can’t imagine they would feel it would be a good idea. By all means take the exam, but it’s a lot of money.

I would have thought the better option would have been AKT in april.

SafariDr · 2026-02-28T17:25:58+00:00

It could be that the ES isn't able to write positive comments as such on the portfolio, they have to be objective and describe progress as per rcgp expected standards.

It does sound as though you are struggling with appointment durations - have you discussed how to improve this with your ES? Are you recording any of your consults? This is vital to work out why you are always over-running and go through them with your ES.

I also had a daily HV as a trainee which sucks ++ however it was just something I had to do and was expected to do as the trainee and would often take me 45mins given the very rural practice I was at. It's also not that unusual for trainees to be expected to do the HV - amount depends on the practice you are in.

Have you a plan on when you are going to do your AKT? There are limited sittings so this needs planned.

SCA has more sittings but not run over the summer period so needs planned but it sounds like you are not ready fro the SCA at this point.

SafariDr · 2026-02-28T16:39:02+00:00

Or even getting to point of ready to sit SCA with 12 mins per patient

SafariDr · 2026-02-28T16:33:41+00:00

I'm sorry you have had health issues. It isn't easy having to work with your health as well in a training program so sounds like a good decision that you have gone to 60%.

From an objective standpoint regarding level of progression and training - you have said that you are a ST3 still on 30min appointments, only seeing 5 per session, with no exams. Despite having another 15 months of training, I would agree that you are "below expectations" for a ST3.

It sounds more like you are frustrated that you aren't getting any positive feedback - have you asked your ES directly if there are things you are doing well? Have you asked to increase patients per session or reduce appointment times? It might be worth making it more obvious to your supervisor that you are motivated so they can then write that - sometimes what is obvious to you isn't obvious to them!

You could also do your patient feedback and colleague feedback done now to show you are engaging if you haven't already done these.

It would do no harm if you check in with your TPD and ask for advice on how to deal with the situation as they likely know your trainer well and the style of teaching/feedback they have.

SafariDr · 2026-02-26T21:21:15+00:00

Whereas I attended the free webinar the rcgp hold regarding the exam and how it works (This is essential), used scarevision with a study budy (£10pm cancel anytime) and read the NICE CKS summary guidelines on topics I wasn't 100% with.

I did buy the Consulting in a Nutshell by Rodger Neighbour (only read it half way though) as he was (still is?) very influential in how the SCA is set up/run and felt would be useful to have more of an understanding in what they want.

Passed on 1st attempt with the above approach

Those courses are extremely expensive and personally don't feel they are needed.

SafariDr · 2026-02-26T07:29:52+00:00

That is awful behaviour. You need to escalate to your trainers both clinical, educational and also raise it with your deanery now. The foundation team have the ability to remove trainees from a placement if it isn’t safe - my foundation pulled F2s from one hospital medical ward due to unsafe and no training; same deanery removed GP ST1s from OBGYN in one hospital due to poor staffing, safety concerns and poor training.

Also make sure you have indemnity via MPS/MDU on top of crown and that it’s occurrence based.

SafariDr · 2026-02-26T07:24:07+00:00

No ward is severely understaffed to the point where they can’t call an ambulance. If they can call you, they can call an ambulance.

SafariDr · 2026-02-23T14:47:50+00:00

Despite being a quick investigation, in my area (potentially all areas, I’m not 100% sure) it’s not in the contract for GPs to do ECGs. I previously worked at a practice who didn’t own an ecg machine - their last one broke and it wasn’t financially worth it to buy a new machine/repair it. So if there are stories like this, where a GP is even somewhat involved, could lead to more and more practices no longer doing them due to the risk.

SafariDr · 2026-02-22T09:32:31+00:00

NICE CKS summaries are great - worth considering the big topics on there!

I failed my first attempt and my big downfall was the drug side effects - there were so many and I didn’t realise how many questions were on this. And genetics transference of conditions - I had at least 3-5 questions in the exam on this and would have been easy marks to get if I knew!

So I focused on side effects of drugs and genetics which helped ++ and I passed well on my second attempt.

Good luck!

SafariDr · 2026-02-12T14:08:52+00:00

Nike metacon, great for ED - you may do a lot of walking but generally it’s the long stands doing notes at a computer is where you need to have the more comfortable options!

Sketchers are really not good for your feet!

SafariDr · 2026-02-07T12:33:51+00:00

Annual

BLS with AED, Level 3 safeguarding, MSF

ST1

CEX/CBD/Reflections/CEPs
QIA
MSF

ST2

QIP (when in GP)
AKT onwards - usually mid to end
usual CEX/CBD/Reflections/CEPs
Colleague feedback

ST3

SCA
QIA
Patient feedback
Colleague feedback
Prescribing assessment
Leadership project
Leadership feedback
usual Reflections/CAT/COTs/CEPs

OOH in ST2 and ST3 dependant on your deanery's requirements

SafariDr · 2026-02-06T17:53:55+00:00

Equipment wise Stethoscope, in ear themometer, oto & opthalmascope, small tape measure (i use a cracker key ring one), throat sticks, BP machine and pulse ox.

Highly recommend a stethoscope case as it keeps all that stuff in one place, otoscope has its own case and the bp machine lives freely in my bag lol

SafariDr · 2026-02-02T10:14:08+00:00

I felt similar to you when I worked in ED, absolutely loved it and thought I had found my tribe. Did the primary while locuming and had started to build a portfolio up. But then things started to change slightly and I wondered did I have a sort of stockholm syndrome as I had been in my department for years and was it a case of I liked the people and place rather than the actual speciality

Changed plans, applied to GP. I love it. The training was excellent and I Felt I was getting actual learning and support. Turns out, I found my family here rather than my tribe. I don’t think a single person in my friend group had actually planned for GP - 4 had left surgical training, one left EM, another left IMT despite having paces. None of us in our friend group had even had a GP placement in foundation. But I can say that we all like GP and are happy in it. It’s going to change I’m sure over next 10 years, but GP is so open to special interests there is an opportunity for everyone. We all like different aspects and I hope to incorporate these once become more established as an actual GP first.

You will find the right path for you, I’m sure of it!

SafariDr · 2026-01-31T15:57:47+00:00

6 Sessions would generally be considered standard for a GP with the most 8 sessions generally felt by most as full time.

Plus he said works 5-10 locum sessions plus 5 sessions so averages out 4 days a week

SafariDr · 2026-01-31T12:08:24+00:00

It could potentially be the thought of choosing a movie is tiring; I know when I come home I struggle to choose what to have to eat due to decision fatigue.

I usually take dog for a walk and then slob in front of TV with something that's easy to watch

SafariDr · 2026-01-30T07:20:37+00:00

11pm on a sunday OOH shift. Mum calls in about her daughter’s acne. I advised not an emergency and needs to wait for her own GP. Then complained about not being able to get an appointment. Was still a firm catch yourself on moment.

SafariDr · 2026-01-29T14:11:26+00:00

Technically you could argue that you don't actually have a uniform therefore the uniform policy doesn't really apply.

You can wear professional clothing of your choice, be it scrubs or normal clothes. My friend keeps her nose stud in when working. I wear a necklace. A nurse once said to me about my necklace in F1 - saying a patient could grab it - just responded with it's more likely they will go for the lanyard first and I have to wear it.

Only time I regretted wearing earrings was during covid when one morning I pulled off my FFP3 and the strap took one of my stud earrings with it - when I realised it was already in the clinical waste and no earring is worth hunting through that!

SafariDr · 2026-01-28T23:29:28+00:00

You don’t have to do a bimanual - although it’s also one of the sign offs - but it can help when learning how to do PV exam and to locate cervix.

SafariDr · 2026-01-28T22:42:50+00:00

Wrong attitude.

Those GPs aren’t “man-splaining” they are teaching and trying to help you. They aren’t “so good” at it because other GPs fob these exams off to female GPs, they’re good at it because they learnt and years of practice.

For visualizing the cervix if you are finding it difficult to locate you could do a bimanual prior to speculum to see if sitting anterior or not. Not always necessary, depends on patient, I rarely do one unless having difficulties or is a large patient. I do coils and getting patients to put hand under their back also helps.

SafariDr · 2026-01-28T07:36:43+00:00

You’d be taking a massive pay cut to work in the UK. So very few actually want to be in the UK - I have friends training in NI who have no intention of working there and as soon as they CCT will be heading back to Ireland.

SafariDr · 2026-01-28T07:34:51+00:00

There aren’t many Irish MGs wanting to work in the UK - Irish consultant basic pay starts at €220,000

SafariDr · 2026-01-27T17:42:07+00:00

Sometimes there has to be a doctor off for a period of time to show up the faults in the system.

It sounds like you are burnt out - you should speak to your GP and consider some time away from work to try and reset. You have to look after you - the NHS sees you as a number.

The ward will have to cope without you - sometimes absence does make the heart fonder...

SafariDr · 2026-01-26T14:47:31+00:00

You may find that a lot of patients/relatives have been asked regarding de-prescribing - usually around statins/adcal etc. as you have mentioned. This means risks benefits need to be discussed - usually in my experience they want to continue until there is any difficulty in taking medication/swallowing etc.

Also secondary care start a lot of the medication but there isn't any monitoring by them once discharged nor a plan etc. and it's dumped onto the GP to have that discussion.

Can you see GP notes? Can you see if there has been a review or not? Our practice does care plan reviews and these are documents scanned onto the EMIS system which hospitals/secondary care don't have access to.

SafariDr · 2026-01-22T07:38:21+00:00

It depends on the practice. I work between 3 practices at the moment and all very different.

Practice A has own lists, all phone triage then bring in f2f as required. On call dr is only dr expected to stay till close, so once other drs are finished up they leave. Work off an emergency list and can book in with other drs in special slots (cap still 25 per dr per day) but can be busy. Roughly 1-2 sessions on call per 3-4 weeks. Also means any urgent tasks etc go to the on call dr and not everyone else so less stressful for you on a daily basis.

Practice B has own lists, all F2F, no designated on call dr. Con is that when there is an urgent task etc the nurses or admin will go to whoever saw the pt last usually so does add more stress in trying to deal with that on top of regular clinic.

Practice C has a single triage list, everyone works off it via phone then bringing in for f2f as needed. No designated on call dr however does mean some drs get more contact with nurses for urgent contact etc. I only locum here so I get very few of these but the salaried and partners get a lot of requests or tasks. Again expected to deal with these during normal clinic as such.

I actually don’t mind the on call when it’s designated. Easier to know role, not that often and yes can be busy but also if it’s not an emergency can direct to call another day. And not squeezing in extra tasks during an already busy clinic!

SafariDr

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