ST3 Final GP Group

Your final 12 months of training (ST3) will be spent in General Practice.

You are exptected to attend all the Thursday afternoon teaching sessions. There are approximately 30 teaching sessions during the year.  Allowing for sick or annual leave you will be expected to achieve an 80% attendance rate overall. You and your GP trainer/practice will be given a list of the teaching dates before your post starts to facilitate planning. Note the first day will be a full introductory/planning day session in August.

Please let the GPSTP office know if you are unable to attend a teaching session so your absence can be recorded.

Less than full time trainees are expected to attend a full cycle of ST3 teaching sessions during their placement.  Please discuss with your trainer/educational supervisor when you should attend the pre-CSA teaching and post-CSA teaching sessions.  Please let the GPSTP office know when you will be attending teaching.

The main aims of the ST3 year are to pass the CSA and to prepare for independent practice.

The teaching year is therefore split into 2 parts; a pre-CSA (August-January) and post-CSA (February-July).

Teaching starts at 2:00pm and ends at 5:00pm. In the pre-CSA period, the trainees usually present hot topics to their colleagues, practice self-generated CSA cases in trios and debrief in small reflective groups. During the 6 months there are opportunities to practice CSA cases with actors in a formal setting.

The post-CSA part of the year is directed towards increasing the knowledge base of the business of General Practice and to prepare for independent practice. Expert outside resources are used for some sessions with the objectives being set by the trainees. Examples of topics normally covered include a Balint group, CV and finding the right job, assertiveness training, GP contracts, commissioning and BARD.

The use of a learning plan is also available for trainees to further enable independent learning post-CSA. A defined learning need should be identified that is outside the normal experience of the registrar in the practice. The registrar may use GPSTP teaching time to attend clinics /other learning experiences.

Trainees will find the ST3 year to be stimulating, productive and innovative.

Dr Afzal Shaikh and Dr Jackie Burton
ST3 Programme Directors