School Structure
The School of Anaesthesia is responsible for the delivery of anaesthetic training in West, South and East Yorkshire. The Postgraduate Dean has overall responsibility for all post graduate training. Below the Dean, one of the Deputy Deans has particular responsibility for the School of Anaesthesia and the ICM Programme.
Within the School of Anaesthesia, the Management structure comprises the Head of School (HoS) who is responsible for the day to day running of the school and the Deputy Head of School (DHoS), who takes responsibility for the ICM Programme and deputises for the HoS on occasion. The organisation and co-ordination of the rotations within each locality are done by the Training Programme Directors (TPDs), of which there are several in each region. The TPDs manage the rotations in each region, allocate trainees to hospitals, organise and conduct annual assessments, plan trainee numbers and liaise closely with the College Tutors to ensure that appropriate training and delivery of the curriculum is carried out.
The Training Board and the Speciality Training Committee (STC)
The School Board
To ensure smooth running of the programme and good two-way communication between the School and HEE Management team and the local trainees and trainers, representatives from these groups meet regularly. Various models for these meetings exist within HEE, but in Yorkshire and the Humber it consists of a School Board that oversees the School of Anaesthesia and the ICM Programme. The School Board is comprised of the Deputy Dean, the Head of School (HoS) and the Deputy (DHoS), the regional advisers (RA) for anaesthetics, all the Hub TPDs, trainee representatives and programme support staff.
In addition, within each locality or Hub there is an Anaesthesia Specialty Training Committee (STC) representing locality trainers and trainees.
There is a separate Intensive Care Medicine STC that covers the entirety of Yorkshire and the Humber that comprises the Lead for ICM (currently the DHoS), the TPD for ICM, the Deputy TPD for ICM, the ICM RAs, and all the Faculty Tutors for each of the Trusts.
The Speciality Training Committee (STC)
In each of the 3 Hubs there is a Specialty Training Committee (STC). The STCs consist of Training Programme Directors, College Tutors, Regional Advisors, Trainee Representatives and Administrative staff. The STCs role is to ensure the training programme delivers the specialty curriculum and enables trainees to gain the relevant competences, knowledge, skills, attitudes and experience while flagging up and forming management plans for any trainee or trainer in difficulty. They discuss issues with the rotation, training, manpower, out of programme experience, less than full time training, doctors in difficulty and generally any relevant issues pertaining to the training programme. If you want anything discussed at this forum then please contact the Trainee Representative or your Training Programme Director.
The chair of the STC is usually the higher training TPD or RA for the region and is responsible for the smooth running of the STC meetings, the generation of action plans and taking overall responsibility for the STC functions. The STC will review area reports from the above personnel (TPDs and College Tutors) for the previous 3 months of activity. A typical TPD report will contain information on trainee numbers, recruitment results, exam results, ARCP outcomes., any issues affecting the training programme. A college tutor report will usually contain information on theatre attachment rates, results of GMC or deanery surveys and action plans, any local issues, quality improvements.
The end of the meeting, after everyone but TPDs, RA and college tutors have left is given over to discussing trainees in difficulty in a fully confidential manner.
The STC meets 4 times a year, with one meeting usually before Christmas and one before the summer holidays with the other spread in between to roughly have one every 3 months. The meeting is minuted and the minutes are ratified for accuracy at the next STC before being stored for future reference. Discussion of specific trainees in difficulty are not minuted or stored to ensure confidentiality.