The GP Academy Project: Exploring the experiences of those learning and working within them.

Problem

Clinical academies are groups of healthcare providers such as GP practices or hospitals that work together to deliver a clinical placement for students. They are a novel concept in UK undergraduate medical education and in recent years, Leicester Medical School have changed to this model. They now deliver their 4th year GP placement within GP academies. These are 7 week placements that are delivered by groups of GP practices that work together. Each group of practices is known as a GP academy.The purpose of this research project is to explore the experiences of those learning and working within GP academies in Leicester. This will allow us understand how academies work, the benefits and challenges involved and how to ensure it is a sustainable model to deliver undergraduate primary care education.

Approach

This is a qualitative research project and the following two methods will be used:- Semi-structured interviews for GP academy leads, tutors, administrative staff and students.- Observational sessions of academy meetings and the GP tutor led teaching sessions.The will both be analysed to obtain our findings and conclusions.

Findings

This project has now stated and is due to be completed in Spring/Summer 2018. Early findings suggest there are a number of upcoming changes within the academies as Leicester Medical School implements its new curriculum. The academies have a responsibility to significantly adapt their current placement to suit the requirements of the new curriculum. Currently, the assessment within the GP placement is formative and there is no standardised assessment across all the academies. Most academies tend to use observed clinical sessions, supervisor feedback and a portfolio to assess students. With the introduction of the new curriculum, it is expected the current assessment method will change and become standardised across all academies. Other areas we are expected to generate findings for are:- How academies are quality assured?- How teaching sessions are being delivered?- The logistics involved in running an academy such as finances, transport, accommodation.- The views of the staff and students.

Consequences

As GP clinical academies are a relatively new model to both UK and Leicester undergraduate medical education, this research will provide us with a direct insight as how these academies are currently working, the variations between them, the logistics involved and the benefits/challenges for students and staff within them. By further understanding the academy model, it will allow the medical school to see what works well, what can be improved and how to ensure it is a sustainable model to continue delivering undergraduate primary care education.It will also allow other medical schools to learn more about the model and potentially implement academies to deliver their primary care curriculum.