News and opportunities

Breaking news

WELCOME TO THE NEW ST3s who will be joining us in October. You will have met several of them on the Pleural training day at Royal Free. We’re excited about them joining the North East Central London Respiratory Family! Say hi at the next training day. Have a look a the ST3 page for some tips.

• ARCPs have been announced (finally) for 21st September. Unfortunately this clashes with the Training Day in Broomfield. Angshu is aware and is looking into what can be done. In preparation, make sure your ePortfolio is up to date with assessments and MCRs, and that you and your educational supervisor has signed off the appropriate parts of the curriculum. Have a look at the ARCP pages for a reminder of requirements, including a link to the new GIM checklist from JRPCTB. HEE have had major cuts and are not really able to fulfil their responsibilities on their current level of staff so we will have to see what happens…
• We hope you had a good changeover week. Why not prepare for our changeover in October and by passing on organisational information. A handover document is a great way to put down all the info you wish you’d known when you started working in your current role. Please use this template if no handover document currently exists at your trust –> Resp guide for SpRs template.
• Remember that you should be using the new standardised logbook to document bronchs, pleural procedures and NIV setups. Trainees do not have to transfer data already collected, but should use this template from now on to log all procedures. You can find the logbook on the JRPCTB website, or download directly here –>  Respiratory Logbook_2017
• We have updated a number of sections of the website, including: FAQs, ARCP and PYA, Leadership and Management, and Research. Please take a look and let us know what else should be on there.
• Congratulations to a number of trainees who have published papers recently – you can read more about James, Alex and LJ’s papers in the relevant posts. We know a number of you have submitted abstracts to BTS Winter meeting and are excited to see the posters and presentations in December. Please let us know of any achievements of other trainees on the rotation. You’re a talented lot!
• It was raised at the TPMC that annual leave has been an issue in some trusts. It can be difficult to take leave when you would like, particularly in places with gaps. We would just like to remind people to plan ahead, negotiate, and consider the needs of the department where you are able to be flexible. You must take all your annual leave, but work together with colleagues so that everyone is happy.
• Take a look at the proposal for the new Internal Medicine Curriculum on the JRPTB site and read the article by Prof Black in Clinical Medicine on the new curriculum and assessment by CiP.

Respiratory Training Programme

• We have a few training days booked in – thanks for the advance planning! Why don’t you ask your clinical lead to confirm the date for the training day at your hospital in 2018? Why not offer to help find a speaker or two, or suggest a topic to help make it relevant to your training needs?
  • Thurs 21st September, Broomfield Hospital
  • Fri 13th October, Homerton Hospital
  • Tues 14th November, Pan-London Day on Occupational Lung Disease, Brompton
  • Fri 17th November, Queens Hospital Romford
  • Jan Whipps Cross/Barts Health – date tbc
  • Feb Royal Free – date tbc
  • March UCLH – date tbc
  • April  RLH/Barts Health – date tbc
  • May North Mid – date tbc
  • June Whittington – date tbc
  • July Newham/Barts Health
  • Sep Basildon – date tbc

The latest version of the curriculum map can be found here: RespNet curriculum map 2017JULY. Have a look at what has been covered most recently, and share with your Consultants in order to plan topics that have not been covered for a while, or are unique to your service. You can also find our proposal for an annual rolling programme here: RespNet_proposal_annual. Share with your consultants and encourage everyone to plan ahead so we can all arrange leave and plan the service in good time.

At our last TPMC we discussed the need to get good Respiratory Physiology training. Some places have opportunities to report spirometry and sleep studies, with feedback from consultants. You can also ask your local physiologists to do a talk for your department clinical meeting. We are looking at what can be done to improve this aspect of training on a regional basis.

These are the topics we have suggested for the next few training days:

• tracheostomy care
• optiflow (evidence, indications)
• Radiology – bring back the quizzes
• sleep-disordered breathing, particularly keen on a masterclass in sleep study interpretation
• pulmonary rehab – evidence, quality, impact
• anaphylaxis/allergy
• sarcoidosis management
• physiology
• palliative care – pharma/non-pharma management, evidence

GIM Training Programme

• The next regional GIM teaching day is on 13th September at Barnet, and 8th November at Newham (topics TBC).  Don’t forget that all GIM info is on the UCLP site and that you need to book onto these days via Eventbrite.
• The next monthly acute medicine teaching sessions, run by registrars for registrars at UCLP on Tottenham Court Road is on 10th August, on Diabetes, (they are on the 2nd Thursday of every month) 4-6pm, Tottenham Court Road. Book via Eventbrite.
• A number of other UCLP training sessions are available, focused on professional development. These include sessions on quality improvement, leadership, selfcare and resilience, and cultural health factors.  Find details, dates and links to book via Eventbrite on the UCLP pages. The trainee Reps have been on several of these so ask them about which ones were particularly good.
• Please make sure you arrange your placements in Pulmonary HTN, CF, OcLD, and your management course so that they are spread out throughout your training. They should not all be done in the last year, and there are advantages to taking some earlier, pre-SCE. Have a look at FAQs on tips on how to arrange.

External/Additional Training

• The Brompton are running an SCE preparation course on Sep 1st, at the bargainous price of £30 including refreshments. There are probably contributions from drug companies to help fund it but if so they are undirected grants and the companies have no presence on the programme.  Good luck to anyone taking the exam this year.
• The RSM has an ILD study day on 21st September. Usual costs apply.
• UCLP will be running a Medical Education Conference: Education as a vehicle for change, on 6th December. Early bird tickets until 1st October. Last year’s was very good with some great speakers and workshops. Have a look at the programme.
• Upcoming Teach-Ins at the Royal College of Physicians include: Hypertension on 3rd October, Respiratory update on 7th November, and Geriatrics (dementia, Parkinsons, and falls) on 5th December. The RCP are streaming some events, including Teach-ins, and has an archive so you can catch up with events you missed.
• Sign up to the PLAN (Pan-London Airways Network) newsletter to hear of free educational events open to the entire Respiratory MDT. A great opportunity to learn alongside MDT colleagues and sign-off curriculum competencies – why not invite your specialist nurse and physio colleagues? Next meeting 15th November (half-day), hoping to feature speakers including London Mayor Sadiq Kahn, talking about air pollution. Sponsored by a number of drug companies through undirected educational grants, so lunch is free.
• Follow @resptrainees and take a look at the Respiratory Futures Trainees website. Resources are being added all the time, and a podcast series on Respiratory careers is planned for this year. Recommend your own resources and share the love with your fellow Respiratory trainees
• HEE (what was The London Deanery eons ago) provide a load of funded courses, free career advice and individual support. Make the most of these great opportunities by having a look at the website and booking yourself onto something

Jobs/OOP/Opportunities

• The BTS president has received complaints that people have been refused OOP requests. The policy in NECL is that it requires 6 months notice (before previous round of recruitment – i.e. for Oct rotation, end of 1st week of May).If less notice is provided then we cannot fill future posts as there are no LAS/LATs. There are no restrictions on the type of OOP (some areas only allow people out for funded PhDs) but discussion with Angshu, TPD is essential.  Feedback has been given to Wellcome etc to ensure timing fits with recruitment. The TPMC can support trainees in requesting a delay to take up funding so please do make Angshu aware of any difficulties.
• The ERS has a number of fellowships on offer.
• The BTS highlights a number of funding opportunities relevant to Respiratory trainees on its’ pages.
• Remember that even if specific research jobs are not advertised, Consultants with academic positions are always looking for enthusiastic SpRs to join them. They may have pots of money for projects, or may have ideas that could become an MD/PhD. You’ll never know if you don’t ask. Ask around, and get in touch with anyone on the research pages for more info. Wondering whether you want to pursue a future in academic Respiratory medicine? Why not watch the BTS video featuring Dr John Hurst?

Committees

• TPMC
  • Please get in touch to raise issues you want us to bring up at the next TPMC on 20th November. Let us know what concerns you so we can be an effective trainee voice on the committee. At the last committee we discussed
• UCLP
  • The next UCLPartners Trainee Forum is in September. Let Camus or Anita know if you want to ask any questions or give any feedback on GIM or issues that affect multiple specialities.

Conferences

• ERS Congress 9-13th September, Milan.
• BTS Winter Meeting 6-8th December, London

Other

• There is a new COPD audit forum on the Respiratory Futures BTS site. It brings together information, learning and QI resources. Don’t reinvent the wheel – use the experiences of others to improve care for patients with COPD in your Trust.
• Please send us info on your current or previous jobs directly by email, or through the updated and shorter anonymous survey. If you are currently out of programme please send information on your most recent, most liked or most hated post!