The GMC expects all doctors to demonstrate skills in teaching and training.

“Teaching is a skill and like any skill it can be learnt. Those with a special responsibility for teaching need to make every effort to develop and maintain the skills of a competent teacher”. GMC Good Medical Practice

The Respiratory Curriculum suggests ways in which trainees might become involved in teaching, which may benefit their own learning (these would therefore be good things to capture in the ePortfolio):

• Teaching medical students, junior doctors & allied health care professionals affords an excellent opportunity to learn
• Presenting at grand rounds or similar clinical meetings provides the opportunity for in-depth study of a particular subject area
• Participation in journal clubs fosters critical thinking and an approach to the evaluation of the medical literature, which is essential for professional practice
• ST3+ trainees will be expected to carry out some assessments on their more junior colleagues from time to time, for example carrying out work place based assessments, and should be specifically trained to do so. Make sure you select ‘keep a record’ when you complete assessments for trainees so you can prove your involvement in training
• All NHS Consultants should be excellent teachers. All trainees should strongly consider attending a formal training for teaching course. Some trainees may wish to become more expert teachers/trainers and to “specialise” in this area when they become a Consultant. They may therefore wish to consider undertaking a more formal training programme and qualification in medical education

The Teaching Observation (TO) is a part of the ePortfolio. It is designed to provide structured, formative feedback to trainees on their competence at teaching. The TO can be based on any instance of formalised teaching by the trainee which has been observed by the assessor. The process should be trainee-led (identifying appropriate teaching sessions and assessors). As stated on the ARCP decision aid, trainees are expected to have evidence of satisfactory TO by the end of ST4.

Section J of the curriculum is dedicated to teaching and training competencies. It specifies the knowledge, skills and behaviours trainees need to demonstrate prior to CCT including knowledge of: educational theories and principles; adult learning principles; the differences between formative and summative assessment; and the structure of effective appraisal review. It specifies skills including: ability to critically evaluate educational literature; conduct developmental conversations (eg mentoring); participation in strategies aimed at improving patient education e.g. talking at support group meetings and others.

Trainees are strongly recommended to attend a formal ‘Training for Teaching’ course. Options available locally include:

• Training to Teach (TtT), at UCL Medical School – previously TIPS. 1 day course: £250 or free if you are at specific Trusts (check website)
• Effective Teaching Skills workshop by the RCP. 2 day course: £425 upwards
• RCP Educator Accreditation – requires attendance at 4 courses over 2 years. Around £290 per day. Each of the individual components can be done as standalone courses.
• Teach the teacher course: look out for Royal Society of Medicine 2-day course
• If you are at Barts and teach students regularly you can do the QMUL PGCert in Learning and Teaching in HE for free!

Those with a specialist interest in Medical Education may consider a PGCert, Diploma or Masters in Medical Education. If you would like to speak to someone about these qualifications, or about OOPEs as teaching fellows, these trainees would be happy to be contacted:

• LJ Smith (currently a Consultant at King’s), completed the PGCert in medical education at the RCP/UCL, had an OOPE as a Clinical Teaching Fellow at UCL Medical School and is an Honorary Clinical Lecturer in Medical Education at UCL. She transferred her credits and completed the Diploma in Medical Education at the IoE (part time) so can give you a good perspective on the relative merits of each course. She has roles on several boards of the MRCP exams and is involved int eh BTS STAG.
• Zaheer Mangera, (now a Consultant at Barts) recently an OOPE as a Clinical Teaching Fellow at UCL Medical School, has won a number of top teacher awards. He has roles on BTS advisory groups.
• Will Ricketts (now a Consultant at Barts), was previously a teaching fellow at Barts Health, NHS Trust, and Honorary Clinical Lecturer at QMUL. He has completed a Masters in Medical Education at the IoE.