The Foundation Programme in Oxford

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The Foundation Programme in Oxford

• Anne Edwards, Associate Dean
• Foundation Programme Director

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Background

• Appointed November 2004
• At that time programme of implementing pilot F2
  programmes across the Deanery
• Major tasks
• revise the Oxford matching scheme to create 12
  month F1 rotations
• Ensure adequate numbers of F2 posts to match the
  F1 rotations
• Implement academic Foundation posts

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• What has happened since then?

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Foundation
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What went well

• Oxford matching scheme and creation of 12 month
  F1 posts
• Mixture of opportunities
• 2 x 6 months (4 x 3 months) linking Trusts
• ORH South Bucks
• ORH MKH
• 3 x 4 months single Trusts (Reading and Wexham)
• Some 3 x 4 ORH/Bucks/MKH

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Why

• Mixed educational experience
• Create spread attractive posts
• Enhance recruitment to less attractive posts
• Ensure good standards across the WHOLE FS

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What are the Challenges?

• Employment x two Trusts
• Educational supervision across 2 Trusts
• ACTION
• We feel we should allow some experience to
  develop before making any changes
• Early review if evidence that posts are unpopular

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F1 Recruitment
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What used to happen in Oxford?

• Students applied for posts by submitting CV only
• Students ranked the posts consultants ranked
  applicants A, B, C
• Criteria for ranking not clear and did not
  involve the medical school
• Some interviewed eg medicine but surgery did not
• Students given info about ranking and the As
  could chose posts, followed by the Bs etc ie
  several stages with delayed outcome for some
• Sec Osler house ran the scheme and was
  responsible for liaison between deanery and the
  students quite a responsibility

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The new process (for 2006)

• Single on-line central process for all Foundation
  Schools
• Students apply for a FS
• Medical school gives each student a ranking
  contributing 60 of the score
• Remaining 40 from the application form which
  asks a series of questions
• There is then a computer run match to allocate
  candidates to Foundation Schools
• Foundation School then matches students to posts

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Recruitment 2005 M-DAP
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The 2005/6 recruitmentThe bad M-DAP server
meltdown
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The Matching ProcessMDAPThe ugly..
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Pick a doctor by computer 'fiasco'By Nigel
Hawkes, Health Editor and Lewis Smith

• Incompetent juniors get hospital jobs they can't
  do
• 80 top specialists attack new appointments system
  

We have high-fliers who will make excellent
surgeons who have been rated as failures by this
process
Some doctors believe talented students are
missing out on jobs
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What really happened

• Never let the truth stand in the way of a good
  story
• So it wasnt that bad (for us)
• And it wasnt that bad for many others

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Local Experience F1

• 60 local graduates applied locally
• Most matched to first or second choice posts
• Generally very happy about the outcome
• Others applied to London or to the West (not
  unusual for local graduates)
• Oxford importing Deanery
• After first round 45 vacant posts
• Filled thro M-DAP clearing most from London

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This year

• All our F1 posts are filled
• Only uncertainty will be finals failures
• But Oxford grads have all completed finals
• Expect 5 of the posts might become late
  vacancies (ie 5 posts)
• Much improved position compared to last year
  where we filled 60 vacancies through a pilot
  M-DAP process.

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UK Allocation Overview
87 Applicants gained posts 91 Posts Filled
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Did local candidates gain local posts?
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Who will be eligible? Will there be enough posts?

• EU/UK residents
• Must need an F1 year
• English as second language will need IELTS 7.5
• Medical school must comply with GMC requirements
  for training doctors if they do not then
  applicants can be assessed
• F1 numbers are expanding for 2007 and 2008

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Pattern applications M-DAP
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What about the unhappiness

• This is a transition
• This process is much more open and paradoxically
  more challenging
• The old matching scheme was good for the top
  ranked students but less good for those ranked
  lower down

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Immediate challenges for the Oxford Foundation
School

• Further develop and refine the curriculum
• Develop the placements to ensure the 2 x 6 months
  are in practice 4 x 3 months
• Reconfigure the Foundation School
• Continue to evaluate and quality assure the
  programme
• Support and develop the role of the Foundation
  Training Programme Directors