This informal CPD article Ensuring competence as your career progresses was provided by Dr Jacqueline Haughton, Medical Director at Healthcare Skills International, an approved education centre delivering a range of externally validated competence-based qualifications to the medical profession and healthcare industry.
Ensuring competence as your career progresses
We all know that no healthcare system is perfect. We also know that funding for medical education and professional development is not always a priority. Even before the pandemic, junior doctors’ education was becoming increasingly difficult as dedicated time (trainer and trainee) and operating theatre resources were in short supply, and the integrity of clinical teams declined.
Now, fast forward to post-pandemic healthcare. For doctors, gaining the competencies to work effectively and efficiently in their many roles has become even harder. As burn-out, poor morale and disaffection bite, vacancies at Consultant level are likely to rise, especially in shortage specialties. What is required is the support and investment to be sure that an under-prepared cohort is not promoted too soon to senior levels of care and responsibility.
While the need to demonstrate clinical competence is universally recognised by healthcare organisations and summatively assessed by medical Royal Colleges, for many clinicians who specialise, this is only the beginning: the complexities of emerging technology mean that practicing as you were originally taught is no longer an option. High-quality short courses are often available to bring you up to speed with the technical aspects of innovative treatments.
Being well prepared for senior clinical roles, however, is about more than clinical competence alone. It includes being able to train junior staff well, knowing how to lead your clinical team and understanding why people act the way they do. Being able to bring about useful change and getting the best from the people you supervise are also key skills as you progress, but where can you find the time to learn in healthcare in 2023?