GP appraiser and medical educator Petre Jones has joined us just before the main course and first debate is about to kick off
Five Senators have a pharmacy bachelor's, two have a pharmacy master's
Contractor Sid Dajani says the pre-reg exam is a complete waste of time but now everyday learning on the job is fun. Pre-reg revision was "hell"
Contractor Al Patel says the overnight change from pre-reg to fully qualified pharmacist was quite stark but he learned more in his first two weeks than he did in his pre-reg year
James Davies welcomed the opportunity during his MPharm to go out on placements and praises the movement towards a better practice/science mix
Lotte Bain finished her MPharm three weeks ago (congratulation). Says patient-based approach was much more prevalent than a modular approach – patient care was central to her learning
GP Petre Jones says medical school is also integrating clinical, vocational and consultational skills much more and much earlier than it was in the past.
GPhC's Damian Day says schools must show they are integrated, clinical and working with other professionals
Sue Ambler says employers want to know that pharmacists can do clinical calculations in practice, not just in a controlled exam environment
Petre Jones talks about the need for proof that healthcare professionals can work "in the heat of battle" beyond the exam hall
Tim Rendall is lamenting the amount of time in the final year that is taken up preparing for exams
Lotte Bain says, across UK universities, there is a lot of variation in the amount of placement experience available to students
Are SOPs and bureaucratic procedures standing in the way of more fulfilling placements?
Damian Day spent the morning with Boots trainees – they said there should be a national training standard beyond the pre-reg exam
Sid Dajani says the pre-reg exam tests your knowledge not competency. It's just another exam. A year-long exam would expose weaknesses. Competency involves skills, behaviour and values.
Placements are done in a gentlemen's agreement basis. We need more robust structures to ensure trainees get adequate training, says Susan Sanders
In their last month, Al Patel lets his pre-reg take over the pharmacy and pretend he's not there. He also lets them come along to GP meetings
GP Petre Jones says his registrars to the pharmacist and the pharmacist sends their pre-reg to the GPs as early as possible to avoid growing "in silos" and integrating as soon as possible
Petre Jones says meeting the pre-reg ASAP builds a strong relationship from the get go
Petre Jones says, in big generalisation, medical registrars have better communication skills while pre-regs have more science-based knowledge but less idea of how they can put them into practice
Petre Jones says an assessment has to be fit for purpose and within a professional context. GPs do a three-hour mock surgery with patients as actors. Is this transferable to pharmacy?
Working towards a test that is based in practice will force a pre-reg to train to be a good practising pharmacist
Petre Jones words get strong nods of approval from Sid Dajani
GPhC's Damian Day doesn't think the exam will always look as it does now
Recruitment to pharmacy schools has changed so much over the years. Difficult to judge applicants' professional acumen
Susan Sanders says a lot of people have poor work placement experiences
Lotte Bain says BPSA there is a lack of assessment for pre-reg tutors and thus students are having very mixed experiences on their year