Just before Easter, consultants gathered from all over the country at Elland Road stadium for three days of interviewing.
This is the fourth year that entry to Higher Surgical Training has been determined nationally rather than locally. There's lots to be said for it, creating a level playing field, as well as some downsides ( a low score could have you training far from home) but it is here to stay and for the interviewers it is quite hard core.
72 Consultants are required each day, with another 14-18 for Quality Assurance & stand-ins. Each Deanery sends up about 20 volunteers which means a joyful chance to catch up with old friends.
Numbers of applicants have really come down this year. In 2012 there were over 550 applicants for 103 posts. This year there were 320 applicants for 180 posts. Applications are open to anyone to fits the entry criteria and if they are eligible they are given an interview so approximately a quarter to a third won't make the cut-off. This means for the first time not all the training posts might be filled.
Here we have SW Thames alumnus Tom Clare (Cons in Dudley) with South West London TPD Dom Nielsen & @ASPH's Constant BuschThe set-up of the interview stations this year was six circuits, each made up of Portfolio, Clinical (made up of Clinical Anatomy and Clinical Knowledge), Interactive and Communication, Technical Skills and finally the Presentation and Handover Case Prioritisation station. If that all sounds incomprehensible, here is the Applicants' Guide: http://www.yorksandhumberdeanery.nhs.uk/media/784499/t_o_applicant_handbook_2016.pdf
You get some clues as you arrive at the stadium that something Orthopaedic is afoot... 
Candidates for each circuit have their documents checked then start the cycle moving from station to station on the bell till all five are done.
The stations are set up in the boxes which are of different sizes so you can be quite cozy... 
... or quite spaciously set out 
It is always wise (I'd have said mandatory) to let your educational supervisor and Surgical Tutor know you're going up for HST interviews. A second pair of eyes over your portfolio and some practice interviewing can really help, particularly so that none of the real interview experience comes as a surprise on the day.
Communications is the weirdest one, as an interviewer. We have to sit silently and watch the two scenarios play out, scoring but not speaking even if you have loads of questions. Clinical (Anatomy) & Technical Skills are my favourites: can quickly see who's got their hands dirty and who's not. Mind you, I was relieved to see the day I was interviewing Clinicsl it was Upper Limb, not Lower Limb onthe table...
Leeds is a long way away and to take three days out is a big chunk of clinical time so it'll be another two or three years before I do this again but at the very least I feel updated on the process and better able to support trainees approaching higher training.
"Proportionate means of achieving a legitimate aim"
More details of the #juniorcontract are out, including the Equality Impact Assessment, which acknowledges it disproportionately disadvantages women. Some powerful responses from senior women leaders are here:
Medical Women's Federation @medicalwomenuk
RCS @RCSNews & RCP @RCPLondon Presidents
RCS Ed @RCSEd
RCPath @RCPath
Roy Lilley's Analysis
I don't know if any of my Consultant colleagues read this blog, but just in case, I attach health analyst Roy Lilley's excellent summary of the Contract issues:
Post script
As I am on annual leave this week, there won't be a blog on Monday. We'll have new teams and new people and I hope to get right on it to help settle everyone in.
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