Dear Colleagues,

As we move towards the end of the year, I have taken an opportunity with staff to review what we have done in the last 6 months. The MD program set an extensive improvement agenda for 2022 – 2023. There has been considerable progress in a relatively short space of time in several areas including:

• planning for clinical placement for 2023-25 and better alignment between SA and NT
• improvements in the intern preparedness program for Year 4 students
• improvements in the clinical preparedness program for Year 2 students
• new processes and procedures for assessments including Progress Test and Block Tests aimed at standardising assessments across year levels
• review of admission process for MD
• an expansion of clinical engagement activities including small group teaching, clinical skills teaching, OSCE and PT case writing

In the second half of 2022, our focus has shifted to the MD program curriculum. The first step is to develop of a curriculum governance structure that will provide the foundation for work on the content of the curriculum and clear processes for decision-making around curriculum. This will be strongly guided by the AMC’s Standards for Assessment and Accreditation of Primary Medical Programs, and by the considerable work that went into the development of the Flinders curriculum (SWAY) documents by Professor Jonathan Gleadle and Dr Maxine Moore in conjunction with discipline heads. We will share more details shortly, offer greater clarity for curriculum review, mapping and ongoing development with opportunities for everyone’s voice to be heard.

Teaching and learning will be guided by this curriculum work. For 2023, the Longitudinal Academic Program (LAP) and the Transition to Internship Program (TIP) will be retained in their current form. Both will continue to evolve and be complemented by small group teaching in some disciplines.

We are working towards an improved GAP form – the assessment item used on clinical placements. A pilot was completed in MD Rural Stream (MDRS) recently with favourable results. We acknowledge the contribution of the MDRS clinical supervisors who have contributed to this pilot. Students will continue to be assessed with the current GAP form at the start of 2023 with plans to implement the improved version later next year.

Your questions and feedback are welcome. Please email clinicians@flinders.edu.au.

Regards,
Michal

Dr Michal Wozniak
MBBS FRACGP
Acting  Director
Medical Program (MD)
Flinders University