RESUMEN
We present a model for delivering out-of-hours (OOH) teaching to year 3 medical students at Glasgow University. Clinical placement time in general practice for students is under unprecedented pressure, and scope to further increase placement capacity in daytime general practice is challenging. The OOH primary care setting is underutilized in Glasgow. We undertook a four-week pilot study based in two OOH centres in Glasgow. Third year medical students could sign up to attend a three-hour teaching session at an OOH site with a dedicated GP tutor. The logistical arrangements and evaluation of this pilot project are presented. Student, GP tutor, OOH staff and administration staff logistics are considered and learning opportunities for students in this setting are discussed. The pilot study received positive feedback from all stakeholders. Our project provides a model for further teaching in this environment to help mitigate placement shortage and provide additional valuable general practice clinical experience for students. The capacity for teaching in the OOH setting could be easily upscaled by either increasing the duration of the placement or utilising more out-of-hours sites for teaching.
RESUMEN
Virtual tutorials were introduced into the Year 3 medical undergraduate curriculum at Glasgow in 2020/21. This model of teaching proved highly successful from tutor and student perspective. A hybrid teaching model, comprising virtual tutorial teaching alongside placement time will be implemented this year. Virtual (videoed) GP patient cases are selected for tutorials each week, linked to other curriculum content in Year 3. Pedagogically, this aligns pathological and clinical learning for our students and enables some consistency of taught GP content. Concomitant clinical placement time complements this learning with actual patient cases. Communication and consultation techniques considered in the virtual tutorials with facilitated tutor discussion are practised on GP placement days, encapsulating the essence of experiential learning. Challenging or unusual patient cases can be selected for teaching from the virtual case repertoire. This provides uniform exposure to clinically important aspects of general practice, and simultaneously enables an increased diversity of patient cases for our students. Logistical advantages of virtual tutorial delivery include its appeal to a different demographic of GP tutor, enabling us to diversify and expand our teaching team. Remote tutorial delivery offers a futureproof adjunct to the traditional practice-based GP teaching models.