Workplace Based Assessment
Workplace based assessment (WPBA) is defined as the evaluation
of a doctor’s progress over time in their performance in those
areas of professional practice best tested in the workplace. It is
a process through which evidence of competence in independent
practice is gathered in a structured and systematic framework.
Evidence is collected over all three years of training. The
evidence is recorded in a web-based portfolio (the ePortfolio) and
used to inform six monthly reviews and, at the end of training, to
make a holistic, qualitative judgement about the readiness of the
GPStR for independent practice.
WPBA is a developmental process. It will therefore provide
feedback to the GPStR and drive learning. It will also indicate
where a doctor is in difficulty. It is learner led: the GPStR
decides which evidence to put forward for review and validation by
the trainer. It is delivered locally by deaneries.
What does WPBA
involve?
Why do we use WPBA?
When is WPBA carried
out?
FAQs
Resources
What does WPBA involve?
WPBA consists of a framework of twelve areas of professional
competence against which evidence is gathered using designated and
validated tools. The use of each tool serves as an episode of
evidence collection. The WPBA tools ensure the evidence is
collected in the same way for each GPStR, and promote consistency
among trainers and across deaneries.
The use of the tools does not involve
pass/fail assessments; the judgement may be one of insufficient or
inadequate evidence, particularly in the early stages of training,
but this simply points to the need for further training. At regular
points during training all the evidence available from the trainee
is reviewed and a judgement is made about progress through each
area of professional competence.
WPBA involves making qualitative not
quantitative judgments. As the GPStR proceeds through training it
would normally be expected that evidence of competence is
demonstrated and the degree of readiness to practise is built up.
The picture becomes clearer as more evidence is gathered.
The WPBA tools are:
- Case-based Discussion
- Consultation Observation Tool (in primary care only)
- Multi-Source Feedback
- Patient Satisfaction Questionnaire (in primary care
only)
- Direct Observation of Procedural Skills (in hospital
posts)
- Clinical Evaluation Exercise (Mini-CEX) (in
hospital posts)
- Clinical Supervisors Report (in hospital posts).
Top
Why do we use WPBA?
There are number of reasons for using
WPBA:
- WPBA connects teaching, learning and
assessment; it enables GPStRs to know what is expected of them and
to demonstrate attainment over time.
- It offers authenticity: it allows the assessment to get as
close as possible to the real situations in which doctors
work.
- Some competences are not assessed effectively in any other way,
e.g. probity or team working. Assessment of performance in the
workplace provides us with the only route into many aspects of
professionalism.
- It will provide feedback to the GPStR on areas of strength and
developmental needs. There will be clarity and transparency about
the outcomes of training at regular intervals throughout the
training programme.
- WPBA is in keeping with the guidance from PMETB for all
specialties and continues the approach which is used in the
Foundation Programme.
Top
When is WPBA carried
out?
WPBA continues throughout the three years of
GP specialty training. There are guidelines on how often each WPBA
tool should be used to ensure there is a sufficiency of evidence at
the point of each six monthly review. In some cases, if the
evidence is inadequate or insufficient, the trainer and the GPStR
will agree a plan to improve competence and may decide to apply the
tools more frequently. All the evidence used in WPBA must be
collected during the three year training period.
Top
FAQs
Q: How does WPBA fit in with
A Guide to Postgraduate Specialty Training in the UK (the Gold
Guide)?
A. The WPBA arrangements in
relation to educational supervision and the Annual Review of
Trainee Competence Progression (ARCP) are set out in the Gold Guide
to Specialty Training.
Resources
Swanwick, T and Chana, N. Workplace assessment
for licensing in general practice. Discussion Paper. British
Journal of General Practice. June 2005. pp 461-467
Dowloadable resources
The Learning
and Teaching Guide. London: Royal College of General
Practitioners, 2008.
A
Brief Guide to Workplace Based Assessment in the nMRCGP
Top