The purpose of the midterm review of progression (MRP) is to:

1. Ensure that each STP trainee receives an independent evaluation of their progression;
2. Give confidence to trainees, training officers, commissioners and regulators that training is being monitored providing an independent marker of progression; and
3. Offer trainees and their training officers an opportunity to alert the School to any concerns, issues or barriers to progression.

By the time of the MRP, trainees are required to have completed and signed off all of the specialist assessments and competences associated directly with their rotation modules.

It is important that trainees and training officers recognise that the MRP is a summative process. This means that the evidence about each trainee’s progress and development will be used to make a decision about the trainee’s suitability to progress to year 3 of the STP and entry to the Objective Structured Final Assessment (OSFA).

Trainee progression is reviewed against the following five components:

1. An evaluation of progress* submitted by the trainee;
2. An evaluation of progress* submitted by the training officer;
3. Evidence on the e-portfolio of completion of the specialist assessments and competencies associated with rotation modules;
4. Progress on the academic programme (MSc);
5. Evidence of one completed multisource feedback (MSF) exercise (a tool to enable this is available from the OneFile e-portfolio).

*Please note: access to the trainee and training officer evaluation forms will be available near the time of each year’s MRP.

Trainees and training officers will be informed in advance of the date by which their respective individual evaluation of progress (1 and 2 above) are due to be submitted. The individual submissions will be treated in confidence.

The range of outcomes and descriptors from the review is available here.

Midterm review of progression outcomes and descriptors

To ensure a fully informed outcome decision, we advise that:

1. Trainees contact their assessors to request sign-off of their specialist assessments and competencies associated with their rotation modules as soon as possible, referencing the MRP;
2. If trainees encounter issues with sign-off, we recommend that they request help from their training officers to e.g. liaise with their nominated assessors;
3. Trainees should ensure that one MSF should at least have been instigated, if not completed, by the time of the MRP.

We would encourage trainees and their training officers to liaise to ensure they have received the corresponding MRP notification email and have updated their calendar too. Should either trainee or training officer contact details change, please ensure that you let the School know immediately the change occurs so information held on the trainee’s record for communication is accurate. Technical issues will not be accepted as justification for non-participation.

In addition, for support, we recommend that trainees schedule a pre MRP meeting with their training officer to discuss progress in readiness for submitting their individual evaluation forms and a post MRP meeting to discuss the outcome of their review and any revisions that may be required to their training plan.

The MRP is intended as a supportive and facilitative process for trainees and their training officers. The School will follow up as informed by the review evidence, comments/concerns/issues highlighted on the evaluation reports and outcome decision. The following list provides examples (but is not restricted to) of follow up from the review:

• Actions from trainee and training officer relating to the training plan and/or MSF
• Actions from trainee relating to engagement/progress on academic component/s
• A non-compliance form to be completed by trainee and/or training officer if they have not engaged with MRP. Non-compliance is viewed as a serious transgression and a justification will be required for review by the School and if appropriate, HEE commissioners.
• Support and advice provided by the NSHCS to help address highlighted issues/concerns/barriers and which have not been possible to resolve locally in discussion with employer, HEI or other.
• Actions requested of the employer/training department or HEI where evidence indicates justified serious issues with the provision of workplace training opportunities or academic components of the programme.
• A request for trainee and/or training officers to attend an MRP panel meeting to agree actions to facilitate progression where evidence indicates serious concern/barriers relating to the trainee’s progress. The panel will be chaired by a senior member of the School and formed as appropriate to the evidence. The panel may comprise but is not restricted to a speciality senior scientist, representative from the trainee’s HEI, the HEE commissioning group and lay advisor.
• In exceptional circumstances, with all possible avenues to facilitate progression exploited, if evidence demonstrates that the trainee is failing to progress as necessary, they will be supported to exit from the STP programme.