What to expect on the day
You will have been provided with a date and a time when you are scheduled to assess by the School. You should log on to Qpercom at this time, using your username and password at https://mdrs.qpercom.com/.
When you logon on, you first need to click on the link at the left-hand side of the page for your specialty and circuit. Having done this, you will see a banner at the top of the page inviting you to join a briefing room. You should click the ‘Join’ button in the banner to enter the assessor briefing room where you will be briefed on the day ahead of you. This will include reminders of essential points to remember and important information for the day such as trainees who have reasonable adjustments in place and how many trainees are in each circuit. You will receive a briefing before the first circuit for each day you are assessing. If you have assessed before it is still important to join the briefing as it will contain information you need to know for the day ahead. While you are attending the briefing, School staff will be carrying out ID checks on trainees for the first circuit.
Once the briefing is completed you will be returned to your station room for the first circuit of the day where you will remain for the rest of the circuit. Before the circuit begins, we will check you are present in your station. You may have some time in your station before the circuit starts while the trainee checks are completed. You’ll be able to see the status of the circuit at the top of your screen
The overall running of the circuit is managed by a Circuit Manager and they can monitor your activity throughout the circuit. You will not be able to see the Circuit Manager and they will primarily communicate with you through notification messages in Qpercom. There may be times, particularly at the start of the circuit, where it feels like nothing is happening. During this time the Circuit Manager is making sure everyone is in place and ready to go before they start the circuit. Please be patient, remain focused and ready for the circuit to start. We’ll keep you up to date as best we can.
When the circuit starts, trainees will start their pre-reading time and the circuit status will change. You will continue to be alone in your station while the trainee completes their pre-reading. When the pre-reading time has finished, the trainee will enter your station and be visible to you on screen. Some circuits may run with less than a full complement of trainees. This means you may have times when there is no trainee in your station. You need to remain logged on, in the station and focused on the assessment until the circuit has completed. You may be observed or recorded during the assessment.
If you are assessing multiple circuits in a day, you will have an opportunity to take a short break after each circuit, and you will have a lunch break. Please remain logged into Qpercom while you take a break. You can switch your camera and microphone off if you step away from the computer and make sure no one else can get access to your computer while you are away. The assessing experience is intense, and you need to remain engaged throughout the day. We recommend you take the break times to refresh yourself and that you do not make arrangements to do other things during this time.
It is important to the smooth running of the day that you return promptly for the start of the next circuit. Trainee ID checks will be carried out while you take a break, and the circuit cannot start until you are in your station. You will not receive a briefing between circuits. If there is any additional information that we need to share with you, you will receive a notification through Qpercom or the Circuit Manager may visit you in your station.
You will need to complete all of your marking before you log out of Qpercom for the day. We have allowed some extra time at the end of the day to allow you to complete your marking. Your marking will be monitored and we’ll let you know if there is anything outstanding. Once all of your circuits have concluded and you’ve completed your marking, you can log out of Qpercom.
Where to get help on the day of the assessment
Please make sure you have reviewed all of the information in this guidance and completed all of the steps required before the day of the assessment. This should prevent any issues occurring on the day. We’ll do our best to support you with any issue which may occur. To ensure that the assessment can be delivered, in some circumstances, we may need to use a contingency assessor in your place where issues cannot be resolved immediately.
Where to get help when you are logged in to Qpercom
Once you are logged in to Qpercom, if you experience issues with the platform which will prevent you from assessing, you can raise them with the Circuit Manager by clicking on the orange ‘Help’ button on screen. The role of the Circuit Manager is to maintain an overview of the assessment circuit and keep everything running smoothly. They may already be aware of your issue and will do their best to support you. If you are logged out of Qpercom for any reason, log back in as soon as you are able.
Where to get help if you can’t log into Qpercom
If you are unable to assess for any reason, please let the School know as soon as possible. Prior to the day you can contact us by email. If you experience issues on the day, please call us on the number that will be provided.
Please bear in mind that this phone number will also be used by trainees. If you are calling this number for another reason, you may be preventing a trainee from getting the support they need to sit the assessment.