Healthcare Science Education and Training Collaborative Terms of Reference

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Background

The NSHCS is part of Workforce, Training and Education within NHS England. It has national responsibility for the management of the educational framework for training and development of healthcare scientists across more than 40 specialties in the NHS, from apprentices to consultant grade. The education and training is delivered by scientists working across the NHS and beyond, and has pioneered national scientist training in the UK, producing scientists who are changing patient and clinical outcomes, contributing to multi-professional working and leading in many areas of innovation and translational research in the NHS.

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The controlled copy of this document is maintained by NSHCS. Any copies of this document held outside of that area, in whatever format (e.g. paper, email attachment), are considered to have passed out of control and should be checked for currency and validity.

1. Purpose

Ensuring education and training within Healthcare Science is relevant and of high quality.

2. Overall aim

The NSHCS Healthcare Science Education and Training Collaborative aims to enable collaboration between the NSHCS and the following stakeholders:

• the Healthcare Science work-based Training Centres
• the Professional Bodies
• the NSHCS accredited Higher Education Institutions (HEIs)
• the CSO office
• Academy for Healthcare Science (AHCS)

Thereby ensuring education and training within Healthcare Science is relevant and of high quality.

2.1 Specific aim of face-to-face HCS E&T Collaborative

The face-to-face NSHCS HCS E&T Collaborative aims:

• To enable collaboration and networking within and between Training Centres, HEIs, Professional Bodies, NSHCS, CSO office and AHCS.
• To allow for discussions and updates that are appropriate for the whole of the Healthcare Science workforce regardless of training level and specialism.

Thereby resulting in helping to define the strategic direction of the NSHCS.

2.2 Specific aim of online HCS E&T Collaborative

The online NSHCS HCS E&T Collaborative aims:

• To allow for detailed discussions and updates that are appropriate for the specific specialisms and/or training levels.

Thereby resulting in helping to define the strategic direction of the NSHCS.

3. Objectives

The NSHCS Healthcare Science Education and Training Collaborative objectives are:

• To be as accessible as possible to maximise attendance of stakeholders.
• To have valuable, worthwhile, and relevant discussions and workshops.
• To contribute to fulfilling the responsibility of the NSHCS in shaping the education and training framework for the Healthcare Science workforce of the future through partnership working.
• To aid in the maintenance of the NSHCS status as an Approved Education Provider for the Health and Care Professions Council by providing regular and effective collaboration between the education provider and practice education providers.
• To be a forum where information can flow between stakeholders and teams and committees within the NSHCS.

4. Duties and responsibilities

The NSHCS will:

• Work with stakeholders to develop the agenda for the HCS E&T Collaborative.
• Publish the agreed agenda at least 6 weeks in advance of the meeting.
• Write up the sessions and publish them on the website providing there are no confidentiality issues.
• Invite stakeholders to the HCS E&T Collaborative with at least 6 weeks notice.
• Advertise the HCS E&T Collaborative through the monthly memo and website.
• Provide the digital infrastructure of the online HCS E&T Collaborative.
• Book and pay for the venue for the face-to-face HCS E&T Collaborative.
• Analyse the feedback from the HCS E&T Collaborative.
• Publish the analysis of the feedback from the HCS E&T Collaborative.
• Analyse the diversity of attendees to the HCS E&T Collaborative.
• Publish the analysis of the diversity of attendees to the HCS E&T Collaborative.

The stakeholders are asked to:

• Give everybody the chance to speak and voice their opinions on the subjects being discussed.
• Commit to listening and respecting the opinions of colleagues attending the HCS E&T Collaborative as they express their views on the subjects being discussed.
• Welcome evidenced-based change.
• Take inequalities into consideration when considering proposals to ensure equitable and reasonable access to education and development opportunities.
• Disseminate relevant information to members of their departments.
• Contribute feedback and evaluation of the HCS E&T Collaborative.
• Work with NSHCS to develop the agenda for the HCS E&T Collaborative.
• Fund their own travel expenses for the face-to-face HCS E&T Collaborative.

5. Membership

The following stakeholders will be invited to the HCS E&T Collaborative:

• Training Officers and Training Coordinators from NSHCS accredited training centres.
• Lead and Deputy Station Writers for each specialism.
• NSHCS External Reviewers.
• Quality and Standards Committee Chair.
• Representatives from each of the Healthcare Science professional bodies.
• Representatives from each of the accredited higher education institutions that deliver the academic elements of the HCS programmes.
• Representatives from Training Providers for Apprenticeship training courses for Healthcare Science assistant (level 2), Healthcare Science associate (level 4), Healthcare Science practitioner (level 6), Clinical Scientist (level 7) and Bioinformatics scientist (level 7).
• Representatives from the Academy for Healthcare Science.
• Representatives from the CSO Office.
• National commissioners (England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland).
• Regional commissioners.
• All staff from the NSHCS.

Membership is specifically designed to reflect the diverse nature of the HCS workforce. Please note it is not appropriate for trainees (other than Level 8 trainees who are often Training Officers to level 7 or 6 trainees) and services users to attend.

If in the rare situation that more invitations have been accepted than there is capacity for either the online or face-to-face HCS E&T Collaborative, then the NSHCS reserves the right to determine who to prioritise to ensure that all specialisms and all training programmes are equally represented.

6. Confidentiality and information sharing

The NSHCS will publish materials relating to the HCS E&T Collaborative on its website including:

• The agenda for the HCS E&T Collaborative.
• Reports from each session providing there are no confidentiality issues.
• The analysis of the feedback from the HCS E&T Collaborative.
• The analysis of the diversity of attendees to the HCS E&T Collaborative.
• Any other material the NSHSC deems useful to publish to maintain transparency.

7. Declaration of interest

Exceptional conflicts of interest are those that could not reasonably be anticipated by other stakeholders or staff of the NSHCS. The agenda for the HCS E&T Collaborative is published in advance. Attendees should declare exceptional conflicts of interest in writing to the NSHCS in advance of the meeting. The NSHCS will advise if those exceptional conflicts of interest conflicts should be raised by the stakeholder within the HCS E&T Collaborative before the relevant agenda item.

8. Meetings

There will be two HCS E&T collaborative a year:

• The face-to-face HCS E&T Collaborative will meet annually in March. If there are exceptional circumstances an extraordinary face-to-face HCS E&T Collaborative will be organised, as necessary.
• The online HCS E&T Collaborative will meet annually in November. If there are exceptional circumstances an extraordinary online HCS E&T Collaborative will be organised, as necessary.

Every effort will be made to avoid clashes with other meetings likely to be of interest to stakeholders.

9. Quorum

The HCS E&T Collaborative facilitates discussion, advises, and evaluates and does not make decisions therefore quoracy is not important. Every effort will be made to ensure that all specialisms and all training programmes are equally represented.

10. Agenda

The agenda will be published by the NSHCS at least 6 weeks ahead of each meeting. Agendas will usually follow the rough structure below:

• Welcome, agenda, and speaker introductions.
• Looking back – reporting and evaluating NSHCS achievements since the last meeting.
• What is being done – involving stakeholder with current projects.
• Looking forward – reviewing workforce training needs.

11. Reporting

There is the opportunity of two-way communication between the HCS E&T Collaborative and:

• NSHCS Senior Management Team
• NSHCS Senior Leadership Team
• NSHCS Quality and Standards Committee

There is opportunity of communication between all stakeholders.

12. Secretariat

The administrative responsibilities are managed by the NSHCS and will liaise with other relevant bodies to avoid clashes of dates with any major Healthcare Science events.