Message from your STP Training Programme Directors, Jane Lynch and Namir Al Hasso
Welcome to the July issue of the STP memo. We hope you are all well and enjoying some good weather.
Here at the School it is a very busy and exciting time. We are preparing for a new and increased intake of trainees with this year’s induction day planned as a virtual session again. We are looking for volunteers from our pool of current trainees to be involved. Please see the article below for more information. We are also in the middle of the IACC 2021 process, with more than 300 interviews completed and the Examination and Ratification Boards planned very soon to allow timely release of the results. We wish everyone the best in this process and remind anyone that we are here for advice and support whenever you need it.
We are also very pleased to be moving forward with our new STP curriculum launch. This project has reviewed and renewed the curricula for all the STP specialisms, and some have seen greater changes than others. This has been a major project over the last few years, and we thank everyone involved – Lead Curriculum writers, all those who were on the panels, all those who reviewed and commented and especially our fantastic curriculum team lead by Chris Fisher for managing the process so well despite the challenges of the last 18 months. The curricula have been modernised and future-proofed with the aim of ensuring we continue to train Clinical Scientists with the appropriate skills and knowledge to lead in their particular branches of Healthcare Science. For more details regarding the launch please see below.
Other highlights within this memo include the launch of our Equality, Diversity and Inclusion page on the website. Please visit this page to meet the committee and hear more about their work and also to access the new conscious inclusion training.
Equality, diversity and inclusion at the School
Message from the School EDI Committee Chair, Chanelle Peters.
It gives me great pleasure to share our new equality, diversity and inclusion page where we intend to use the School platform to promote change, become more educated and to support our trainees and training officers with any matters relating to equality, diversity and inclusion.
The School’s committee currently collaborates with the STP Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic network, the Chief Scientific Officer’s Office and HEE Regional Diversity, Inclusion and Participation Managers to improve and support education and training in areas such as recruitment and general workplace practice.
Click here to view our new equality, diversity and inclusion page and meet the committee
We would like to introduce our conscious inclusion training which is one of our first steps to provide all our stakeholders with training in understanding unconscious bias.
We hope you enjoy the new resources and we would love to hear any feedback you may have in relation to this. You can contact us using our dedicated email address nshcs.edi@hee.nhs.uk
The HEE National Education and Training Survey closes this week
The National Education and Training Survey (NETS) is the only national survey open to all healthcare students across all clinical learning environments in England.
The survey is run by Health Education England (HEE) as part of our work to improve the experience of all students and trainees working and training in clinical services across the NHS and beyond.
The survey closes on Friday and takes just 10 minutes to fill in. Your feedback will help placement providers to make real changes to improve the student experience.
Curriculum launch for 2022 and what you need to know now
Ahead of the new STP curriculum launching this week we are holding a number of sessions for stakeholders responsible for training trainees from September 2022.
Webinar – Wednesday 21st July
On Wednesday 21st July at 12:30pm HEE’s CEO, Navina Evans, will be joining the School in hosting a webinar to launch the new STP curriculum.
We spoke about:
- what you need to know now
- where to find the new curriculua
- where to find the stakeholder feedback from the review process
- our schedule of communications going forward and how we will support you
- what information is needed for the 2022 expressions of interest
Drop-in session – Wednesday 28th July
On Wednesday 28th July at 10am we will be hosting a drop-in session for employers looking to take on a trainee in 2022 ahead of the expressions of interest opening.
Training officers, training leads and employers can speak to members of the School directly to access their expertise and guidance.
Preparing for a new trainee
If you are planning for a new trainee starting in September we have a number of online resources and tools available to support you. They are also helpful for existing training officers who would like a quick refresher.
- Guidance for STP training officers
- Good training planning
- Guide to producing good competency evidence
- Good STP competency evidence resources
- Webinars from the STP Train the Trainer series (expired link)
- Series of Train the Trainers podcasts (expired link)
Click here to find all the supportive resources available to you
On 11th August 12-2pm we will be holding a drop-in session on preparing for a new trainee where training officers can speak to members of the School directly to access their expertise and guidance.
The discussions are confidential and usually offered on a 15 minute basis per person.
STP induction day event
Trainees joining the Scientist Training Programme (STP) in September 2021 will need to attend this key event as part of their induction to the training programme. This year, the induction will take place virtually on Wednesday 15th September starting at 10am and finishing at approximately 3:30pm.
This event will be an opportunity for all new trainees to find out more about the programme and to virtually network with the School, trainee networks, professional bodies, universities and fellow trainees. The day will include sessions focusing on:
- the programme
- trainees’ responsibilities and those of their training officer
- assessments and competencies
- the experiences of current trainees on the training programme
- how current training officers conduct work-based training in the departments
- how the work of healthcare scientists impacts directly on patient care and service delivery in the NHS
Please share this information with your colleagues so that the date can be included in training planning.
STP induction day: request for trainee volunteers
We will be holding the STP trainee induction virtually on Wednesday 15th September, between 10am to 3:30pm. We are looking for existing STP trainees to help support the event by volunteering to take part in round table discussions and question and answer sessions.
We still need trainee volunteers from the following specialties:
- Andrology
- Clinical Bioinformatics Health, Physical Sciences
- Clinical Engineering
- Clinical Immunology
- Clinical Measurement & Development
- Clinical Pharmaceutical Science
- Critical Care Science
- Decontamination
- Gastrointestinal Physiology
- Histocompatibility & Immunogenetics
- Ophthalmic and Vision Science
- Radiation Safety Physics
- Radiotherapy Physics
- Reconstructive Science
- Respiratory & Sleep Sciences
- Urological Science
Taking part in STP induction day is an excellent opportunity for you to network and tick off some of your standards for the programme. It is an enjoyable experience and one that will give you a chance to reflect on how far you yourself have come. Sharing your experiences in such an extraordinary time of being in training during the COVID-19 pandemic will be valuable for new trainees, especially sharing those golden nuggets of information that have helped you complete your competencies.
Volunteers will be chosen on a first-come, first-served basis.
Meet the School's training support team
We offer regular drop-in sessions which provide a means through which trainees and training officers can speak to members of the School directly to access their expertise and guidance.
The drop-in sessions are offered on a regular basis and are themed to maintain focus for particular areas of support or guidance.
The discussions are confidential and usually offered on a 15 minute basis per person. Any issues not resolved or requiring follow up will be logged and further meetings arranged to address unresolved issues.
Click here to find out more about our drop-in sessions
Below are the dates for our upcoming drop-in sessions:
- 25th August – Training support, scientific support
- 29th September – Training support, scientific support
- 27th October – Training support, scientific support
- 24th November – Training support, scientific support
Click here to find our drop-in sessions timetable and event joining links
Report your disability to us
Have you previously reported a self-identified disability to us? If so, please look out for a link in your email about updating some of your information.
If you would like to report a disability now and haven’t before please contact nshcs.digital@hee.nhs.uk to request a form.
Missed a previous edition of the STP Monthly Memo?
We’ve published copies of the Monthly Memo for STP trainees and training officers on our website.
Click here to view previous editions of the STP Monthly Memo