Message from your STP Training Programme Directors, Namir Al Hasso, Dr EMma Bowers, Dr Jo Horne, Jane Lynch and Aarti Makan
Welcome to the October edition of the STP Monthly Memo. October is full of significant awareness events including Black History Month and Breast Cancer Awareness Month which Health Education England (HEE) is celebrating with national and regional events. We will also mark the 10-year birthday of the National School of Healthcare Science. A virtual celebration is taking place on Wednesday the 20th of October to explore the past, present and future of healthcare science education and training.
We hope that all first-year trainees have settled in their new department and met their training officer. Some of you have started the academic element of your STP training programme in your respective universities. We hope you find this element of the programme very rewarding as it is a vital part of your training journey to become a HCPC registered Clinical Scientist.
The National School would like all trainees to have the best training experience. We can provide support and guidance to all trainees on the STP training programme in all stages of their training journey. The School website training support page has plenty of advice and resources for you to use and we recommend that you visit this page before contacting the School. We will also continue to offer training support drop-in sessions for trainees and training officers.
Please do not hesitate to contact us if you need any further advice or support.
Information for third years
IACC resubmission webinar
If you are resubmitting your IACC assessment we are holding our final trainee webinar on Monday 25 October 2021 from 12-2pm.
This trainee briefing webinar will focus on the IACC interview component and will be your opportunity to ask those final questions.
Guidance for trainees and training departments on STP completion 2022
Following this year’s Midterm Review of Progression (MRP) and discussions with trainees and training officers, we have considered the completion requirements for those graduating in 2022.
For this cohort, rotations were badly disrupted by the pandemic. For many trainees access to some competencies has not been possible and completing these in the final year will come at the expense of the specialist training. We have considered this in our discussions around completion 2022 and have amended the process accordingly.
Click here to view the full guidance statement on completion for the Scientist Training Programme 2022
Information for first year trainees
OneFile webinars
Earlier this month the Digital Team held a number of webinars for trainees getting started with OneFile.
Information for all trainees
E-Learning for Healthcare
Health Education England’s (HEE) e-Learning for Healthcare is a service containing a huge variety of educational resource for healthcare professionals, trainees and their trainers.
The e-Learning for Healthcare website has a collection of links to web based educational resources and other e-learning platforms, that you may find useful to support your training.
Click here to find out more about getting started on e-Learning for Healthcare
E-Learning Health Literacy course
Nearly half the adults in England (43%) struggle to read and understand health information. When that information includes words and numbers, that rises to 61%.
This means important details, such as how to take medicines and dosage, understanding appointment letters and test results can be missed – and not everyone feels confident to say when they don’t understand.
Health Education England has developed a free, 35 minute, online health literacy course designed for anyone working with or supporting patients, families and carers.
Anyone can sign up today for the course, hosted on the NHS e-Learning for Healthcare platform. There is a simple registration process and once completed you will be able to access the free course quickly and easily.
Training support podcasts
We are developing a series of podcasts with the intention of providing guidance and support on a range of different themes for trainees. We hope these podcasts will be a helpful additional resource.
The podcasts are recorded with trainees who share their experiences on the programme ranging from wellbeing and mental health challenges to expecting a child and taking maternity leave. If you would like to be involved in the production of these podcasts and share your experiences, please email the school at nshcs@hee.nhs.uk.
Click here to find out more about our training support podcasts
Training support drop-in sessions
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:
- 27th October – Training support, scientific support
- 11th November – STP planning for new trainees with new curriculum
- 24th November – Training support, scientific support
Click here to find our drop-in sessions timetable and event joining links
Trainee networks
Managing your own health and wellbeing effectively is a hugely important aspect of completing your training successfully and something that you should be mindful of throughout the programme. One of our top tips is to engage with fellow trainees as part of a trainee network.
Regional trainee networks
The following regional trainee networks work hard to create networking opportunities and run events that assist/supplement your STP training, so try to ensure that sure that you take advantage of them.
- East of England Trainee Network
- East Midlands Healthcare Science Trainee Network
- Kent Trainee Network
- London Healthcare Science Trainee Network
- Sub London Network (Surrey, Hampshire and West Sussex)
- North East Science Trainee Network
- North West Trainee Network
- Oxford and Thames Valley Trainee Network
- South West Trainee Network
- Wales Trainee Network
- Wessex Trainee Network
- West Midlands Trainee Network
- Yorkshire and Humber Trainee Network
Other network groups
A number of other trainee network groups exist to bring together different groups of trainees with a shared experience. They will have a good understanding of the challenges you are experiencing relating to the training and can offer valuable advice and peer support to help you.
- Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic Scientist Trainee Network
- Mature Trainees, Parents and Carers Network
Click here to find out more about the different trainee networks and how to get involved
Equality, diversity and inclusion work at the School
As part of our commitment to improving equality, diversity and inclusion at the School we would like to hear from you about your experiences on and off the training programme.
We have a weekly whole school catch up meeting on Tuesdays at 11am and would like to invite trainees to give a 10 minute presentation to us. For example, this month we would like to invite trainees from all backgrounds to share who/what inspires for Black History Month. We would especially be interested in hearing from trainees from minority backgrounds. However this is not limited to only this month and would like to encourage this going forward.
If you have any questions or are interested in taking part please email nshcs.edi@hee.nhs.uk
Click here to find more information on our equality, diversity and inclusion work at the School
Information for training officers
Annual monitoring now live
All departments accredited on or before 31st March 2021 are now asked to complete their annual monitoring return.
Annual monitoring is a requirement of accreditation. If you do not complete your annual monitoring, this may affect your accreditation status. It will be taken into account when allocating the training contracts for the following year, following on from the Expressions of Interest process.
Annual monitoring is done through a short and simple electronic form that, in most cases, should take no more than 20 minutes to complete. We ask for details of any changes that may influence or affect the delivery of training. These include:
- Notification of any difficulties encountered in delivering the STP programme
- Outcomes for trainee(s) who have completed the programme
Please ensure that the form is returned by Friday 3rd December 2021.
If you have any questions or need your unique survey link please e-mail the Accreditation Unit at nshcs.accreditation@hee.nhs.uk.
Change in department circumstances
If there has been any significant change since your department was first accredited, that could affect the quality of training provided, please complete a notification form and return it to the Accreditation team at nshcs.accreditation@hee.nhs.uk.
Your information will be reviewed, and we will contact you if any further action is required.
Click here to access the change notification form for work-based providers
Future Train the Trainer events
Are you interested in attending the next series of Train the Trainer events?
Please complete our short survey to register your interest in attending one of the future events.
Click here to express your interest in joining the waiting list
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