General Medical Council supports the roll out of Tomorrow’s Doctors

The GMC is rolling out a series of nationwide roadshows to help medical schools implement the changes required by the GMC’s Tomorrow’s Doctors guidance.

Tomorrow’s Doctors, which sets out the standards that medical students have to meet before they graduate, must be implemented in schools by 2011/12 and the GMC will be liaising closely with medical schools and stakeholders to ensure a smooth transition to the new curriculum.

Recent research has shown that medical students would benefit from more practical “on the job” training and Tomorrow’s Doctors addresses this with the introduction of student assistantships. These are new placements undertaken shortly before a student enters 'Foundation 1' as a trainee doctor and will help them become more familiar with work in a hospital or community setting and to understand practical tasks such as filling in a prescription form or ordering a blood sample.

Tomorrow’s Doctors has already received high acclaim from The Lancet, describing it as a ‘much improved and more comprehensive’ document ‘with important emphasis on patients’ rights, communication skills, practical competence, cultural diversity, and medicine as a multidisciplinary profession with societal and sociological dimensions’.

Professor Jim McKillop, GMC Council member and Chair of the Undergraduate Board commented:

“The implementation of Tomorrow’s Doctors is set to change the future of undergraduate medical education and the GMC will be on hand to offer support and advice as the process gets underway.

“This is an exciting time for us and we are looking forward to seeing the changes take place. We consulted widely on the guidance and know that this new version of Tomorrow’s Doctors will produce doctors who are even better prepared to develop their skills further in postgraduate training and to deal with all eventualities as a medical practitioner.”

The nationwide roadshows will begin in Cardiff on December 18th and be held in locations across the UK including London, Wakefield and Edinburgh. They will include presentations, open discussion and break out groups which will consider the implementation of Tomorrow’s Doctors in different medical schools and the opportunities for joint working and support or guidance from the GMC. Discussion will also focus on ensuring that patients and employers are involved in the design, delivery and evaluation of basic medical education.

Progress reports on the implementation of Tomorrow’s Doctors will be publicised on the GMC website and anybody wishing to obtain further information on the roll out and quality assurance of the guidance should contact quality@gmc-uk.org.

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For further information please contact the Media Relations Office on 020 7189 5454, out of hours 020 7189 5444, fax 020 7189 5401, email press@gmc-uk.org, website http://www.gmc-uk.org.

For further information on the Tomorrow’s Doctors guidance, please visit the GMC website www.gmc-uk.org.