Doctors in training satisfied with quality but concerned about handovers

The GMC's 2012 national survey of doctors in training has found that satisfaction with training has continued to increase.

51,000 doctors took part, 95% of those eligible, which was the highest response rate since the first survey in 2005. Overall satisfaction stood at 80 out of a possible 100,* with 81% rating their clinical supervision as good or excellent.  

For the first time, we specifically asked trainees if they had any concerns about patient safety, and one in 20 responded by raising concerns. Concerns were reported across a range of areas, including many in the acute specialties, reflecting the pace and intensity of these services. Handover is a concern across a range of specialties, with one in four of all the doctors taking part reporting that arrangements are either informal or not in place at all.

We are writing back to every doctor who raised a concern to tell them how we are responding and we are now working with deaneries across the UK to investigate every concern raised. This includes alerting the NHS where there appears to be a substantive issue and identifying any action or learning that could improve training and the quality of care patients receive.  

Read the key findings.  

The national training survey is one of the ways we make sure training meets the standards that we set. Find out more about our work in education.  

*Overall satisfaction is calculated from scores trainees give to five key indicators: quality of teaching, clinical supervision and experience, whether they would recommend the post to a friend and how useful the post will be for their future career.