Assessing Assessing! An Examination of the Impact of the New RANZCP by-Laws for Training

Abstract

Objectives: With the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists' new by-laws for training coming into effect in late 2003 and early 2004 for New Zealand and Australian trainees, respectively, the authors set out to determine the impact of the various proposed changes upon assessment. Methods: The relevant medical databases and websites were explored and the various colleges and examination boards in Australia and New Zealand, the UK and Canada were consulted.Results: The Fellowship examination in Australia and New Zealand is due to undergo significant changes in terms of its structure and methods of assessment. The changes borrow components from contemporary international systems and aim to shift the emphasis of training and examination to earlier in the postgraduate years, with trainees ultimately having greater flexibility in terms of deciding when to sit for these. As yet, there is little specific information for candidates as regards the exact format and content of some components of the examinations and it is unclear whether the new system has been evaluated sufficiently. Conclusions:Many of the proposed changes bear similarities to training structures and examination systems in Canada and the UK. It is suggested that the 'mistakes' of others should be learned from, and that a considered and deliberate approach is taken to the introduction of new examinations, appraising their merit and acknowledging the difficulties that change and uncertainty create.

Trajectory to fellowship: an analysis of the current pathway to becoming a psychiatrist

“…The current training program has an overall reduction in examination hurdles, as compared with the previous program, which had nine formal examinations during the first 4 years of training and a dissertation in the final year; 8 however, it has an increased emphasis on summative supervisory reports 9,11 within a continuous assessment approach. 6 Significant efforts, informed by best-practice medical education approaches, have been devoted to ensuring the rigour and reliability of examinations in the current training program, including the introduction of blue-printing, 14 criterion-referenced marking, standard-setting and examiner training.…”

“…RANZCP educational objectives are informed by the CanMEDS framework, 10 whereby expertise as a medical expert, communicator, collaborator, manager, health advocate, scholar and professional 6,11 is developed through a combination of supervised clinical experiences, formal academic activities, assessments, self-directed learning and other educational activities that comprise the RANZCP Fellowship Training Program. Trainees are exposed to a wide range of clinical and educational experiences that are designed to prepare them for independent psychiatry practice.…”

“…Advanced Training focuses on integrating and refining clinical skills. 11 It involves 2 years of Generalist Stream Advanced Training (GSAT) or an Approved Program of Advanced Training (APAT) in a sub-specialty discipline (Addiction, Adult, Child and Adolescent, Consultation-Liaison, Forensic, Old Age or Psychotherapies), or a combined APAT/GSAT. Trainees completing an APAT earn a Certificate of Advanced Training in the respective discipline 6 at, or following, attainment of Fellowship.…”

“…Advanced Training focuses on integrating and refining clinical skills. 11 The need for quality, sustainable mental health services in Australasia provides the impetus to understand the pathway toward becoming a psychiatrist. This quality assurance study evaluates existing data on the progression and outcomes of psychiatry training, with respect to a number of key factors driving the introduction [7][8][9] and subsequent continuous improvement 12 6 and the trainees studied had reached or exceeded the 5-year minimum time to attain Fellowship.…”

The viva voce as an authentic assessment for clinical psychology students

“…The viva used at the USQ is an Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE). This assessment is based on the assessment used by the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists final examination (Malhi & McKay, 2003) where trained actors are used in simulated clinical scenarios. OSCEs have been used in the university setting for a number of health fields including medicine (Martin & Jolly, 2002), dietetics (Hawker, Walker, Barrington, & Andrianopoulos, 2010) and nursing (Koop & Borbasi, 1994).…”