Key Messages and links to 08 July 2021
Welcome to Health Education England’s regular stakeholder bulletin.
In this bulletin we will provide:
- Latest messages from our Chief Executive
- COVID-19 latest updates
- Overview of HEE education and training news
Weekly messages from HEE
Read recent messages from Dr Navina Evans, Chief Executive, HEE.
It has been, without doubt, one of the toughest years in the history of the NHS – and yet, where would we be without it?
Dr Navina Evans marks NHS73 birthday with special thank you message to NHS staff
HEE COVID-19 latest updates
We have created a COVID-19 update webpage that provides guidance and information from HEE, which applies to all students and trainees. This webpage also includes HEE COVID-19 surge guidance.
To keep up to date with plans for medical training recovery, visit HEE COVID-19 webpages.
We must unite training and service recovery
In the first of a series of regular updates on the recovery of training, HEE’s Deputy Medical Director Sheona MacLeod, highlights the positive impact of unifying service and training recovery both now, and for the future.
Following the intense winter with COVID we are all acutely aware of the impact of the pandemic on all NHS clinical services. However, perhaps a less talked about, but equally significant issue for short-term recovery and the longer-term sustainability of these services, is the urgent need to get the training back on track for large numbers of postgraduate medical trainees. Read the full update on how HEE is working with the system to fund and support doctors to progress through training.
Building a more supportive culture for returning trainees
HEE has launched a new video to encourage a positive training environment for trainees returning to training after time away. The film features an array of people promotion a supporting culture for returning trainees: from trainees themselves to consultants, academics such as Professor Michael West, and NHS leaders, including HEE’s Dr Navina Evans and NHS England and Improvement’s Prerana Issar.
The SuppoRTT (Supported Return to Training) programme recognises that every trainee will have different needs when they return to training and provides tools and resources to enable all trainees to feel confident, supported and prepared to return to training, whatever their formal training programme. This promotes trainee wellbeing and safe, high quality patient care.
By encouraging a supportive culture at every level, we want to ensure that every trainee is able to explain where they are up to and what specific support they need.
Find out more and watch the video.
We are supporting all professions to rapidly grow to meet the needs of patients:
National Education and Training Survey is live
HEE’s 2021 National Education and Training Survey (NETS) is live, giving students from across the country the chance to provide feedback on their clinical placement experience. The survey will run until midnight on Friday 23 July 2021. To take part in the survey go to https://poll.hee.nhs.uk/s/netsjune21/
Medical
Record numbers of doctors join NHS specialty training
New data from HEE shows record numbers of doctors joining NHS specialty training programmes with more applicants, more posts and the highest ever fill rate, which is positive news for patients and the NHS.
The 2021 fill rate for England is 99.18 per cent across all specialties showing year on year improvement for four years running. 7846 doctors, an increase of 282 doctors over 2020, have accepted posts despite the challenges of the pandemic in delivering the recruitment exercises. The data shows recruitment for posts in England starting in August 2021, across all medical specialities.
Pharmacy
The Trainee Pharmacist Foundation Year Programme
Don’t miss our joint webinars with NHS England and NHS Improvement and the General Pharmaceutical Council. These webinars explore how the Initial Education and Training reform programme will be implemented in the 2021/2022 foundation training year (the new name for the pharmacist pre-registration training year). We were delighted to meet employers in primary care, hospital and education leads on 1 July. We now look forward to meeting community pharmacy employers, leads and training providers on Tuesday 13 July. Please save the date and join on Teams:
Community Pharmacy Workforce Survey (CPWS)
The CPWS closed on Friday 25 June. Our research partners are now starting data cleansing and analysis, with a final report due out in Autumn 2021. Please contact pharmacyteam@hee.nhs.uk for more information.
Workforce and education initiatives
HEE has launched a dedicated website for Advanced Practice
Building a recognised and visible advanced practitioner workforce is a priority for the NHS; there is a clear and identified need for highly experienced clinicians who are trained to an advanced level of practice.
HEE established the Centre for Advancing Practice to oversee the workforce transformation of advanced level practice, by establishing and monitoring standards for education and training, accrediting advanced level programmes, supporting and recognising practitioners, and growing and embedding the advanced and consultant practice workforce.
Blending across continents
The Blended Learning programme team is co-ordinating a series of three international roundtables with colleagues in California. Bringing together nursing leaders, subject matter experts and influencers ‘Sharing thoughts on simulation, regulation and workforce management’ will allow the invited participants to share ideas, data, experience and expertise to increase the impact of research. The series will result in the joint publication of a report (whitepaper) from the discussions and learning after the last event in November.
The first meeting took place on 30 June and focused of the impact of emerging technologies and simulation in the education and training of the current and future workforce. It was fully attended by all invitees with a lot of enthusiasm and drive to progress this agenda for nursing education and overall healthcare education.
Future round tables will look at ‘How can assurance be provided to regulators when using emerging technologies and simulation in education and training to meet required regulatory standards/ outcomes?’ and finally ‘How will emerging technologies, simulation and regulation impact the workforce in relation to new roles, new ways of working, recruitment, retention, upskilling and shortages?’
Estates and facilities apprenticeships employer engagement event
HEE will host an estates and facilities apprenticeships employer engagement event on the afternoon of 12 July.
The event will deliver useful information and discuss practical steps for employers that are considering using apprenticeships within NHS Estates and Facilities directorates. The event will provide the opportunity to discuss a wide range of apprenticeships applicable to Estates and Facilities including cleaning, hospitality, leadership, painting and decorating, joinery and engineering.
To register for the event please click here.
New County Lines Exploitation session added to All Our Health programme
A new elearning session to help health and care professionals protect vulnerable children from exploitation has been developed by HEE elfh and Public Health England.
The UK Government defines County Lines as a term used to describe gangs and organised criminal networks involved in exporting illegal drugs into one or more importing areas within the UK, using dedicated mobile phone lines or other form of ‘deal line’.
This new bite-sized resource, part of the All Our Health programme, helps health and care professionals to improve their knowledge of County Lines activity and offers advice on how they can support families and young people at risk of exploitation. For more information and to access the free County Lines Exploitation session, visit the All Our Health programme page.
SCRIPT: supporting safer prescribing practices in primary care
The SCRIPT elearning portfolio for the primary care workforce includes 24 modules in 4 categories, developed for GPs, GP trainees and other prescribing staff in primary care settings. The modules cover a range of therapeutic topics relating to prescribing and medicines safety in primary care settings, including:
- Principles of Prescribing
- Therapeutic Groups
- Prescribing in Medical Emergencies
- Prescribing in Special Circumstances
You can learn more about the SCRIPT elearning programme by visiting the SCRIPT website.
Learning Hub – roadmap published
HEE’s TEL team has published the roadmap for the Learning Hub to show the features and functionality that are planned for the digital platform in the coming months.
The Learning Hub is a digital platform that provides easy access to a wide range of education and training resources for the health and care workforce. Organisations and users can contribute and share resources for those in health and care to access. The success of the Learning Hub relies on new resources being added. It is encouraging to see more content being contributed and it would be great if even more people shared their resources for other colleagues to benefit from.
For more information about the Learning Hub follow us on Twitter: @HEE_TEL and visit the Learning Hub website to read about our journey so far. If you have any questions or would like to explore how the Learning Hub could support you and colleagues email enquiries@learninghub.nhs.uk.
Keep up to date with the latest additions to the elearning for healthcare platform here.
Thank you song for the NHS scoops top prize in HEE’s schools competition
A 10 year-old pupil from Bury is the overall winner of HEE’s Step into the NHS competition after wowing judges with his catchy ‘Thank You’ song for the NHS, performed to the tune of the Traditional Wellerman sea shanty song.
FURTHER INFORMATION
By following @NHS_HealthEdEng you can keep up to date with new information and resources as they are published. Most importantly are the notifications of webinars being broadcast during the week.
Right now, making sure we are communicating properly is obviously incredibly important. If there’s any information you think is missing on HEE’s webpages, please let us know by submitting your question to the HEE Q&A helpdesk.
