The GMC has today published the latest data on the progression of doctors in postgraduate medical education across the UK.
You can access the data via the reporting tool. The GMC has also produced a summary report. Do please circulate these links.
Tackling barriers that exist in medical education must remain an urgent priority for organisations across the UK’s health services, including all of us with responsibilities for postgraduate training. Fair and supportive training is not only key to the quality of medical education and practice, it’s also vital to help retain healthcare professionals in the UK.
GMC Statement:- Tackling differential attainment and supporting progression
In 2021, the GMC committed to eliminating discrimination, disadvantage and unfairness in undergraduate and postgraduate medical education and training. As part of our work to help medical royal colleges and postgraduate deans meet these targets, we’ve enhanced how we present our data on education outcomes to enable more detailed analysis.
This year, data can be stratified by specific ethnicity groups. And results can be filtered by a wider range of characteristics, including religion and sexual orientation, giving greater insight into outcomes and experiences of doctors from different backgrounds.
Our accompanying report explores the extent that inequalities persist, highlighting for the first time an 18-percentage point difference between the specialty exam pass rate of UK-trained black doctors and UK-trained white doctors.
The report also considers good practice across the four countries of the UK. And it highlights the importance of evaluating interventions, so we can build an in-depth understanding of the initiatives that successfully support trainees from different backgrounds.
For example, we recently worked with Edge Hill University on an evaluation of a workshop that helped trainers to gain a greater insight into cultural barriers that international medical graduates face. This enabled them to better support their trainees as they were able to identify specific learning needs and have a greater understanding of how they can maximise their strengths.
We’ll continue to use data and insight to challenge disadvantage and discrimination in medicine, and we ask that all organisations do the same. It’s only by working together that we can create the long-lasting and meaningful change that doctors deserve.
Thank you for your continued support of medical education and training during this very busy time. If you have any questions please contact Jane Cannon, Programme lead for Fair Training Cultures, or Tom Bandenburg, Head of QA reporting on jane.cannon@gmc-uk.org and tom.bandenburg@gmc-uk.org. They’ll be happy to help.
Kind regards,
Colin
Professor Colin Melville
Medical Director and Director of Education and Standards, GMC
