Throughout the three years there is a Half Day Release (HDR) Teaching Programme held on Wednesday afternoons in the Education Centre, Royal Derby Hospital. The Half Day Release Programme is well supported by the GP Trainers, with an experienced GP present at each teaching session. This ensures that the GP focus is maintained throughout the teaching.
You, the registrars, compose and lead this programme, and although guidance and support are provided by the Programme Directors and Trainers, it is expected that ownership of these sessions is held by the trainees. Support is provided by the Programme Directors during the first year of the programme to introduce trainees to education and the programme. By the middle of the second year of the programme, the teaching is purely self directed learning.
The registrars feel this hands on approach is far more relevant to working as a GP than didactic teaching.
The format of the HDR is such that all GP STRs who start in a particular year remain together (wherever possible) during the scheme as a tutor group with a Course Organiser/Programme Director as the named Tutor throughout the three years of training.
Attendance at the Half Day Release is mandatory and is part of study leave allowance.
In the first and second years, the groups meet on a weekly basis to concentrate on GP related educational sessions. These are problem based sessions in the main and are highly learner centred. These sessions are jointly run by a GP Trainer, a Specialty Consultant and a GP STR, with subjects covered relevant to that specialty, but with special emphasis placed on the GP perspective.
In the third year there are weekly sessions covering many clinical and management topics using GP Trainers and outside resources as appropriate. The syllabus is mainly problem/scenario based.
Assessment of the HDR sessions is carried out at the end of each afternoon and the GP STRs are involved in the planning of future programmes.
Top Tips for Facilitating HDR Teaching Sessions [pdf, 237KB]