Foundation Training Year
Welcome to your Foundation Training Year
You are joining the NHS at an exciting time. The NHS is changing, there is;
a greater focus on joined up care across the healthcare system with more care delivered closer to home
an increasing focus on prevention as well as the treatment of illnesses
a need to use medicines more judiciously, to improve health and wellbeing, whilst minimising the risks of harm
a drive to include people in the decisions made about their treatment
an even greater requirement for all healthcare professionals to work collaboratively in multi-disciplinary teams to deliver the best outcomes for patients
a requirement for all healthcare professionals to utilise all their knowledge, skills and potential to provide the highest level of care for their populations
There are three parts to the Health Education England Pharmacy London Trainee Pharmacist programme:
On-line learning via our Moodle site, including calculations practice and registration assessment style questions. The content on Moodle will be released throughout the year in three terms. The resources available will assist trainees to complete the requirements of the Foundation Training Year as well as helping to identify further learning needs. Trainees should discuss with their supervisors how and when the content should be completed. A proportionate amount of protected time should be allocated for trainees to do so.
On-line meetings and webinars to support learning and to provide opportunities for trainees to interact with the HEE Pharmacy London team and other trainees.
Assessments intended to support workplace decision making about trainee progress and performance throughout the Foundation Training Year. These assessments are formative (developmental) and are intended to aid identification of gaps in knowledge and skills.
HEE National Resources
As part of the Trainee Pharmacist Foundation Year Programme, HEE are developing new resources for training sites: a practice-based assessment strategy, e-portfolio, and virtual learning and information resources are coming onstream to quality assure the training and assessment of all trainee pharmacists in England.
These resources will help trainee pharmacists and designated supervisors understand and use the assessment activities and tools to chart progress against the GPhC interim learning outcomes.
Designated supervisors will find these resources helpful to assess trainees against the new interim learning outcomes, complete progress reviews, and provide final sign-off, as required by the GPhC.
Management of the Programme
Health Education England London and South East Pharmacy oversees quality assured education and training provision for pharmacy trainees, including trainee pharmacists, employed by hospitals and a Clinical Commissioning Group across London. Kent, Surrey and Sussex (KSS).
We are responsible for commissioning and funding around 260 trainee pharmacist training posts across London and ensuring that there are high quality learning environments in which to train.
We organise and deliver an online regional training programme.
We commission training for pharmacy supervisors
We coordinate the administration of an e-portfolio system for trainee pharmacists
We organise a programme board that is responsible for the governance and quality assurance of our Trainee Pharmacist training programme.
Trainee Pharmacist Programme Board
The programme board is responsible for the governance and quality assurance of the LaSE Trainee Pharmacist Training Programme.
Specific functions of the programme board include:
Supporting the development of LaSE trainee pharmacist training strategies to enable workforce transformation plans.
Reviewing and making recommendations for trainee pharmacist training curricula taking into consideration key drivers and ensuring the programme is fit for the future and meets employers’ education and future workforce requirements.
Supporting the implementation of national and policy developments e.g. GPhC pharmacist education reforms, and Health Education England strategic plans.
Supporting the implementation of changes necessary to quality assure the LaSE Trainee Pharmacist Training Programme.
Trainee Representatives
We are very keen to hear the views of our cohort of trainees throughout the Foundation Training year. In order to give you all the best chance to have your opinions heard, we appoint Trainee Representatives.
The Trainee Representative act as the trainee voice; they gather any feedback from trainees to pass on to our team and are one of the routes through which we provide information to trainees.
Trainee Representatives are selected to represent the HEE trainee pharmacists across London. There will be two Trainee Reps covering each of the Integrated Care Systems (ICS) within LaSE which means that there will be 8 reps in 2022-2023. They are appointed at the start of the training year.
Applications for 2022 are now closed.
Role of the Trainee Representative
The primary role of a Trainee Representative is to seek, collate and report the cohort's opinions as the "trainee voice" to the HEE London Trainee Pharmacist Programme Board. Specific roles and responsibilities include:
Be a point of contact and represent the views of the trainees at Programme Board meetings.
Disseminate information and outcomes of the board meetings to all trainees in the area via the local trust trainee reps.
Highlight common themes and pertinent issues, following regular liaison with the trainees in your area, for inclusion on the programme board meeting agenda.
Attend and participate in HEE Quality Monitoring visits to trusts/hospital sites offering the trainee perspective with the purpose of:
Ensuring standards for delivery of pharmacy education are being met.
Improving quality of education and training.
Identifying issues and good practice.
Highlighting concerns – (education only, not quality of service).
Attend and participate in any other HEE business (i.e. working groups, recruitment/careers fairs) as deemed appropriate by HEE.
Reviewing and offering a trainee perspective on written materials (e.g. trainee guides).
Key Skills required to be a Trainee Representative
The ability to communicate effectively, canvass opinion and give feedback where necessary.
To be comfortable contributing at meetings where senior personnel are in attendance.
An enthusiastic outlook and an interest in contributing to the improvement and development of the training programme.
Well-developed organisation skills and a proactive nature.
Approachable and supportive – the ability to listen to others and advise where appropriate.
The ability to understand others viewpoints and negotiate when required.
An interest in quality management processes and procedures.
The ability to take legible notes and to prepare written reports.
Benefits of being a Trainee Representative
You become the voice of your peers at regional level.
Networking potential with peers/wider members of the HEE Pharmacy London team.
CV enhancement.
Involvement in other activities within Health Education England (e.g. Quality Monitoring visits, education, review of regional documentation.
The fulfilment of making a real difference for your cohort and the shape of training for future trainees.
Trainee Support
It is recognised over the course of an educational programme, trainees may require additional support to successfully complete their training. To facilitate this, HEE have developed an England-wide Trainee Support Guide for both trainees and employing organisations which outlines the educational support processes in place for commissioned pharmacy trainees (Foundation trainee pharmacists and pre-registration trainee pharmacy technicians) that are undertaking Health Education England commissioned training programmes. This is a core guide and the recommendations made within it apply to all employers, educational programme directors, educational (designated) supervisors and trainees.
This guide has been designed to help organisations assist individuals that require additional support during their training programme. Please refer to the Trainee Support Guide for full details on identification, support and the HEE notification process for any individuals.
Where appropriate contact the HEE London team via the Request for Trainee Support form below. It is imperative trainee consent is obtained prior to any individual details are disclosed to HEE.
Trainee Pharmacist Training in General Practice
HEE as part of a national programme is enabling Trainee Pharmacists to undertake three to six-month placements in general practice as part of their training year. Further information is available on the webpage below.