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The Stage 3 - 2011 Selection Assessment Centre (SAC)
Changed for the 2011 applications the new Stage Three process is designed to give you the most effective opportunity to demonstrate your competencies in line with the NRO personal specification. Unlike in recent years whereby a group exercise had to be performed, the process now only includes two separate exercises; a written exercise and a number of patient simulations. The exercises are observed and assessed by trained assessors who have had no access to any of your personal details, CV or applications form to insure complete partiality.
The GPST Stage 3 consists of two exercises
- The Written Exercise
- Simulation Exercise
The Written Exercise (30 Minutes)
The written exercise asks you to consider a situation which will typically replicate one of a busy clinical environment. You will be provided with a number of tasks (5-6) that need to be completed within that situation in a short amount of time. You will then have to rank in order of prioritisation the 5-6 tasks required of you by assigning each task a priority number. You will also have space on the paper to write down justification for your order of prioritisation chosen; this is the most important aspect of your written answer. Be aware there are NO right answers for this task. Maybe prioritising paperwork over a dying patient would certainly not be correct, but there are will be numerous combinations available to you. You only need to ensure that the answers are well thought through, logical, and justifiable.
Time for this is renowned for being tight especially as a number of self reflection questions (normally three) follow the main body of the task. These are designed to give you an opportunity to demonstrate your own learning from the exercise, what you will take out of it and how you will implement this in the future. These MUST be completed - you lose marks if this is not done.The tasks you will be asked to prioritise vary greatly. Assessors are looking for a candidate that can demonstrate delegation of tasks and inclusion of other team members such as nurses, doctors and other team staff, as well as the understanding that many tasks cannot be handled without first finding out further information on matters.
The Following is an example of a GPST Stage 3 Written Exercise Question:
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WRITTEN EXERCISE – Candidate Instructions |
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Context: You are a junior doctor working on a busy hospital ward. It is now 12.00 noon. You must leave by 13.00 to attend an interview for specialty training (cancellation of the interview is not an option). The various issues below remain outstanding and need to be prioritised for action. |
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Your Task: (30 minutes) 1. To rank each issue in the order in which you intend to deal with it. 2. To justify your decisions and describe what action you will take. 3. To reflect on the challenges posed by this exercise. All rankings, justifications and comments should be entered and completed within the appropriate boxes on the answer sheet. You have 30 minutes in total for the exercise. You will be informed when you have five minutes left. You should reserve at least 5 minutes to complete the third stage of the task (reflecting on the exercise). This contributes to your assessment and should not be left blank. |
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Issues to be Ranked: A. One of your female patients has dementia and severe Parkinson’s disease. Her son has travelled two hundred miles to meet with you. He is waiting to discuss his mother’s future care. |
Ranking- 1 (First)-5 (Last) |
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B. You overhear a student nurse repeatedly shouting at a demented patient in the bed next to the nursing station where you are working.
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C. The oncology nurse contacts you to inform you that one of the patients who is neutropenic has developed a temperature of 40.2 degree centigrade.
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D. The ward nurse-in-charge informs you that a patient who was diagnosed with multiple pulmonary emboil two days ago is refusing to take their Warfarin.
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E. You receive a text message from a colleague, whom you are due to hand over to, informing you that they will be late for their shift again (this is the third time in three weeks), and asking if you will cover them
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The Simulated Consultation Exercise (Role Play)
3 X 10 Minute Consultation/Role Play
This part of the stage 3 assessment consists of three small role play sessions, or simulated consultations, in which you are asked to consult with a patient/relative or colleague (played by an actor) whilst an assessor watches (but plays no role). The consultation is described by the NRO as “a situation that you should be able to deal with as doctors with at least 18 months postgraduate experience”.
To really excel in this section of the GPST stage 3 it is important to understand exactly what is being marked by the assessor. People often concentrate on demonstrating their clinical skills but this is incorrect as at this stage your clinical skills and knowledge are NOT being assessed. The focus for the role play exercise is on communication skills, professional integrity, empathy, sensitivity and your ability to cope with pressure. The assessors are also looking for your ability to involve the person you are consulting with, discover their concerns and expectations, and your ability to involve them in the conclusions and decisions made during the consultation.
The personal skills that are being assessed you will have seen previously in stage 2
· Empathy & Sensitivity: Capacity & motivation to take in others' perspectives & to treat others with understanding
· Communication Skills: Capacity to adjust behaviour & language as appropriate to needs of differing situations
· Conceptual Thinking & Problem Solving: Capacity to think beyond obvious, with analytical and flexible mind
· Coping with Pressure: Capacity to recognise own limitations and develop appropriate coping mechanisms
· Organisation & Planning: Capacity to organise information/time effectively in a planned manner
· Professional Integrity: Capacity & motivation to take responsibility for own actions, demonstrate respect for all
In the context of the actual role play these personal skills could be n the form of:
Your communication and interaction with the patient/relative (both verbal and body language).
Empathy and listening skills, use of the information provided by patient
Means of presenting information to the patient and language used. Whether you achieve a successful outcome to the consultation
How you measure the patients understanding, deal with the patient's concerns and answer their questions
