2021 Curriculum for a CCT in Anaesthetics

The curriculum is a crucial document for ensuring the quality and consistency of training and assessment. It must be referred to throughout training, as the anaesthetists in training record evidence demonstrating their developing skills and knowledge, which progressing towards achievement of the HLOs.

The curriculum should be used to help design training programmes locally that ensure all anaesthetists in training can develop the necessary skills and knowledge in a variety of settings and situations. The curriculum is designed to ensure it can be applied in a flexible manner, meeting service needs as well as supporting each anaesthetist in training’s own tailored learning and development plan.

This curriculum, Matrix of Progression, and ARCP guidance documents are available via the RCoA website.

Clinical and educational supervisors should use the curriculum, Matrix of Progression and ARCP guidance documents as the basis of their discussion with anaesthetists in training, particularly during the appraisal process. Both trainers and anaesthetists in training are expected to have a good knowledge of the curriculum and should use it as a guide for their training programme.

Each anaesthetist in training will engage with the curriculum by maintaining a record of their progress on the LLp. The anaesthetist in training will use the curriculum to develop learning objectives and reflect on learning experiences. Anaesthetists in training will have different strengths and areas of interest, and so may be able to demonstrate achievement of some learning outcomes at different rates. Where an anaesthetist in training has already achieved the required level of attainment in a learning outcome at a particular stage of training, they may record evidence against a higher stage learning outcome if it is agreed to be relevant and appropriate.

Recording progress on the Lifelong Learning platform (LLp)

On enrolling with the RCoA anaesthetists in training will be given access to the LLp. The platform allows evidence to be built up to inform decisions on an anaesthetist in training’s progress and provides tools to support their education and development.

The anaesthetist in training’s main responsibilities are to ensure their LLp record is kept up to date, arrange SLEs and ensure they are recorded, prepare drafts of appraisal forms, maintain their PDP, record their reflections on learning and record their progress through the curriculum.

The supervisor’s main responsibilities are to use the LLp evidence such as outcomes of SLEs, reflections and PDPs to inform appraisal meetings. They are also expected to update the anaesthetist in training’s record of progress through the curriculum, write end-of-attachment appraisals and supervisor’s reports.

Deaneries, TPDs, College Tutors and ARCP panels will use the LLp to monitor the progress of anaesthetists in training for whom they are responsible. The RCoA will use summarised, anonymous LLp data to support its work in quality assurance.

All appraisal meetings, personal development plans and SLEs (including MSF) should be recorded in the LLp. Anaesthetists in training are encouraged to reflect on their learning experiences and to record these in the LLp. Reflections can be kept private or shared with supervisors.

Reflections, SLEs and other LLp content should be used to provide evidence towards acquisition of curriculum requirements.

Ongoing management of the curriculum by the RCoA

The RCoA Training, Assessment and Curriculum Committee has developed a process to allow for regular review of the curriculum to ensure it remains fit for purpose, reflecting current training and service needs.

A dedicated email address for the 2021 Anaesthetics Curriculum is the conduit through which stakeholders will be able to submit proposed revisions to the examples of evidence and range of clinical contexts that anaesthetists in training may use to support their achievement of the key capabilities, as well as suggested assessment methods, at each stage of training.

A sub-group of the Training, Assessment and Curriculum Committee has been established to review and either approve or reject the proposed revisions on an annual basis. Should any revisions be proposed to the High-Level Learning Outcomes (HLOs) or the Key Capabilities (mandatory), amendments will only be made where a clear rationale exists for doing so, such as where it is necessary to address patient safety concerns or reflect a significant change in contemporary anaesthetic practice, and every effort will be made to minimise any negative impact on anaesthetists in training.

Following submission to and approval from the GMC as the regulatory body, updated curriculum annexes will be issued prior to the start of the training year, making clear, using the version tracking table at the front of each document, what amendments have been made on each occasion.