In addition to sessions in the Clinical Skills Education Centre (CSEC), first- and second-year students are assigned in small groups to ‘Clinical Experience’ sessions which are led by GP and Hospital tutors one afternoon each week.

The primary objective of this Clinical Experience course is to enthuse students in the art of medicine and provide opportunity for real patient encounters so that they can practise their Clinical skills whilst linking in remotely, or whilst on the hospital ward or in the General Practice setting.  

Overview Clinical Experience for Teachers Year 1 and 2 for 2023-24

The Year 2 Tutor information meeting took place on Monday 11th September 2023. Here is the video recording

Year 2 clinical experience tutor slide set Sept 2023

Year 1 Spring

Teachers have 6 weeks of Clinical Experience teaching (Tuesday or Friday). The main focus is on history taking practise with patients who have Respiratory, Cardiovascular or musculoskeletal complaints. Each student attends 3 teaching sessions, so teachers deliver the same topic for 2 weeks and have 2 groups of students. This teaching is delivered via Zoom rather than in-practice.  

Year 2 Autumn

Teachers have 10 weeks of Clinical Experience teaching (Monday or Thursday). Students will each attend 5 face-to-face teaching sessions in small groups of 4-5 students. Sessions focus on clinical skills relating to Gastroenterology, Endocrine & Neurological systems.

Year 2 Spring 

Teachers have 8 weeks of Clinical Experience teaching (Monday or Thursday).  Students will each attend 4 face-to-face teaching sessions in small groups of 4-5 students. They will value spending time with real patients, practising and integrating all the clinical skills that they have learned in the first 2 years of this course as they prepare for their OSCE (Objective Structured Clinical Examination). 

For year 2 teaching the tutor’s practice will need to be within an acceptable travel distance of the university (usually within a 15 mile radius of QUB campus) or on a direct public transport route.  

If you are taking students for the first time, here are a few additional points to consider: 

• Sessions are timetabled between 2-5pm 
• Supportive training for this teaching will be provided 
• Teaching Resources are available on the Medical Education Portal  
• Teaching in Clinical Experience sessions should closely reflect what has been taught in CSEC and a teacher Guideline is provided for reference. 
• Direct Observation of Clinical Skills ( DOCS)  is a formative feedback exercise that should be completed for each student during the programme of teaching ( full details will be provided at training and via the portal as from 2023/24 this will take the form of a ‘Mini-CEX’ log being completed on the student’s device) 
• The students are also undertaking Family Attachment and Clinical  
  Communication skills tutorials. 

If you would like further information or guidance please contact diane.wilson@qub.ac.uk OR request a phonecall by contacting GPadmin@qub.ac.uk