The GP+ Careers Podcast

This month we are joined by Dr Ayesha Mahmud, a salaried GP, TPD, ICB lead and Faculty Education Lead with a special interest in Learning Disabilities and Autism. Ayesha describes how her GP career path changed due to her passion for advocating for patients with learning disabilities. She also outlines her achievements within this area of work and highlights of the role. Top tips: You can always change direction of travel – Ayesha previously had a background in minor surgery and changed to learning disabilities as it was a passion of hers with a personal meaning to drive change Find your Tribe – Ayesha recommends exploring the RCGP Special Interest Group for Learning Disabilities where you can connect with those who share your special interest, expand your networks and opportunities and learn from each other  Raise awareness of your work – If you are working to improve the quality of patient care for those with learning disabilities, it is important to raise awareness of this as it can lead to more joined up thinking and improved patient outcomes Expand your knowledge - Ayesha highly recommends the RCGP One Day Essentials courses for different topics which are now free to members to book Small changes can be rewarding – Implementing small changes in your practice can be hugely beneficial to patients. Ayesha provides an example of this whereby her GP Practice has an alert system set up for a patient on the learning disability register, so the receptionist is notified and can try to make reasonable adjustments for them such as a longer appointment time. Dr Ayesha Mahmud is a salaried GP, TPD, ICB lead and Faculty Education Lead. She has special interest in Learning Disabilities and Autism. She is deeply committed to enhancing the quality of care for individuals with Learning Disabilities and works actively to reduce health inequalities in healthcare system. Further reading Post graduate qualification PGCert Learning Disability and/or Autism | Edge Hill RCGP Special Interest Group for Learning Disabilities with contact and joining details Learning disabilities group RCGP One Day Essentials on Learning Disabilities - free to attend RCGP One Day Essentials conferences New to Practice fellowship schemes possibly available across different regions (check with your local commissioners about fellowship opportunities in their area) New to Practice GP Fellowships Regular webinars & meetings are held by British Institute for Learning Disabilities Membership | bild Palliative care planning for people with Learning Disabilities End Of Life Care Planning | The Victoria And Stuart Project Fairhealth  Free learning resources to help reduce Health Inequalities  Learning Disability Friendly Badge Learning Disability Friendly Badge - Happy Healthy Lives Ayesha’s awards - The Martin Wilkinson Award at RCGP Midland Faculty Award and the Highly Commended Best Collaborative Award at the RCGP Inspire Awards 2024 COVENTRY & WARWICKSHIRE LEARNING DISABILITY FRIENDLY BADGE RECOGNISED WITH TWO RCGP AWARDS - Happy Healthy Lives Tell us what you thought! Please take 2 minutes to complete the survey about this episode.

This month we hear from Dr Egbe Efefaroro, a GP who took up an interest in Undergraduate Medical Education at Keele University. Egbe talks to Sophie about her love for teaching her Year four medical students, how she got into the role and her advice for those interested in pursuing a career in this area. Top tips:  Gain taster experience: Get involved with your local medical school for example as a casual tutor; personal development tutor; GP tutor for students assigned to your practice or volunteer as OSCE examiner. If interested, send an email to the medical school about any opportunities to get involved It’s a win-win: You can learn a lot from teaching and interacting with students. Egbe says that this keeps her fresh and up to date with the latest guidelines which is also useful for her own learning and professional development. This in turn also benefits her patients in general practice which is a win-win!  Do I need additional qualifications? Egbe recommends obtaining a postgraduate degree in Medical Education i.e PgCert, PgDip or Masters - offered by various universities either in-situ or online, usually as a part time programme to allow learners to do it alongside their clinical work. Egbe did the one at Keele University.  Do a ‘Teach the Teachers’ course. This is a two-day course designed to help clinicians learn about educational concepts and techniques to deliver effective clinical teaching sessions. This is offered free by some universities for clinicians who have contact with their medical student Become a role model: Inspire the next generation of doctors through your love of teaching and general practice. Share your interesting cases with your students, what surprised you? How did you deal with difficult situations? This may in turn inspire and encourage them to pursue a career in general practice. During a time of recruitment and retention crises in general practice this may help to future proof the profession.  Dr Egbe Efefaroro is a GP in Stoke-on-Trent and a Clinical Lecturer in Medical Education in the School of Medicine at Keele University Staffordshire.      Further reading Teach the teachers course https://teachthedrteacher.com/   Postgraduate Clinical Education - Keele University www.keele.ac.uk/study/postgraduatestudy/postgraduatecourses/clinicaleducation/ In Practice fellowship https://www.nihr.ac.uk/explore-nihr/academy-programmes/integrated-academictraining.htm#four     Tell us what you thought! Please take 2 minutes to complete the survey about this episode.

This week, Dr Sophie Lumley interviews Dr Rachel Taylor, a GP partner, Trainer, Appraiser and Mentor who works mainly as a GP but also in sexual health clinics. Rachel outlines her career journey, ideas of how to get into this area of work and her highlights of the role.  Top tips:  Consider the motivation for the role: Be very clear what your drivers are for taking on the additional role e.g. is it an area you have a passion for, is it to have more flexibility in your career or even increase your income? Once you have established your ‘why’ seek out the opportunities.   Embrace the flexibility: Your life can change over the years with family and career commitments but you can find a role to suit you. You may be able to pick up shifts in your local sexual health clinics to suit your schedule.  Increase your competence with a qualification: There are qualifications such as the DFSRH which fits very well with general practice with a very well resourced, accessible website and achievable qualification if you are already doing your GP training.   Start your search close to home: Not sure where to start? Rachel recommends contacting your local gynae clinics and offer to sit in and speak to the team about opportunities available. Most local sexual health services are run by public health which is another option to explore. You could also join webinars/events on sexual health and contact those who are teaching on it directly about opportunities or further study.  There may be funding available: If you want to gain expertise in sexual health ask your practice if they can fund you to train in fitting coils/implants, but you should also be prepared to fund yourself or do it in your own time. Another option for funding could be through a fellowship scheme. Sometimes bursaries are available which could be used to backfill some of your time or pay for you to go on courses and enable you to work elsewhere.  Dr Rachel Taylor is a GP Partner, Trainer, Appraiser and Mentor. She has a special interest in Sexual Health and is a DFSRH Faculty Trainer. She works mainly as a GP but has always worked in Sexual Health clinics to support her interest, clinical skills and awareness in this area.   Further reading The Faculty of Sexual & Reproductive Healthcare https://www.fsrh.org/   RCGP Women's Health Library https://elearning.rcgp.org.uk/course/index.php?categoryid=57   RCGP Women's Health Toolkit https://elearning.rcgp.org.uk/mod/book/view.php?id=12534   RCGP Gynaecology and Women's Health Hub https://elearning.rcgp.org.uk/course/view.php?id=772   FSRH Diploma https://www.fsrh.org/education-and-training/diploma/   British Menopause Society https://thebms.org.uk/   West Midlands Association for Contraception and Sexual Health https://wmcash.org.uk/   Tell us what you thought! Please take 2 minutes to complete the survey about this episode.

In this episode we hear from Dr Alistair Robertson, a GP with a special interest in frailty speak to Dr Sophie Lumley about his experience of getting into this area of work, how to seek out opportunities in frailty if you want to get involved and his downsides and highlights of the role. Top tips:  Make the most out of your networks - Seek out any hospital frailty teams or your GP practice the frailty lead. Don’t be afraid to speak to them to find out how to get involved, do some home visits or basic frailty or comprehensive geriatric assessments to familiarise yourself with the work Upskill yourself – It's always helpful to increase your knowledge base on frailty by completing a diploma in geriatric medicine for example, but it’s not essential when starting out Determine what sort of doctor do you want to be - find an area where you can be that doctor that you want to be. It's within every GP to go off and do these things as it's all the things you've learned coming into play that you excel at with our communication, working with other teams and being the hub for the care of the patient Apply yourself – with frailty you don’t need to carry any separate medical skills that other doctors don’t have; it's just you maybe have a little bit more opportunity to apply what you do know  Endless learning opportunities – frailty is an area of work that is growing exponentially year on year due to an ageing population. You have a chance to learn from your team and your patients which is an exciting addition to the ‘day to day’ GP role.   Dr Alistair Robertson is a former EDM Record Producer who retrained as a doctor and went on to specialise as a frailty doctor, with a particular special interest in headaches on the side.    Further reading  RCGP GPwER in Frailty Framework https://www.rcgp.org.uk/your-career/gp-extended-roles/purpose-of-frailty    Joining the dots: A blueprint for preventing and managing frailty in older people https://www.bgs.org.uk/Blueprint  Podcast with learning resources on frailty and elderly care: https://thehearingaidpodcasts.org.uk/  Understanding how integrated care systems are supporting older people; case studies on integrated care https://www.england.nhs.uk/integratedcare/resources/case-studies/integrated-care-in-action-older-peoples-care/  Diploma in geriatric medicine  https://www.rcplondon.ac.uk/diploma-geriatric-medicine  Tell us what you thought! Please take 2 minutes to complete the survey about this episode.

In this episode, Dr Sophie Lumley interviewed Dr Nadia Tharib, a GP with an interest in expedition medicine, mountain medicine, tropical and humanitarian medicine. Find out how Nadia got into this field of work, the challenges and the highlights of her role and more! Top tips  The variety is unmatched - From following a group of teenagers doing a Duke of Ed to going to going to Mount Everest basecamp, there is huge variation in what constitutes as expedition medicine Educate yourself - There are courses available to provide education in expedition medicine. There are also diplomas and masters level qualifications. These are a great way to build your knowledge and confidence and to network with like-minded people but they are not essential to be an expedition medic Make friends for life - Expedition medicine is an exciting opportunity to meet a range of really interesting people, make friends for life and share your incredible stories with your patients in your day to day GP job!  It’s never too early to start - Don’t be afraid to explore courses you are interested in early on in your GP career journey. Nadia completed an expedition medicine course in her F2 which helped her to think on her feet and improvise – great skills that compliment everyday general practice Trust your gut - In expedition medicine, have the confidence to recognise a sick patient when you see one and be prepared to potentially manage them on your own.  Is it for you? Nadia advises to go on a trip as a member first to find out if you enjoy expedition medicine, as it may not be suitable for everyone. For example being ‘on-call’ during the expeditions in often hostile environments whilst always remaining calm and positive can be challenging.  Dr Nadia Tharib is a GP Partner in Shropshire. She has an interest in expedition medicine, mountain medicine, tropical and humanitarian medicine. Nadia holds the UIAA Diploma in Mountain Medicine and the Diploma in Tropical Medicine and Hygiene.   Further reading  The Adventure Medic website: https://www.theadventuremedic.com/  Raleigh International website: https://raleighinternational.org/  World Extreme website: https://worldextrememedicine.com/   Tell us what you thought! Please take 2 minutes to complete the survey about this episode.