Substantial funds are invested in medical postgraduate training. All training units are therefore accountable for the use of the training funds.

Trainee Entitlements

• 4 hours of training time per week, and
• 12 days of study leave per year.

Weekly training refers to teaching in a formal setting and may be done in the forms of group case discussions, journal discussions and time committed to library research on topics assigned by supervisor, lectures and case discussions organized for groups (e.g. a national training programme).

The study leave can be used to attend medical-related conferences and seminars, and prepare and sit for exams that are related to the trainees' specialist training.

Click here  for Circular on 'General Guideline on leave taken during traineeship'.

The Trainee Assessment System

The system is formative assessment, ie regular assessments, rather than a summative assessment (one report or exam at end of posting). Each trainee must be assigned one training supervisor (mentor) for the duration of his/her posting. The training supervisor is expected to review the trainee's logbook and discuss his/her training progress regularly.

At the end of each posting, trainees will be required to give feedback on the quality of training provided by the training units in the institutions. This, together with assessments done by STCs, will form the assessment of the quality of training given by the training units. The feedback and assessments will be based on a rating scale of 1-10. The trainee's feedback is important for assessment for funding.

Role of Associate Deans (ADs)/ Educational Directors

In matters related to postgraduate training, the Associate Deans / Education Directors (or equivalent, i.e., training coordinators in the Statutory Boards and Polyclinics) ensure that clinical supervisors comply with the training requirements set by the relevant training authorities, complete the assessment sections of the trainees's logbooks, and submit regular training reports as directed. The ADs/ EDs will liaise with Heads of Departments in training units and report to JCST and MOH. JCST will assess compliance and quality of training.

ADs/ EDs (or equivalent) will be responsible for monitoring and collating the returns of training deliverables for submission to JCST. MOH will disburse funding to the training institutions based on the training deliverables achieved for each trainee.

Training Facilitation

The training institutions can facilitate the implementation of good quality training, and each trainee also has a crucial role to play in order to benefit from the training system that has been put in place.

Role of Specialist Trainee

• Ensure that you've been issued a log book.
• Document in your log book every training activity and CME activity.
• Work out the training goals/assessments from the first meeting with your designated supervisor.
• Document all the study leave you have taken.
• Arrange to meet your designated supervisor at least once a month and document this activity. At each of these meetings, you should receive feedback about your training progress/deficiencies and ways to improve or correct these gaps.
• During the interviews with the STCs after your posting, the STCs will check your log books and ask you if there are deficiencies in your training. So be prepared to give an accurate assessment of your training. At these interview sessions, you should similarly receive feedback about your training progress/deficiencies and ways to improve and correct these gaps.