Practice Manager Guide - General Practice and Primary Health Care ...

Practice Manager
Guide
Primary Care
Community
Base
2012
MELBOURNE
MEDICAL
SCHOOL

Contents
Introduction .............................................................................................................................................. 3
Website details ..................................................................................................................................... 3
On-line community forum .................................................................................................................... 3
Contact details .......................................................................................................................................... 4
Primary Care Community Base team roles ............................................................................................... 5
DGP Roles .............................................................................................................................................. 5
Clinical School Roles .............................................................................................................................. 6
Primary Care Community Base Staff Roles ........................................................................................... 6
PCCB dates 2012 ....................................................................................................................................... 7
PCCB Tutorial dates ............................................................................................................................... 7
Subject information Primary Care Community Base (PCCB) .................................................................... 8
Description ............................................................................................................................................ 8
Learning Outcomes ............................................................................................................................... 8
Student Attendance Requirements ...................................................................................................... 8
Tasks for Practice Managers ..................................................................................................................... 9
Preparing for the Placement ................................................................................................................. 9
Student orientation ............................................................................................................................... 9
Facilitating student learning ............................................................................................................... 10
Sample Timetable for the first 4 weeks PCCB ..................................................................................... 11
Roles and Responsibilities for Medical Students at their Primary Care Community Base ..................... 12
Clinic responsibilities to the student................................................................................................... 12
Student responsibilities to the clinic ................................................................................................... 13
Teaching and Learning Activities at the PCCB ......................................................................................... 14
Legal and Safety Issues ........................................................................................................................... 15
1

Vocational Placement Agreement ...................................................................................................... 15
Teaching Practice Standards ............................................................................................................... 16
Incident Reporting .............................................................................................................................. 17
Unprofessional student behaviour ..................................................................................................... 17
Procedure for obtaining patient consent............................................................................................ 18
Patient Consent Form ......................................................................................................................... 19
Practice Remuneration Process .............................................................................................................. 21
Sample attendance form for clinical placement ..................................................................................... 22
2

Introduction
The Primary Care Community Base educational model heralds an exciting new era in teaching University
of Melbourne medical students. From 2012, all medical students based at the Northern and Western
Clinical Schools will attend their assigned Primary Care Practice for 1 day per week for Years 2 and 3 of
their medical course.
The program was piloted in 2011 at three clinics in the northern and western regions of Melbourne and
the findings of that pilot have been an enormous asset to our preparation for the launch of this model in
2012. We wish to acknowledge the practice staff, patients, medical students and University of
Melbourne staff who contributed their knowledge and expertise to the development and
implementation of this model.
This handbook provides an overview of the administrative aspects of the program for Practice
Managers. It is designed to complement the GP supervisor handbook that contains details regarding the
teaching and learning aspects of the program. There is some overlap between the two in the opening
pages.
Website details
We have established a dedicated website for the GP Teaching Network of the Department of General
Practice, University of Melbourne. This has sections for GP Teachers/Practice Managers and for
students, and contains much of the information that you will need to facilitate the placements.
This includes teaching practice profiles, PDF versions of the handbooks, forms and teaching materials.
The URL is http://www.gp.unimelb.edu.au/pctn/index1.html
On-line community forum
We are establishing an on-line forum for all GP supervisors and practice managers involved in the PCCB.
This will encourage discussion between clinics, the Department of General Practice PCCB team and the
clinical schools. Practice Managers in particular have expressed interest in having the opportunity to get
to know each other to compare experiences and share tips for creating excellent placements for the
students. We will let you know when this becomes available, hopefully from late April 2012.
3

Contact details
The placements are coordinated by a team of academic clinicians at the Western and Northern Clinical
Schools and the Department of General Practice at the University of Melbourne.
For curriculum inquiries contact:
Dr Leonie Griffiths
Northern Clinical School
Deputy Director of Medical Education,
Northern Clinical School, Cooper St, Epping
Ph: 8405 2309
Email: leonieg@unimelb.edu.au
Dr Jenny Schwartz
Western Clinical School
Western Clinical School, Western Centre for Health
Research and Education, Sunshine Hospital
Ph: 8345 1246
Email: jennifer.schwarz@wh.org.au
For clinical school administrative inquiries contact:
Ms Amanda Geddes
Northern Clinical School
Northern Clinical School, Cooper St,
Epping
Ph: 8405 8171
Email: ageddes@unimelb.edu.au
Ms Julie Holland
Western Clinical School
Western Clinical School, Western Centre for Health
Research and Education, Sunshine Hospital
Ph: 8345 6785 (Footscray), 8395-8011 (Sunshine)
Email: j.holland@unimelb.edu.au
For PCCB training, quality assurance and policy inquiries contact:
Assoc Prof Dr Ruth McNair
Department of General Practice, Western Centre for Health Research and Education, Sunshine Hospital,
176 Furlong Rd, St Albans
Ph: 8395 8075 (Sunshine) or 8344 6077 (Carlton);
Email: r.mcnair@unimelb.edu.au
For PCCB administrative inquiries contact:
Ms Narelle Collier
Department of General Practice, 200 Berkeley Street, Carlton, 3053
Ph: 9035 3818 or 8344 7275
Email: narelle.collier@unimelb.edu.au
4

Primary Care Community Base team roles
The PCCB placements are coordinated by two distinct but collaborating groups:
1. Department of General Practice (DGP), University of Melbourne
2. Western and Northern Clinical Schools, University of Melbourne
The respective responsibilities are divided, where the DGP is coordinating the PCCB clinics and the
Clinical Schools are coordinating the students. Therefore, all inquiries about clinics should be directed to
DGP, and all inquires about student issues and by students should be directed to the relevant Clinical
School. The two groups will communicate regularly with each other about all issues.
DGP Roles
Recruitment of PCCB clinics
Training for PCCB staff
o Development of PCCB handbooks
o Face-to-face training
o Development of on-line training modules
PCCB tutorials
o Recruitment and training of tutors
o Arrange tutor contracts and payment
o Developing tutorial content
Communication with PCCB clinics via
o DGP dedicated website
o Regular emails
o Phone calls or visits when needed
Remuneration for PCCB clinics
o Coordinating PIP payments including receiving attendance records from the clinical
schools at the end of each year
o Establishment funding to clinics
Quality Assurance for PCCB clinics including
o Designing and implementing the QA policy
o Ensuring Placement Agreements are signed
o Evaluation of the PCCB experience
o Rewarding clinics
o Remediation for clinics
5

Clinical School Roles
Briefing students on PCCB
Allocation of student groups to clinics
Collection and monitoring of attendance forms via the students, scan and send to DGP for PIP
requirements
Collection and monitoring of professional behaviour checklists via the students or faxed directly
from clinic to clinical school
Student assessment
o Collection of Mini-CEX forms
o Collation of PCCB e portfolio activities including tutorial assessments
Delivery of curriculum
o Providing relevant information to the DGP for dissemination to PCCB clinics
PCCB tutorials
o Timetable PCCB tutorials and allocate tutorial space
Receive student concerns re clinic, and clinic concerns re student and forward to DGP if action is
required regarding clinic quality assurance
Primary Care Community Base Staff Roles
Based on the experience of the PCCB pilot, it was clear that students benefited from contact with a
variety of members of the health care team working in general practice.
Practice Manager
The Practice Manager will have a central role in coordinating the student activities at the clinic:
Provide a student orientation on the clinic procedures, staff and facilities
Facilitate access to computer medical records, consulting rooms and reference materials
Timetable student activities each day and monitor student attendance
GP supervisor
Each student will have a nominated GP supervisor at their clinic. The supervisor roles include:
Assist with student orientation to the clinical aspects of the clinic
Provide dedicated teaching time with their student each placement day, including providing
feedback on progress and facilitating the completion of individual learning planner activities
Ensure student safety including appropriate clinical supervision at home visits, external facilities,
allied health and specialist services
Contribute to student assessment including the mini-CEX and professional behaviour checklist
Practice nurse (and allied health staff)
Most students will have the opportunity to work with the practice nurses, who can involve students in:
Patient immunisation sessions
Patient education sessions e.g. smoking cessation, asthma education, medication management
Chronic disease management plans and Health assessments
Wound management
Other procedural skills such as ECG, venepuncture, spirometry
6

PCCB dates 2012
Week beginning PCP 2 Rotation PCCB activity
6 th February Foundation term Introduction lecture
12th March Foundation 1st PCCB tutorial, and meet the GP event
19th March Foundation First PCCB visit (half day)
26 th March Foundation Second PCCB visit (half day)
6th - 13th April
16th April
Easter break
Term 2
(med/surg/amb care)
Weekly PCCB visits for 8 weeks
Two tutorials during the term
11 th June Intersession
18 th June Mid-year break
2 nd July Student conference
9 th July
3rd Sept
10 th Sept
Term 3
(med/surg/amb care)
Intersession
Term 4
(med/surg/amb care)
Weekly PCCB visits for 8 weeks
Two tutorials during the term
Weekly PCCB visits for 8 weeks
Two tutorials during the term
5 th Nov Intersession
PCCB Tutorial dates
There will be seven tutorials throughout the year focusing on the Primary Care Community Base
experience. Each Clinical School group will be allocated to one GP tutor for the year. Tutorials will occur
at the Clinical School during approximately the following weeks.
Tutorial 1 - week of 12th March (week 6)
Tutorial 2 - week of 30th April (Term 2- week 3)
Tutorial 3 - week of 28 May (Term 2- week 7)
Tutorial 4 - week of 23 July (Term 3- week 3)
Tutorial 5 - week of 20 Aug (Term 3- week 7)
Tutorial 6 - week of 17 Sept (Term 4- wk 2)
Tutorial 7 - week of 15 Oct (Term 4-wk 6)
7

Subject information Primary Care Community Base (PCCB)
Description
As part of the subject Principles of Clinical Practice, all students at the Northern and Western Clinical
Schools will be allocated a Primary Care Community Base (PCCB) at a general practice within the
northern or western region of Melbourne. During second and third year of the MD course, you will
spend one day each week (to a total of up to 28 weeks across each year) on PCCB placement.
The aim of these placements is to ensure students learn about the community context of health care
within the standard medical curriculum. In particular, they will be given the opportunity to understand
the patient journey through the health care system and to learn about continuity and the breadth of
primary care. The PCCB placement will provide them with a community-based clinician mentor (their GP
supervisor) and increase their access to a broad range of patients and community health services. Via
these placements, we hope they will become part of a multidisciplinary primary health care team and
gain a better understanding of inter-professional practice. It is intended that they will contribute to the
work of the clinic and participate in improving the health of the local community.
Learning Outcomes
To identify gaps in your clinical knowledge that can be addressed in the PCCB setting
To recognise clinical skills (such as interviewing and examining patients) that can be used during
weekly PCCB placements
To discuss the roles of different health professionals in the community-setting and assess the
role of the medical practitioner within the health-care team context
To compare the care needs of patients across hospital and community settings and to prioritize
management according to the setting
To reflect on the optimal mix of knowledge and skills that are required to provide quality health
care in the community setting
To begin to perform as a member of a multi-disciplinary health care team by contributing to the
work of the clinic
Student Attendance Requirements
PCCB placement days are intended to model a real-life work environment. 100% attendance is expected
at placements. Absences must be accounted for by a medical certificate or other documentation. More
importantly, students have been asked to let the practice know as soon as they are aware of being
unable to attend.
8

Tasks for Practice Managers
Students have been notified of the roles of the Practice Manager regarding their placement as on page
6. This section provides a detailed description of these roles. We anticipate, based on our pilot
information, that after the initial preparation phase, the week-to-week tasks should take no more than
30 minutes per week. We anticipate that you will be the primary point of contact between the clinic and
the student’s clinical school. Please alert the clinical school if the student is not attending without
discussion with you, or any other concerns you may have.
Preparing for the Placement
The following tasks are suggested:
Ensure that the Vocational Placement Agreement letter is signed and returned to the
Department of General Practice before the student(s) commence. This is a legal document.
Create a timetable for the student. This will involve negotiating with as many clinical staff as
possible to be involved in the student placement by having students sitting in with them,
attending home or aged care facility visits or other activities. Students can also participate in
clinic meetings and social gatherings over time. An example timetable for the first four weeks is
provided below.
Determine the consenting procedure that you will use to consent patients to see the student(s).
Options are covered below.
Brief reception staff about the consenting procedure.
Student orientation
Students have been asked to contact the clinic before their first day and send a brief bio. You will
receive the student(s)’ name from their clinical school in the days before the placement starts. The
following tasks are suggested to orientate students to your clinic:
Induct students into relevant practice policies and procedures.
Enable student access to medical software and provide overall instruction on how to navigate
the system.
Introduce student(s) to the clinic staff.
Orientate student(s) to the staff lunch room, local eateries, parking, where to go when they
can’t see patients and other clinic logistics.
9

Facilitating student learning
The GP supervisor(s) will have primary responsibility for student learning, however Practice Managers
will play a role. Students will be spending 1 day per week at your clinic and 4 days per week at the
hospital attached to their clinical school (Northern or Western). Their program includes a 9-week
Foundation term and then three rotations of 8-weeks each through ambulatory care, surgery and
medicine. Each term contains different learning objectives and students will come to the clinics with
these objectives in mind. Some of these rotation-specific objectives have particular relevance to the
primary care setting.
We have emphasised to students that they should be prepared to learn about whatever issues patients
are presenting with and not restrict themselves to issues purely related to their current rotation.
However, we have listed some rotation-specific learning outcomes in the student and GP supervisor
handbooks that are most achievable in the primary care setting.
The following tasks are suggested to facilitate student learning:
discuss the list of rotation-specific objectives with the student(s) during the first couple of weeks
of each rotation to identify ways that you can help the student achieve these. These may include
o
o
identifying clinic allied health, GPs or practice nurses with a particular interest in those
topics for the student to sit in with
calling in specific patients known to have relevant medical conditions and who might be
willing to spend time with the student(s) before/after seeing their GP
o planning the student timetable for the following few weeks - suggest a scheduled 15
minute meeting with student every 2-4 weeks to plan their timetable
find times when students could use a free consulting room to see a patient or two alone.
identify clinic referral networks nearby such as the local pharmacy, allied health clinic or
specialist medical clinic that may be interesting for students to visit
assist students to undertake non-patient based activities that might be required from time to
time such as conducting a clinical audit, developing a health promotion activity or a waiting
room survey. Students will need support to find activities that will be useful to the clinic.
coordinate placement paperwork with the student and GP Supervisor such as the assessment
tasks and student access to Curriculum Connect, the University program containing student
learning resources.
10

Sample Timetable for the first 4 weeks PCCB
Aim for students to spend approximately half a day seeing patients with GP Supervisor or other GPs, one
hour per day seeing patients alone, and the rest of the day observing/participating in allied health
sessions or with the practice nurse, or self-directed learning time to identify and plan activity for
learning planner or achieve tasks for PCCB tutorials.
Week 1 (half day*) Week 2 (half day) Week 3 (full day) Week 4 (full day)
0900 Meet with Practice
Manager –
orientation
With Practice nurse
doing a health
assessment
Meet with Practice
Manager to discuss
timetable and
learning needs
With Supervisor,
interviewing,
examining, using
diagnostic skills
1000 Meet with Clinic staff
including
receptionists
Student observes
Supervisor
Attend allied health
session**
Student assists
nurse with Flu
vaccinations
1100 Student observes
Supervisor consulting
Student interviews
patients with
Supervisor
As above
With another GP
1200 Student
observes…followed by
15 minutes briefing
with Supervisor
As above Lunch Student consults
alone – 1 to 2
patients, then with
GP
1230 -
1330
Lunch Lunch Home visit with
supervisor
Lunch
1330 Self directed
learning time
1400 Student interviews
and examines with
Supervisor
1600 Student consults
alone – 1 to 2
patients
1700 Debrief with
supervisor
Observes a booked
procedure
Attends allied
health session
Learning Planner
development
Debrief with
supervisor
* Half days may be a morning or afternoon – you will be informed by the Clinical School
**Allied health sessions may be within the clinic, external allied health provider nearby
11

Roles and Responsibilities for Medical Students at their Primary Care Community Base
This document includes requirements within the standards for primary care clinics supervising medical
students that have been produced by the Department of General Practice, University of Melbourne.
These are based on the RACGP ‘Guidelines for the Supervision of Medical Students in General Practice,
2007’.
Clinic responsibilities to the student
Student teaching and learning
The GP supervisor or their nominee (any clinician) will be available on site to support the
student at all work times
The supervisor will provide ongoing supervision of the student and provide direct student
teaching, using a range of methods such as direct observation, joint consultations, clinical
discussions, formal teaching
The supervisor will provide at least 15 minutes per week per student of protected formal
teaching time when the student is located at the clinic
The supervisor will assist the student to understand the University and clinical school learning
requirements for the term, including facilitating use of the student learning planner
The supervisor will complete any assessment of the student required by the University in a
timely and confidential manner
The clinic will offer the full range of ongoing primary care to all patients who attend, and the
student should be able to see a representative case mix of these patients
The clinic will provide adequate consulting space for the student to see patients alone
(approximately 1 hour per day)
A set of reference materials and patient information materials will be available in the clinic that
can be accessed by the student
Student orientation and support
The supervisor and/or practice manager will provide orientation to the practice ensuring that
the student is:
o briefed on the culture of the clinic
o introduced to all members of staff
o trained to use clinical systems such as electronic medical records
o aware of the location of educational resources, including reference materials
o orientated to practice systems (Environmental Health and Safety and other policies)
The clinic will ensure that the student is adequately debriefed if they are involved in any clinical
critical incident, and that the Clinical School is informed
12

Legal and safety issues
The clinic staff will ensure that student health is not placed at risk
Appropriate consent (preferably written consent) will be obtained from patients who see the
student
Medical records will document student involvement
o record student presence in consultation
o annotate student name/position if they took the notes
o patient consent noted in patient record of the consultation – with written consent
attached, or verbal consent noted.
Student responsibilities to the clinic
The student will be a member of the clinic team.
Student learning
The student will be responsible for creating their own individual learning plan, which will be
facilitated by the GP supervisor
The student will consult the supervisor about the management of all patients
Visits to patients’ homes outside of the clinic will occur only with the Supervisor or their
delegate present
Student professionalism
The student will behave professionally at all times. This includes:
o Punctuality
o Appropriate dress
o Mobile phone and any other hand-held devices will be switched off during consultations
and direct teaching time
The student will inform the clinic if absence is necessary and provide relevant certification
Issues of concern regarding student learning or personal needs that are not met should first be
raised with the GP Supervisor or Practice manager, then to the Clinical School if there is ongoing
concern
Legal and safety issues
The student will
be registered with the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA)
have a current working with children and police check (updated annually)
disclose health issues affecting their own/another’s safety to the GP Supervisor
uphold standards of confidentiality
maintain infection control standards including universal precautions
report any medical incident (such as needle stick injury, patient aggression) to the GP
Supervisor, follow the protocol of the practice, and complete a University incident report form
and send it to their Clinical School
13

Teaching and Learning Activities at the PCCB
The emphasis of teaching and learning in the PCCB setting is on doing clinical tasks and reflecting on
them, rather than simply accumulating factual knowledge or observing. Over the two years, there is a
hierarchy of activities that students will progress through, according to their own confidence and based
on feedback from their GP supervisor:
1. Observing GPs and allied health professionals consulting with patients in the community setting
2. Interviewing and examining patients, under direct observation and then independently
3. Accompanying health professionals on home visits and outreach visits
4. Contributing to the work of the clinic, for example, via completion of Health Assessments,
Chronic Disease Management Plans, writing referrals, following up patient investigation results,
completing an audit of practice medical records or conducting a health promotion activity for
the practice.
5. Logging cases seen and practical skills completed on Curriculum Connect TM
6. Presenting and discussing cases at monthly PCCB tutorials and, when relevant, at the hospital
‘Combined Case of the Week’ meetings.
7. Completion of a Self-directed Learning Planner activity at least once per month (documentation
of a self-identified learning need, record steps to address that need and written reflection on
the outcome). This forms part of your e-portfolio.
8. Peer-reflection on another student’s Learning Planner for discussion in pairs while on placement
and during tutorials, with a brief written reflection provided directly to one peer.
9. Weekly approximately 15 minute session with GP supervisor to assist in meeting Learning
Planner objectives and give and receive feedback about the placement.
10. Conducting long cases with patients and presenting to peers or GP Supervisor.
11. Conducting clinical procedures under direct supervision.
12. Providing information to patients such as giving results, discussing possible diagnoses,
recommending management, and proposing health promotion activities.
13. Critically appraising information received from medical specialists and allied health providers.
A suggested list of subject-specific activities is provided in the GP supervisor handbook. It is anticipated
that after orientation, students will begin with direct observation of practice activities. Students should
however be encouraged to start interacting with patients within one to two weeks of commencing PCCB
placements. Experience from the pilot project indicated that there is some variability in the confidence
of students to commence interviewing and examining patients independently. Similarly, different
practices are able to offer different levels of independent patient contact, usually influenced by room
availability, patient consent and the level of enthusiasm and engagement of the student with the work
of the practice.
14

Legal and Safety Issues
Vocational Placement Agreement
This is a legal document that enables the University of Melbourne to cover the liability for any of its
medical students placed at the clinic, once signed by the practice and returned to the Department of
General Practice. Liability cover is for:
Public Liability Insurance;
Medical Malpractice Insurance; and
Personal Accident Insurance
Under this level of cover, students can interview and conduct physical examination of patients alone,
and can perform tests such as Pap tests with direct supervision. They can also do simple procedures
such as suturing, plastering and cryotherapy under direct supervision. They can attend external health
care facilities such as allied health clinics or aged care facilities unaccompanied if a clinician on site has
agreed to supervise them. They cannot attend patient homes unaccompanied.
Some external facilities and clinics may request evidence that the student insurance is covered by the
University of Melbourne. Supplying a copy of your Vocational Placement Agreement should suffice.
Accident Insurance covers accidents at the clinic and while moving between placement sites, however
does not cover damage to the student’s own car.
15

Teaching Practice Standards
The vocational placement agreement includes an addendum containing the following standards for
teaching practices:
GP Supervisors must fulfill the following:
1. have full and unrestricted registration (apart from geographical restrictions)
2. be an excellent clinician demonstrated by holding the FRACGP or equivalent, or being vocationally
registered, or having a written recommendation from a medical educator employed by a University
or Regional Training Provider. The University has full discretion to determine the compliance of this
condition.
3. have current membership of the RACGP and/or ACRRM, or be actively involved in a primary care
professional organisation
4. undertake at least one professional development event on medical education per year, and prepare
for the University of Melbourne requirements annually
5. provide dedicated teaching time with students at least once per week
6. provide an orientation to the practice for new students
7. ensure that a GP with unrestricted registration (apart from geographic) is always present at the
clinic for student supervision during clinical time
8. ensure student safety including appropriate supervision at home visits, external facilities, allied
health and specialist services
The Teaching clinics must fulfill the following:
9. be accredited by AGPAL or GPA. The University will have full discretion to determine the eligibility of
any unaccredited practice.
10. offer a representative range of primary care patients for student learning
11. provide adequate facilities for students including:
a. access to a consulting room to see patients alone for the equivalent of at least 2 sessions per
week (block terms) or 1 hour per day (weekly terms)
b. access to a computer with internet connection for some of the time during clinic hours
c. access to reference materials and patient information materials
12. have appropriate patient consenting procedures including
a. obtaining the permission of the patient prior to the consultation, preferably by a
receptionist
b. written consent from patients is preferred medico-legally, however verbal consent is
possible
c. documentation of consent in the patient record
16

Incident Reporting
Two possible types of incident would need to be reported to the University:
1. student injury
2. consistently unprofessional student behaviour
Student injury
If the student sustains any injury at the clinic in the course of the placement, such as a needle-stick
injury:
• Follow the appropriate clinical protocol in your practice.
• Notify the student’s clinical school
• Complete a University of Melbourne S3 incident report form at:
http://safety.unimelb.edu.au/docs/Incident_Report_S3.pdf or on the GP Teaching Network
website and send to the student’s clinical school
• Ask the student to see their own GP or the University of Melbourne Health Service for further
follow-up
Unprofessional student behaviour
All clinical and administrative staff who interact with students expect that these interactions, whether
face-to-face, by phone, email, fax or letter - will be respectful. When this is not the case, the staff
member involved should bring this to the attention of the GP supervisor and Practice Manager. They
should encourage the staff member to complete a Professional Behaviour Checklist form. A copy of the
form is in the GP supervisor handbook and is available for download on the GP Teaching Network
website:
www.gp.unimelb.edu.au/pctn/index1.html
The form should be completed and sent to the student’s clinical school.
17

Procedure for obtaining patient consent
Medico-legally, we are advised that all patients should be consented before they see the medical
student. The method of consenting varies from practice to practice, however the best-practice principles
are:
1. To have a notice visible in the waiting room announcing the presence of the medical student at
the practice
2. To provide patients who might see the student with an information sheet about the purpose of
the student presence (see Forms section)
3. To obtain consent from the patient before they see the student
a. Preferably the consent is written
b. Consent may be verbal
4. To document the consent in the patient’s record for that day – scan the consent form or
annotate the record
In general, the reception staff would be involved in steps 2 to 4, so they will require briefing prior to the
placement commencing. In some practices, the GP supervisor chooses to take responsibility for the
consent process and documentation.
Waiting room sign
A laminated sign has been included with this handbook that is designed to be displayed in your waiting room.
The purposes are:
• To alert patients of student presence
• To express gratitude for their role
• To provide an opt-out for patients
• To highlight that the clinic is endorsed
as a University of Melbourne teaching
practice
18

Patient Consent Form
The following form is suggested. This is also available on the GP Teaching Network website:
http://www.gp.unimelb.edu.au/pctn/index1.html
You could choose to download and modify the form to suit your clinic. Forms in other languages can be
generated if needed. Please let the Department of General Practice know if this would be useful and
which language groups are most important at your clinic.
UNIVERSITY OF MELBOURNE
PATIENT INFORMATION AND CONSENT FORM
Introduction
The University of Melbourne, General Practice and Primary Health Care Academic Centre has a long
history of providing medical education for doctors of the future. An important part of medical teaching
is done in the General Practice setting. This gives students the chance to have real life exposure to the
many issues that confront General Practitioners today
Your practice has agreed to take medical students. The placement occurs under the supervision of
doctors in this practice; and is not offered as a substitute for your usual care, but an addition to it.
The student(s) attached to this practice maybe from varied course levels. The student(s) you see today
are from the category ticked below:
First year Doctor of Medicine
This is the students’ first interaction with general practice patients.
They will be observing consultations and where possible interviewing patients.
Second year Doctor of Medicine
Students have some experience of interviewing patients in the hospital
setting but are gaining further experience in the general practice setting.
They will be interviewing patients, observing consultations, and gaining
an understanding of how a general practice operates.
Second & Third year Doctor of Medicine (Primary Care Community Base)
Students attending the northern or western clinical schools attend a general
practice one day per week for two years. Depending on their experience,
these students will be interviewing and examining patients, developing plans for
patient care, and where possible, following patients care over time, both in the
hospital and community setting.
19

Third year Doctor of Medicine/Final Year Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery
Students will be spending five to six weeks in the general practice setting and will
benefit most from spending time with patients; interviewing and examining, planning
management and advising patients on relative aspects of their care.
Informed Consent and Privacy
Both students and GPs are aware of the ethical standards involved in a consultation. Students have been
notified that at all times they are expected to maintain doctor-patient confidentiality. Please inform the
reception staff if you would rather not see a medical student for all or part of your consultation with
your GP today. This decision will in no way affect your medical care.
I ________________________________________________, have read the information provided and
consent to seeing a medical student today. I understand that I may withdraw this consent at any time.
Signed: ________________________________________________________
Date: _________________________________________________________
20

Practice Remuneration Process
• Eligible practices are entitled to claim the Practice Incentive Payment (PIP) for teaching students
• the current rate is $100 per session up to a maximum of two sessions per day. A session is
defined at a minimum of 3 hours.
• Where there are two students placed at one practice, each student must have a different GP
Supervisor for the practice to be able to claim PIP payments for both students.
• Students and supervisors must sign an attendance form to be submitted to the student’s clinical
school at the end of each rotation.
• The Clinical School will forward the attendance form to the Department of General Practice who
will generate a PIP form noting the number of sessions per student.
• The PIP form is then sent to practices to sign and send to Medicare
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Sample attendance form for clinical placement
This form is just a sample form. Students will be provided with a separate form for each of the student rotating terms.
Primary Care Community Base
ATTENDANCE FORM FOR CLINICAL PLACEMENT 2012
Foundation and Term 2: 19 March – 8 June 2012
Name of Doctor:
Practice Name:
Address of Practice:
Suburb:
Telephone No:
________________________________________________
________________________________________________
________________________________________________
___________________________ Postcode: __________
________________________________________________
Student Name: _____________________________________
Student ID: ________________________________________
Week Date Sessions Attended Notes Week Date Sessions Attended Notes
Morning
Morning
Week 1
Afternoon
Half day (tick one box
Week 6
Afternoon
only)
Morning
Morning
Afternoon
Half day (tick one box
Afternoon
Week 2
only) Week 7
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Morning
Afternoon
Morning
Afternoon
Week 3
Week 8
Morning
Afternoon
Morning
Afternoon
Week 4
Week 9
Morning
Afternoon
Morning
Afternoon
Week 5
Week 10
Students Signature
for Certification
GP Signature
for Certification
Date
Please tick AM or PM for sessions attended; students should attend 2 sessions per day.
Note to the GP Supervisor: for the purposes of the PIP payment, the Health Insurance Commission have deemed a session to be one where the University has asked
The GP to be responsible for the student’s learning experience.
This form is to be returned to the student’s Clinical School administration office at the end of the term
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