What makes a good general practitioner?
Competency based selection system for general practitioner registrars
Key competencies for
successful general practitioner performance
- Empathy and sensitivity
- Communication skills
- Clinical knowledge and expertise
- Conceptual thinking and problem solving
- Organising and planning skills
- Professional integrity
- Coping with pressure
- Team involvement and managing others
- Legal, ethical, and political awareness
- Learning and personal development
- Personal attributes (such as flexibility, self motivation)
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Competency models: strong but flexible
The competency model acts as a robust framework with which to assess
performance, but such models are not static. Over time, the needs of
the job role may change, and the underlying skills leading to
successful performance may thus alter. It is therefore important to
adopt a systematic approach whereby constant feedback is used both to
re-evaluate the original competency model and to refine selection
tools.
Benefits of a
competency based selection system
 | More accurate and fair identification of individuals with a greater
potential to become high performing general practitioners |
| Improved self selection for the advertised post, so that attrition
rates are likely to reduce (if candidates are familiar with a profile of
the competencies required they can decide whether they are unsuited to the
role at an earlier stage in the process) |
| More accurately guided training and development activities for general
practitioner registrars |
| Long term, an improved quality of service for patients as new recruits
will be more likely to become high performing general practitioners |
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| Fiona Patterson, course director,
Institute of Work Psychology, University of Sheffield, Sheffield S10 2TN
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| Pat Lane, director of postgraduate general
practice education, North Trent Region, University of
Sheffield |
| Eamonn Ferguson, senior lecturer,
School of Psychology, University of Nottingham |
| Tim Norfolk, research associate,
Institute of Work Psychology, University of Sheffield |
Source:
BMJ Careers Sept 2001
Competency based selection system for general practitioner registrars
Further information 2005:
A new selection system to recruit general practice registrars: preliminary
findings from a validation study -- Patterson et al. 330 (7493): 711 -- BMJ
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