Consultancy

We undertake to review programmes of assessment for any undergraduate or postgraduate health professional education organisation. Depending on requirements, we review documents, hold meetings and suggest changes in line with international best practice evidence, tailored to local contexts.
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We can also assist in designing new programmes of assessment, with consultation and advisory meetings and faculty development workshops to support the progress of implementing high quality assessments.

Our services are tailored to individual institutional / organizational requirements.

Please contact us here for further discussions on how we might best assist you, and for consideration of fees.

For UK GMC

As HPAC were commissioned to produce a report for the UK GMC on best practices in curriculum and assessment, to inform their SCAR (Standards in Curriculum and Assessment Review), and the publication of their document "Excellence by design: standards for postgraduate curricula", we are in an excellent position to advise and assist the development of assessment programmes which fulfil the GMC requirements.

See Our Report

2024: Consultation Work

  • Review of programme-wide assessment of clinical skills

  • Review of high stakes graduation level OSCEs

2021 - 2023: Consultation Work

  • Review of MFOM Part 2

  • Review of entire UCLMS assessment system

  • Consultancy and Faculty Development the Formative Assessment Project, covering all postgraduate medical training programmes in the country

    • External review of graduation examinations (2021)

    • Consultancy and Faculty Development on Assessment (OSCEs) (2022)

    • External review of Recorded Consultation Assessment (RCA)

    • External Review of Foundation Portfolio Assessment

    • Consultancy and Faculty Development on Assessment (OSCEs and WBA)

    • Consultancy and Faculty Development on Assessment (WBA)

2015 - 2019: Consultation Work

  • Consultancy on development of workplace based assessment for postgraduate training across Malaysia

  • Consultancy and Faculty Development on clinical examinations for licensing overseas qualified veterinary surgeons

  • Review of OSCE system for their membership examinations

    • 10-year Review of the MRCGP examinations programme (In progress)

    • Review of the Australian Dental Council Examinations for overseas trained dental practitioners who are seeking registration with the DBA to practise in Australia (In progress)

    • Reviewing documentation for the National Commission for Academic Accreditation and Assessment

    • Review of submission for Australian Medical Council recognition

    • Katharine Boursicot was invited to Leeds to consult with the Faculty of Dentistry and the Leaders of the Physician Associates Course, to review and evolve their assessment programmes.

    • Review of current assessment system and regulations; advice on possible changes of direction based on best evidence in the literature and good practice (Katharine Boursicot)

2014 and earlier: Consultation Work

    • Awarded contract by the Royal College of Radiologists (UK) to review examinations for the Fellowships in Clinical Radiology and Clinical Oncology. (Richard Fuller, Trudie Roberts, John Patterson, Katharine Boursicot)

    • Full documentation as well as the College's response can be viewed here

  • Advice on constructive alignment and design of new tests of clinical competence for certification (Katharine Boursicot)

  • In 2014 Katharine Boursicot was invited to be the External Reviewer for the national Australian Collaboration for Clinical Assessment in Medicine (ACCLAiM)

  • Advice to assist the faculties to develop assessment strategies to and improve test design and post-test analyses (John Patterson)

  • John Patterson was contracted as Assessment Consultant to the Faculties of Medicine, Veterinary Science and Dentistry at the University of Bristol. This one-year, part-time contract was to assist the faculties to develop assessment strategies to and improve test design and post-test analyses

  • Trudie Roberts was invited to chair the Professional Education Advisory Committee (PEAC) of the International Medical University (IMU) in Malaysia, which provides advice and guidance to the IMU on all matters relating to the education and training of students enrolled in the professional undergraduate, postgraduate and continuing professional development (CPD) programmes of the IMU.

    • Katharine Boursicot, Richard Fuller, Trudie Roberts, and John Patterson have all been GMC Associates involved with QABME Visits.

    • Katharine Boursicot was a member of the PLAB Part 2 Panel for 12 years and was then invited to sit on the PLAB Review Panel (2013). The Final Report of the Review of the GMC's PLAB test can be seen here

    • Richard Fuller and John Patterson were involved in assessment related work including review of UK undergraduate medical assessments. The final report written by GMC staff but based on this work is seen here

    • 2012: Workshops on blueprinting and item writing (Katharine Boursicot)

    • 2013: Workshops on item writing and standard setting (Katharine Boursicot)

    • 2014: Workshops on designing and implementing OSCEs (Sydney Smee)

    • 2015: Workshops on standard setting for OSCEs and Examiner Training (Sydney Smee)

    • John Patterson (since 2012): consultant for production of final scores, pass-lists and statistical analysis of Part 1 and Part 2 examinations for the Membership of the Joint Dental faculties of the Royal College of Surgeons of England

    • Advice to postgraduate medical diploma Examination Boards managed by the WSA, in order for their assessments to become PMETB (Postgraduate Medical Education and Training Board) compliant

    • Diploma in HIV Medicine

    • Diploma in Genitourinary Medicine

    • Diploma in Forensic Medical Sciences

    • Diploma in the Forensic and Clinical Aspects of Sexual Assault(Katharine Boursicot and John Patterson)