2022 Scottish Medical Appraisers Annual Conference
NES ran the 2022 Scottish Medical Education Conference (SMEC) via remote technology following a positive response from last year, of which the Scottish Medical Appraisers Conference was a part of on 28 April 2022. Improvements were made following user suggestions, and this was reflected by the feedback received. Many users complimented on the flexibility and engagement the remote sessions offered, as well as the improved platform and format from last year.
There were near 1600 delegates who attended the two-day SMEC. There was an average of around 200 people attending the Appraisers conference sessions. Back when we ran in-person conferences at the EICC, our conference workshops usually averaged 30-40 max per session.
“Wellbeing” was a welcomed theme threaded throughout the workshops and plenary session. Brigid Russell (Coach and Leadership Consultant) and Emma Murphy (NHS Dumfries & Galloway - Patient Feedback Manager) were the guest speakers at the plenary, who spoke on and presented webinars on “Making Space for listening” and “Dispute Resolution: Managing Conflicts” respectively.
Guest Speaker Emma Murphy (NHS Dumfries and Galloway) presents a webinar on Dispute Resolution and Managing Conflicts
Drs Christiane Shrimpton and Mimi Cogliano (Deputy Primary Care Appraisal Lead in NHS Borders and NHS Lothian) ran a webinar titled “Feedback in Medical Appraisal” with particular focus on feedback giving, and Dr Cogliano described the trailblazing work she had been doing in NHS Lothian with regards to Patient Satisfaction Questionnaire (PSQ).
Dr Grecy Bell (Primary Care Appraisal Lead in NHS Dumfries & Galloway) presented a session on the different appraisal scenarios that appraisers might come across and invited the participants to discuss how they might approach each one.
Grecy Bell (NHS Dumfries and Galloway) presenting on approaches to different appraisal scenarios
All webinars and the plenary were recorded and the videos, along with slides used and resource/reference materials, are all available from the Medical Appraisal Scotland website:
https://www.appraisal.nes.scot.nhs.uk/our-work/appraiser-conferences/2022-2023/
Plenary Session - The Impact of the Pandemic for Medical Appraisal. Clockwise from top right: Dr Christiane Shrimpton (NES), Emma Murphy (NHS Dumfries & Galloway) and Brigid Russell (Coach and Leadership Consultant)
2023 standalone Medical Appraisers Conference
Following feedback from appraisers from this and previous years, we have made a decision to run the next Scottish Medical Appraisers Conference independently from SMEC which will allow those appraisers with educational roles to fully engage with the medical education sessions.
Plans are still be finalised on when the next Medical Appraisers conference will take place, but it is likely to continue in the remote platform as it helps ensure no one is disadvantaged geographically or at the expense of travel (although we will explore other options also).
Confirmation of plans for next year’s conference will be announced later in the year.
