Healthy Working Lives Research Group

1. Healthy Working Lives Research Group Public Health and Health Policy SectionDivision of Community Based SciencesFaculty of Medicine

2. Research 1 • Rehabilitation and return to work • Ill Health Retirement • Needs Assessment For Teachers’ Occupational Health • Job Retention and Rehabilitation Pilot (JRRP)/ HealthyReturn • Sickness Absence Management Project (SAM Project) • Health care needs • Occupational Health on the Edge • Health Care Needs Of teachers, dentists, dental nurses, other health care workers

3. Research 2 • Toxicity • Exposure of dental personnel to nitrous oxide • Effect of low level exposure to mercury on the health of dental surgeons • OH Education- Life long learning • Competencies Of Occupational Physicians • Delphi Study On Competencies Of Occupational Physicians Across Europe (Occup Environ Med 2000;57:98–105) • Occupational medicine in Europe: scope and competencies • Required competencies of occupational physicians - a Delphi survey of UK customers(Occup Environ Med 2005;Jul )

4. Assessment Tool for Trainee Specialists in Occupational Medicine across Europe LEONARDO DA VINCI Community Vocational Training Action Programme Second phase Pilot project

5. Facts • The length of training • a four-year training programme for most EU countries • Differences in the • methods of training • the nature of the training • reflecting individual countries’ practices and traditions.

6. Core competencies • Common core competencies for specialist training in occupational medicine • No standard method of assessment of trainee specialists in the EU

7. What do we plan to do? Develop common assessment methodologies which countries could choose to use, as part of the assessment of doctors

8. Why? Recognised need • for harmonisation of qualifications • to improve mutual recognition of specialist training throughout the EU. • Improve transparency and encourage transferability of skills

9. Partners in the project • Project Director Dr. Ewan Macdonald Healthy Working Lives Research Group University of Glasgow UK • Participating countries • 12 COUNTRIES • Number of participants: 24

10. What do we plan to do? • Facilitate and establish liaison and co-operation between the relevant standard setting institutions in the participating countries. • Assess the needs for developing a common assessment tool across Europe • Identify the types of assessment instruments used across Europe • Develop and agree a common European assessment instrument • Pilot the use of such an instrument • Facilitate the establishment of a permanent network of EU country examining bodies. • Ensure maximum valorisation of the networks established in this project and of the end product

11. Who do we want to involve? • Organisations responsible for the training of Specialists in occupational medicine- including Universities/ Medical Schools, • Standard Setting organisations in Occupational Medicine, • Organisations concerned with the accreditation and recognition of the training of specialists • Occupational Medicine professional organisations, • Employers, • Trade Unions, • Related Governmental organisations, social partners • Specialist trainees in Occupational Medicine

12. How do we plan to do this? • Questionnaire survey to identify the common elements of training and assessment methodologies in EU countries. • European conference workshop(s) to discuss the results of the survey and needs of the project • Web based forums • Establishment of a European network of collaborating institutions and a working group to develop the test material • Internal and External Project evaluation • Test package production • CD-Rom , Web based, paper-based, blended approach • Translation (Eng, Fr, Ger, Span) • Piloting of package

13. Final Outcome • Tool • Establishing of a permanent self sustaining network of European organisations • committed to continuing this process of harmonisation and improving the test methodology used in the assessment of trainee specialists in occupational medicine across Europe

14. IMPACT • Short- term. • Establish or enhance collaboration between the standard setting organisations - leading to improved cooperation and exchange of best practice for those involved in the training and/or assessment of trainees. • Long-Term. • A standardised component of the assessment of trainees which will have an impact on training programmes, and will ensure that there is comparability and equivalence of assessment standards across the EU.

15. How does the project meet the EU objectives? • Improve the transparency of the formal accreditation of specialist doctors in occupational medicine across the EU. • Improve the quality of vocational training and life-long learning. • Facilitate a common approach to the revalidation of specialists and their continuing professional development.

16. Participation • Across Europe to participate in the workshops • Take part in the questionnaire survey • Discussion Forums • Participate in the Pilot study • Feedback/Evaluation

17. Project Contact Please contact: Dr. Nundita Reetoo Project Manager Healthy Working Lives Research Group Public Health and Health Policy University of Glasgow 1, Lilybank Gardens Glasgow G12 8RZ, UK Tel. +44 141 330 2076 Fax +44 141 330 4038 Email k.n.reetoo@clinmed.gla.ac.uk