Educational supervision of pre-registration house officers

An annual survey of the educational supervision of pre-registration house officers has been carried out since 1987 by the Northern Ireland Council for Postgraduate Medical Education and the Queen's University of Belfast. Educational supervision was considered by house officers to be unsatisfactory in 27% of medical posts and 52% of surgical posts. Regular teaching was provided at least weekly in 77% of the posts, but 50% of house officers wanted mor experience of managing common medical emergencies. Over one-third felt administrative duties were excessive. There is a strong argument that hospitals should designate within clinical units a consultant with responsibility for educational supervision of the pre-registration house officers. Creation of the hospital counterpart of the General Practitioner trainer--the educational supervisor--would enhance the educational value of the pre-registration year. This might avoid withdrawal of approval for training purposes from some pre-registration posts.