[Compulsory collegial guidance. What do candidates in general practice think about training of practical procedures?]

In 1994 a new module addressing the quality of practical procedures was added to the Norwegian general practice specialisation programme. Over a five-year period 31 practical procedures must be performed under the supervision of fellow GPs. In 1995 a survey was carried out by questionnaire among all specialist candidates registered in the new programme (n = 165, response rate 83%) and a control group consisting of all candidates registered in 1993 (n = 162, response rate 62%). The aims of the survey were to evaluate the candidates' motivation, self-rated level of competence, and the presence of barriers to programme implementation. The main group and control group were almost identical; mean age has 36.5 years, 37% were females. There were no differences in the self-rated levels of competence between the groups. The majority (80%) reported a need to improve their performance of practical procedures, and 93% stated that mutual guidance with colleagues would be of considerable benefit by improving technical performance, professional confidence and the quality of relationships with colleagues. The main barriers to mutual guidance were shortage of time, lack of structured opportunities for performing procedures in the presence of colleagues, and lack of instruction manuals or videos detailing the correct performance of procedures.