4th President's Statement on MTAS (23 March 2007)

From Mmc

4th President's Statement on MTAS (23 March 2007)

The latest outcome from the MTAS Review group acknowledges that for specialities other than General Practice, the MTAS shortlisting process is weak and this part of the process will be eliminated immediately. The MTAS Review group has concluded that the most equitable and practical solution now available is to offer an interview to all candidates suitable for long-listing.

The College, through the Academy of Medical Royal Colleges, has strongly represented the views of its members concerning the severe problems with the shortlisting process and therefore supports the removal of the flawed shortlisting process. The proposal to offer interviews to all candidates suitable for long-listing offers the potential to be a fair and equitable way to select the best applicants for training posts in ophthalmology. However the College, through the Academy of Medical Royal Colleges, has strongly expressed the view that ophthalmologists and their deanery colleagues have already put a huge commitment into the MTAS process so far and that it is vital that these new proposals are deliverable. We are actively consulting ophthalmologists in key positions in the Deaneries to explore mechanisms for this. Ophthalmologists involved in these extra processes and their colleagues, must have full backing in terms of time and clinical support from their employers.

The College will continue to work to enable the Deans to identify the best doctors to be trained as the ophthalmologists to treat the patients of the future.

Brenda Billington

President

23 March 2007