PT - JOURNAL ARTICLE AU - Andrew Wragg AU - Winnie Wade AU - Geraint Fuller AU - George Cowan AU - Peter Mills TI - Assessing the performance of specialist registrars AID - 10.7861/clinmedicine.3-2-131 DP - 2003 Mar 01 TA - Clinical Medicine PG - 131--134 VI - 3 IP - 2 4099 - http://www.rcpjournals.org/content/3/2/131.short 4100 - http://www.rcpjournals.org/content/3/2/131.full SO - Clin Med2003 Mar 01; 3 AB - Assessing the performance of doctors while they are engaged in clinical work is a challenging concept. The introduction of objective-based curricula provides the stimulus and opportunity for the Royal Colleges of Physicians to develop relevant and reliable methods of in-service assessment. We propose to pilot a study investigating the validity, reliability and feasibility of three assessment methods - direct observation of the clinical encounter using an adapted mini-CEX, direct observation of the performance of practical procedures (DOPS), and the doctor's ability to perform effectively as part of a team using 360° assessment. The methods will be studied in the setting of routine clinical care. Whilst demanding of time from both trainees and trainers, they will represent a significant advance on the current system which is characterised by a lack of evidence in the assessment process.