Provision of Simulated Patient Services for Kent and Medway Medical School

Tender description

The Kent and Medway Medical School will require the services of an agency to provide 'simulated patients'/'standardised patients' (SP) for safe clinical training of medical students. Lot 1: Simulated Patients (SP) are involved in both the teaching and assessment of medical students' clinical and communication skills in all medical schools in the UK. These skills are recognised by the General Medical Council (GMC) as 'core competencies' as described in the 'Outcomes for Graduates' (2018) document. SPs form an integral and essential element of skill development, as it provides a standardized experience for students to practise and demonstrate their skills in a safe environment. In order for KMMS to achieve national accreditation through the Medical Licencing Assessment set by the GMC, it is imperative that KMMS engage high quality SPs in teaching and assessment. Furthermore, as the involvement of actual/real patients in teaching or assessment will be slowly scaled up (as our systems develop for patient engagement), the need for a secure provision of simulated patients is a major part of the appropriate training of KMMS students. Part of the requirement of such a provider is to provide appropriate training to the SPs on EDI aspects and also to input on assessment scenarios relating to clinical practice from a patient perspective. Peel Roleplay is able to provide this to KMMS due to their national engagement in this area with other medical schools and the relevant expertise built up. Managing the supply of actors/SPs for participation in comms workshops and the OSCEs are labour intensive. The use of a reliable provider such as Peel Roleplay will ensure we can deliver the service required. It is not feasible to arrange and source individual actors with the right experience and training on an adhoc or case by case basis.