Out of Programme Training (OOPT)

You can apply for time you spend out of programme on fellowships, both in the UK and overseas, to count towards training. There are restrictions on the amount of OOPT you can count towards training, and these restrictions are:

  • Across the whole of your training a maximum of 12 months OOPT can be counted towards training. In exceptional circumstances it can be up to two years – see Gold Guide for further details

If you are going out of programme to a developing country please refer to OOPE section.

Developing countries are considered to be those defined by the NHS Employers website here.

The GMC have informed us that until further notice time spent in war zones, the Queen Elizabeth Hospital Birmingham and DMRC Headley Court will be treated as OOPT and will therefore need to go through the same application process as any other OOPT.

To go on OOPT you will need to:

  • Discuss your intention with your Training Programme Director (TPD) and gain their support
  • Contact your Deanery/LETB and ask what applications you need to make to them to gain their support
  • You will also need your Deanery/LETB to confirm whether the location of your OOPT is GMC approved, if it is they will need to confirm this directly with the JCST and send the approval number
  • Once you have the support of your TPD, you will need to make an initial application to your SAC for provisional support
  • Once you have all of the above, including SAC support, and before you start your OOPT, your Deanery/LETB will need to apply on your behalf to the GMC to seek its approval for your OOPT post. There are certain circumstances where we do not need evidence of GMC approval. These are as follows:
  1. The post has been pre-approved by the GMC. This is rare so check to see if this applies to you.
  2. If your post is in the EEA/Switzerland and you send us evidence that it is approved by the relevant statutory authority there,  this is considered to be automatically approved by the GMC.

When you have completed your period of OOPT, the ARCP panel will assess your competencies to determine whether the post met training standards and whether you achieved all that you set out to achieve.

Please note that the GMC will not issue approval retrospectively - see full guidance here.

 

Applying for SAC provisional support

Before you start the post the following will need to be sent to the JCST:

If the post is GMC approved

  • Direct confirmation from your Deanery/LETB that the post is approved, including the GMC approval number
  • A fully completed and signed copy of your Deanery/LETB OOP Request Form or confirmation in writing from your TPD supporting the OOPT. These will need to show:
  1. The exact dates of your fellowship/OOPT period
  2. The details of the post
  3. That your Deanery/LETB is aware of the time out of programme

If the post is not already GMC approved

  • A fully completed and signed copy of your Deanery/LETB OOP Request Form or confirmation in writing from your TPD supporting the OOPT. These will need to show:
  1. The exact dates of your fellowship/OOPT period
  2. The details of the post
  3. That your Deanery/LETB is aware of the time out of programme
  • A signed offer letter from the institution you are due to go to
  • An educational contract (or a job description) signed by you and your OOPT supervisor, which includes details of:
  1. Learning agreements and objectives
  2. Your timetable

(Please note that the Objective Setting stage of the ISCP website Learning Agreement can be used for this as long as it includes all the information needed and is completed before you start your fellowship/post.)

  • Name and contact details of your OOPT supervisor
  • Up to date CV (which you can upload onto your ISCP account)

In addition:

  • Trauma & Orthopaedic Surgery trainees will need to submit: Logbooks from two previous incumbents of the post or a report from the supervisor on the expected number of operations
  • Neurosurgery trainees will need to submit their current logbook listed by SAC Indicative Operation Groups

Please note that the JCST office and the SACs can take up to six weeks to process and issue SAC provisional support.

Applying for SAC support for an OOPT extension

If your OOPT is extended beyond the original dates the JCST will need to be sent:

If the post is GMC approved

  • A fully completed and signed copy of your Deanery/LETB OOP Request Form or confirmation in writing from your TPD supporting the OOPT

If the post is not already GMC approved

  • A fully completed and signed copy of your Deanery/LETB OOP Request/Extension Form or confirmation in writing from your TPD supporting the OOPT
  • A signed offer letter for the extension period
  • A consolidated logbook covering the OOPT period so far, clearly stating the dates it covers (dd/mm/yyyy)
  • A consolidated logbook covering the whole of your training so far, clearly stating the dates it covers (dd/mm/yyyy)
  • Up to date CV (which you can upload onto your ISCP account)

Please note that the GMC must approve extensions of OOPT - full guidance here.

Once you finish the post, it is expected that at your next ARCP meeting the panel will assess your training and decide then if it met required training standards.