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CSA: A trainee’s tale

Source: N.O’Connor

‘I failed by one mark’

I’ve never been a bad trainee. My trainer spoke to my patients and did not hear any complaints. In fact, my patients’ feedback was above average.

I failed my fourth attempt at the CSA in 2012 by just one mark. I spent around £10,000 on the exams; £9,000 for the fees and £150 in expenses for accommodation and petrol every time I took the exam. What annoyed me was the college’s treatment of expelled trainees. What I learned from the college was to be kind to patients. But the college never replied to me when I wrote to it. It was only after my MP wrote that it replied.

I am seeing if I can move to the USA. I feel I have no choice left. I have a young family. Obviously it won’t be easy to move.

Dr Muhammad Kamran Qureshi (pictured, foreground) is currently working as a locum middle-grade A&E doctor in Rochdale

‘I never had a complaint’

My trainee saw 2,000 people over 18 months with us. I never had a complaint and his communication was fine.

At the moment, the college is using the CSA as its failure marker. Realistically, it ought to have a look at allocating a third of failures through the CSA, a third through the applied knowledge test and a third through workplace assessment. That would end up being a little fairer, especially to overseas graduates.

Dr Steve Taylor (pictured, background) is Dr Qureshi’s former trainer and one of 18 GP trainers who were signatories to an open letter claiming competent trainees were failing the exam
multiple times