The Royal Australasian College of Surgeons (RACS) has initiated a JDocs website to provide career guidance to junior doctors in Australia and New Zealand during their early prevocational years.

JDocs is a framework that describes the many tasks, skills and behaviours that should be achieved by doctors at defined early post graduate year levels and will assist in their development towards a career in surgery and other proceduralist careers. JDocs is not a program and only supports self-directed learning where the level of engagement is up to the doctor.

Following are the outlines of support provided by JDocs framework:

• For prevocational doctors:
  –   As a guidance and support in becoming a safe, competent, professional doctor at work, and a collaborative member of the healthcare team.
  –   Key clinical tasks have been developed that represent professional activities undertaken in the clinical workplace, e.g. leading a ward round and discharging a patient.
  –   Note readiness for a registrar role
• For directors of clinical training, supervisors and/or a medical education officers:
  –   As a tool to support feedback and assessment of junior doctors in the clinical workplace.
  –   Key clinical tasks are described at designated stages of training (PGY1–3), with a progression of skills throughout and should be performed by the doctor by PGY3.
  –   Guidelines for the key clinical tasks have been developed to support the supervisor in providing feedback to the doctor on performance.
• For education providers:
  –   Encouragement to have their relevant prevocational activities/courses accredited for the JDocs Framework.
  –   Permission to use the course accreditation logo on their promotional material

The RACS has summarized what you can do with jdocs interested in a career in surgery:

Interested in a career in surgery? Subscribe to #JDocs & guide your professional development https://t.co/BEPgBEV5cC pic.twitter.com/7fOF8PlNCC

— RACSurgeons (@RACSurgeons) February 26, 2016

More resources and articles on My Health Career:

• Professionalism in an age of shifting expectations – by Amanda Griffiths
• Tips for medical students on how to excel in 2016
• The 10 commandments of patient-centred care
• Medical internship “not totally broken” but “doesn’t reflect modern health care”

Image: darpanjoshi – pixabay