Hi and thanks for joining me on this training.

My name is Tom Rolley for Graduate Medicine.

First of all I'd just like to put out a massive congratulations to everyone who got through their exams on the weekend.

What I want to touch on today is this second Twilight Zone that you may find yourself in, which is between the end of the AKT through until results come out.

Now that the OSCE requires not just a pass for the AKT, but also the KFP... it's almost I think a four week gap from now until you know that you've passed AKT/KFP and that you can enter into the OSCE.

What is the risk at this point?

The risk is that it feels like you've been through this massive journey, got through KFP, got through AKT and I'm done, I'm collapsing down.

It can feel like, "Oh my goodness, I'm done! I don't have much left in the tank"

But do not forget there's still one more exam to come.

My interpretation of the entire exam thing, is the best way to do it is to actually run through and...

Hi, Dr. Tom Rolley here for Graduate Medicine.

I'm just finishing up my week and I've been sitting here completing a bunch of paperwork - one of the joys of general practice!

Nonetheless, today, was the KFP exam.

I want to talk about one of the challenges that previously hasn't been in the exams, which is what to do between the KFP and the AKT.

Previously, they were either on the same day, or people consciously choose to split them by six months.

So , there wasn't this semi-twilight zone, 18 hours between finishing the KFP and then taking the AKT tomorrow.

What I want to talk about is the potential for whatever happened for you in the KFP is done, and you can't go in and alter those results.

You don't know what those results are.

But the risk is that it affects your confidence for tomorrow's exam.

What I wanted to look at is the possibility for how do you still maintain your focus and calmness through this period.

Because there's is still work to do...

Thanks for joining me on this training.

My name is Dr. Tom Rolley for Graduate Medicine.

Look, I want to drop in around a possible situation that you may find yourself in, if you are a GP Registrar, and that is that perhaps your goals as a GP Registrar and the goals of your RTP may be a little bit divergent.

And what I mean by that is, that your RTP may have the distant goal to make you into a good GP and your goal, yes is definitely still going to be, yeah I want to be a good GP, but also you've got this other thing called the FRACGP exam.

So what I want to bring to your attention is could they be divergent?

Could those two things be in fact, divergent?

And the worry that may come to you is, is it enough? Is the RTP training enough?

And so the question that I'll have you consider is, is it possible to be a good GP and still fail the exam?

The RTP goes, yes you are a good GP and yet you show up to the exams, boom, and fail. Is that possible? And I would say yes, it is.

Why?

Hi, it's Tom Rolley here for GraduateMedicine, it's Saturday afternoon, and coming to you from my home office. Just thought I'd drop in, we're really one week out from crunch time for many of you.

That actually this time, most likely, next week you will be done with the AKT, and the day before, on Friday, you would have got through the KFP for many.

So just thought I'd look at, hey, how can this last week serve you? 'Cause I think there's a couple of dangers that the breadth of the content that you're expected to be across can be daunting, and it can lead to a feeling that you have not done enough. That you haven't covered the material, because there's always more.

But that can lead to some unusual behaviours in the last week, such as skipping your sleep or taking too much caffeine or panicking about unusual topics that aren't actually in your plan for the materials that you're expected to cover. Now most likely you're in revision mode, you should not be in my judgment looking at...

Congratulations to all GP registrars who sat the 2017.1 FRACGP exams last Saturday, 4 February 2017.

Well done on all your hard work and study over the past six to 12 months!

As we pass another round of AKT / KFP exams, we can now look forward to preparation for the next round of FRACGP exams in 2017.2, which is just over five months away on 15 July 2017.

So, what are the key topics to prepare for the FRACGP Exams?

It's like the million-dollar question ... give me the answers to pass the exams?! If only there was a straight answer and that simple...

And that is much like being a General Practitioner in an everyday practice. The challenges, problems and key features that patients bring to us are varied from simple to challenging, from paediatrics to geriatrics. It is what makes GP such a great job (in my opinion!)

There are however, a few very valuable resources provided by the RACGP to help you get started in preparing for the FRACGP exams...one being a very useful article that...

As a FRACGP training provider, we often get asked when should I begin my study for the FRACGP exams.

The Applied Knowledge Test (AKT) and Key Feature Problem (KFP) Exams, as well as the Objective Structured Clinic Exam (OSCE) require a lot of preparation and study in order for you to even pass these days. The FRACGP exams are getting tougher and tougher, so they require a lot more consistent study and application.

Depending on where you are at in your medical career and your past experience, will give you some indication of how much study you feel you need to pass the exams.

We would suggest that you need at least 300 hours at a minimum. You may required up to 750 or 1000 if you are not working in GP very much or there has been a significant break in your medical career (eg. caring for children).

When you break that down, you are looking at at least 5-6 hours per week of study or about 1 hour per day for a year at 300 hours.

This would double if you are preparing 6 months out and...

Refining the model for GP consultations - Dynamic Assessment Structured Management

Today, the RACGP's GP16 starts in Perth. If you are attending GP16 this week in Perth, it runs between 29 September 2016 - 1 October.

The keynote speakers include some amazing presenters including Australian of the Year 2015, Rosie Batty, Dr Sam Prince  and Professor Mark Harris.

Learn more about GP16 and the full program for registration via the GP16's link: http://gp16.com.au/.

Dr Tom Rolley from GraduateMedicine will also be presenting on "Refining the model for GP consultations - Dynamic assessment structured management".

Tom is looking to present a model on Clinical Decision Making and Clinical Teaching which is applied in patient consultations and also in teaching our IMGs and GP registrars when preparing and studying for the Key Feature Problem and other FRACGP exams with the RACCP. 

Watch out for Tom presenting at 9.45am this Saturday, 1 October 2016 in Session G3 - Online and...

Next Training Webinars for the FRACGP 2016.2 Exams

Running over 5 consecutive Thursdays from 7pm to 8pm for the AKT and KFP 2016.2 Exams, our live training webinars have been confirmed. 

If you are booked in to sit the FRACGP exams for 2016.2 for the Applied Knowledge Test (AKT) and Key Feature Problem (KFP) and looking for some help and support with what to study and how to to pass the AKT and KFP exams, then this live training is for you.

Dates for the live training are as follows:

1. Week 1 - Thursday, 12 May 2016
2. Week 2 - Thursday, 19 May 2016
3. Week 3 - Thursday, 26 May 2016
4. Week 4 - Thursday, 2 June 2016
5. Week 5 - Thursday, 9 June 2016 

During the LIVE webinars, we will provide pre-exam training on:

• Key Resources and the Diagnostic Formula you need to cover for your KFP Exam Study;
• Strategies on how to prepare for and approach the FRACGP Exams;
• What to expect, strategies to use and how to manage your time in the AKT Exam;
• Physical Examinations...

The RACGP has refused to release the latest data over the Key Feature Problem (KFP) exam from the August 2015 test.

'Australian Doctor' (Page 3) is reporting that the latest results show that 43% failed the KFP test in August, with some sources claiming there is a higher failure rates of 80-85% from the International Medical Graduates (IMGs) who are on the practice-eligible-pathway compared to those registrars already training on the Australian General Practice Training Program. 

Experts are at odds over why eligible pathway graduates and IMGs are failing at a higher rate than those on the Australian GP Program. Some claim that overseas medical schools place an emphasis on rote-learning, but not understanding the concepts.

However, overseas-trained doctor, Dr Geeta Trehan from SA GP, who helps IMGs prepare for the exam, rejects this stating in Australian Doctor that if it was critical thinking that was lacking the IMGs would also fail the Applied Knowledge Test (AKT) component...