Medical schools ‘receptive’ to prescribing assessment proposal

The Irish Medical Schools Council is “receptive” to a prescribing assessment requirement for graduates, according to internal Medical Council minutes.

The Medical Council’s education and training committee discussed the issue in January. The form of such an assessment was “yet to be determined”, stated minutes obtained under Freedom of Information law.

Under legislation, the Council is responsible for quality-assuring medical education and training in Ireland. It intends to introduce an “outcomes-based approach” to assessing transitions between stages of education and training, beginning with the transition from medical student to intern.

The “national graduate outcomes project” aims to develop “outcomes criteria” for medical graduates in Ireland, accompanying guidelines and a methodology to assess the outcome achievements. The project will be informed by the national policy context, international standards and best practice, the current Irish healthcare context, and relevant reports.

The project is due for completion in September 2026. “The project is currently focused on delivering agreed outputs, including the development of a set of national graduate outcomes. Prescribing safety is expected to be one of the components included,” a Council spokesperson said.

The project aims to address concerns raised by interns about feeling underprepared for clinical practice.  However, it is “too early to determine” exactly how these concerns will be reflected in the final outcomes or what changes are needed.

Forvis Mazars has won a contract to provide research and development services. The contract, worth up to €1.5 million, will run for an estimated four years. This framework agreement is not limited to the national graduate outcomes project, stated the Council. “Additional consultancy and support services relating to enhancing the quality of medical education and training, or an additional workstream stemming from current projects, may be commissioned based on future needs identified by the Council.”