Inter Deanery Transfer

During your SpR / StR training, it may become necessary to have to consider the possibility of requesting an Inter-Deanery Transfer (IDT).

This may come about because of well founded personal reasons (e.g. the relocation of a partner) or for a temporary period, on educational grounds, (e.g. to gain further experience or undertake a particular training module).

At all times, movement is at the discretion of both the "home" and "receiving" Postgraduate Dean.

Unlike in previous years this information now applies to all specialist and speciality trainees including GP trainees (SpR / StR / GPStRs).

Movement of Specialist and Specialty Trainees (SPRS/STRS/GPSTRS) between Deaneries and Inter-Deanery Transfers of NTNS/Core Training Numbers

It is possible for SpRs/StRs/GPStRs to be helped to move between Deaneries or within the UK. The arrangements for this apply to both full-time and less than full time (LTFT) trainees. Movement is at the discretion of the Postgraduate Dean/Director of Postgraduate General Practice Education and trainees will be expected to show that they have well-founded reasons for wishing to move from their current Deanery.

Section 14 of the Orange Guide gives a clear outline of the basic rules relating to trainees in SpR training posts. Section 6 of the Gold Guide gives a clear outline of the basic rules relating to trainees in StR training posts. What follows is drawn from this guidance but is expanded in the light of operational experience. Postgraduate Deans/Directors of Postgraduate General Practice Education and trainees need to be aware that an inter-deanery transfer (IDT) bypasses the normal appointment process for the receiving Deanery, and may delay the entry of other trainees, including LATs, aspiring to a StR post in that specialty in the region/Deanery concerned.

It is important that trainees give as much notice as possible when requesting an IDT as training vacancies in other Deaneries may not be readily available and arrangements therefore may take some time to set up. A detailed timeline for the process is attached. This timeline must be adhered to by both trainees requesting transfers and Deaneries managing the process. The windows to consider IDTs will operate twice a year during March and October. Deaneries will hold two panel meetings in each window – one to consider requests to transfer out and a further panel to consider requests to transfer in. March and October windows will allow trainees to give 3 months notice, if required, before transferring to posts commencing in August or February. Of course, posts may commence outside of these dates but start dates will need to be agreed between the transferring/receiving deanery and the trainee.

Well-founded Personal Reasons (usually permanent transfers)

These will often be related to family, such as the genuinely unavoidable move of a spouse or committed partner to another part of the country, or illness in a dependent family member, which could not have been foreseen when the appointment to the current SpR/StR/GPStR post was made. Trainees will be asked to confirm (by signing the appropriate “Inter-Deanery Transfer Application” form – GP IDT1 or ST IDT1) if and when their personal circumstances changed. Trainees should note that movement will not usually be supported within the first year of the programme. IDT within the first year after appointment would only be agreed under exceptional circumstances and on a specific case by case basis. It should be noted that “exceptional circumstances” does not mean that applications which may have just missed a transfer window should be included. Any applications that miss a specific transfer window deadline will go forward to the following transfer window for consideration. Deaneries will accept transfer requests within the first year of appointment but the transfer itself would not be considered appropriate, unless in very exceptional circumstances, until after 12 months in the appointed post.

It should be recognised that transfers are “not an entitlement”, (Orange Guide/Gold Guide) and the decision will be influenced not only by the strength of the personal case but also the impact of the requested transfer on other trainees in the receiving Deanery; especially in specialties for which competition is intense. The final decision will rest with the receiving Deanery, who will be advised by the home Postgraduate Dean/Director of Postgraduate General Practice Education responsible for the current post, and by key trainers. Deaneries should agree the number of entry points available for open recruitment and the number of vacancies that could be set aside to accommodate IDT requests. This should be agreed before the transfer window opens so that decisions are not influenced by the perceived quality of applicants for transfer.

If an IDT is agreed in principle, a commitment to IDT will be made, but actual placement in the programme and provision of a new higher/core training post may not be possible immediately, or even for some time. That will depend on the availability of an appropriate slot in the training programme and the availability of NTNs/training posts in the receiving Deanery. Deaneries can accept requests to transfer in even if these requests would extend beyond the initial time period being considered in the transfer window. For example, a March transfer window will mainly consider requests to transfer from the following August but requests to commence after August can also be taken into consideration. It should also be noted, however, that if no vacancies are predicted within that Deanery/specialty for the forthcoming 12 months, then the trainee would need to re-apply at an appropriate time for a future transfer window. IDTs cannot be made from one specialty to another specialty. A change in specialty requires the trainee to submit a new application for entry to that new specialty using the agreed recruitment processes Also where there are differences in programmes offered with respect to run through or core between Deaneries an IDT will not confer any material advantage i.e. a trainee undertaking core training in England, Northern Ireland or Wales cannot transfer into a run through training programme in Scotland.

Transferring Deaneries should provide receiving Deaneries with up to date information on ARCP/RITA status. This is particularly important if the status of trainee changes between the request for an IDT being submitted and then agreed. IDTs may be subject to the transferring trainee receiving a satisfactory ARCP/RITA outcome. If an IDT is approved in principle but a subsequent ARCP outcome is not satisfactory (satisfactory normally meaning an outcome 1) this may require further discussion between the transferring and receiving Deaneries before the transfer is able to take place. Where a transferring Deanery has made a decision on an ARCP outcome, this decision cannot be revised by the IDT panel, or any other mechanism within the receiving Deanery. The integrity of the ARCP outcome should be respected by the receiving Deanery.

Criteria for Transfer

The accepted principles/criteria for consideration of IDT requests for well-founded personal reasons are:

• Significant life events
• Caring responsibilities
• Committed relationship – particularly marriage, civil partnerships
• Other Relationships including the importance of support networks

Requests for transfer should meet one or more of the criteria listed above but when considering requests deaneries should also consider the following

• Length of rotation
• Impact on the well being of the individual
• Having to accept a change of location of a partner where the partner has no real choice in changing the length or location of their employment

Trainees should be aware that they are applying for an IDT to a Deanery, not a specific post or programme within that Deanery, and that rejection of an educationally suitable vacancy will lead to the application for IDT being rejected by the receiving Deanery.

Trainees requesting IDT while pregnant, on maternity leave or out of programme (OOP) should consider applying during the transfer window which is nearest to the date that they would be planning to return to work in their current Deanery.

Educational grounds (temporary transfer unless permanent transfer explicitly agreed) These are not usually dealt with via the IDT process but via Out of Programme.

A range of situations can arise or exist:

• Remedial and targeted training.
  
  It may be appropriate for remedial and/or targeted training to take place away from the host Deanery. Such training will be for a defined period of time and with pre-determined objectives and outcomes (and funding arrangements) agreed between the two Deans. The trainee should retain his or her original NTN/VTN and, on the completion of the training, should return to the host Deanery.
• Specialised training opportunities: secondment of individuals.
  
  Exposure to certain highly specialised training opportunities which may exist in just a few Deaneries may be essential for a particular trainee's future career. Where these opportunities are unavailable with the current Deanery, by agreement between the two Deans, a trainee may transfer on secondment retaining the original NTN/VTN. On completion of the secondment the trainee would return to the host Deanery. Deans will agree specific funding arrangements in these cases. Extension to permanent transfer should be viewed with caution; there is a risk that 'donor' regions may suffer a steady loss of new CCT holders, while 'receiving' regions may have difficulty in progressing their more junior trainees.
• Fixed progressions and rotations between Deaneries as part of regular planned training programmes:
  
  In a number of specialties, the complete training programme cannot be provided within one Deanery because of lack of suitable specialist training opportunities. Also, there are long-standing rotations which straddle two or more Deaneries. The rotation forms part of the whole training package. There are two versions of this arrangement.

  • Structured Progression
    In these "rotations", often in specialties such as cardiothoracic and paediatric surgery, the trainee may start in Deanery A and finish in Deanery B. The original NTN/VTN is surrendered and a new NTN/VTN provided by the new Deanery (B). A stable share of NTNs/VTNs across Deaneries can be agreed.

  • Structured Rotations
    In these programmes (for example several of the pan-Thames programmes) trainees may start in either Deanery and finish in either Deanery, often depending on where the next vacancy happens to arise. When a trainee moves, at some defined stage(s) in the programme, to "the other" Deanery, he or she retains his or her original NTN/VTN

Other Movements and Transfers

• Trainees wishing to transfer because they would prefer training in another region, not on the specific advice of the home Deanery or Specialty Training Committee, or trainees wishing to move into a different specialty or CCT programme, can only transfer by applying in open competition for a place on a training programme in another Deanery.

Transfer Windows and Panels

Following the success of the 2009 pilot it has been agreed to implement the process described in this document and to continue with two transfer windows per year which will be undertaken in March and October. It has been agreed that during these windows a Deanery panel should meet to consider all requests from trainees wishing to transfer out of the deanery and that a panel may also be held to consider requests to transfer into the deanery – see detailed timeline for March and October 2012. In some cases, eligibility panels may be held more frequently, but the transfer window timetable will stand.

All initial assessment panels will be convened by the Postgraduate Dean however he/she will not be a member of the panel. The IDT panels should consist of representatives of the Deanery together with a lay representative and a trainee representative. The BMA Junior Doctor Committee (JDC) will be offered a place on each panel for trainee representation, but Deaneries will have the option to appoint another trainee representative from a different source if they wish (e.g local deanery trainee committee) if a suitable JDC representative is not available for the designated time. The designated time would be open to local negotiation, but in any event should not be less than six weeks’ notice to ensure the trainee representative can notify their employer and arrange cover if necessary. The role of the trainee representative is to provide an independent view to the panel.

The IDT panel to consider requests to transfer in should rank each application for transfer received within the transfer window and consider for offer places that are available based on ranked position. It should be noted that it may not be possible to place all trainees; however, processing requests in this way would ensure that all IDT requests can be considered against the four principles/criteria and would also provide robust information in the event of any subsequent appeals from trainees.

The IDT panel will make a recommendation to the Postgraduate Dean stating the reasons why acceptance or rejection was the recommendation.

The Postgraduate Dean will then consider the recommendation and normally support the decision of the panel. If the panel recommends rejection of a request to transfer, the Postgraduate Dean will consider the reasons and confirm or challenge the decision of the panel.

Appeals Process

If the Postgraduate Dean accepts the decision of the panel to reject the request, the trainee will have the right to appeal to the Postgraduate Dean, supplying additional information if appropriate. Based on a review of the evidence before the initial assessment panel, together with any additional evidence supplied, the Postgraduate Dean will make a final decision on the application

It should be emphasised that a decision to release a trainee from an existing Deanery is far simpler than to accept a trainee, and that a distinction would need to be made between the two.

Appeals against an IDT panel decision not to release a trainee: An appeal against this decision will be conducted by the Postgraduate Dean as described above.

Appeals against an IDT panel decision to accept a trainee: An appeal against this decision will be conducted by the Postgraduate Dean as described above. Trainees would be able to contest the reasons for the IDT decision. However, they would not be able to appeal the fact that the reason their IDT request has been refused is that there is no available post for them in the Deanery they wish to transfer into.

Inter-Deanery Transfer Request Form

• It was agreed that when the “home” Deanery supported the release of a trainee from the Deanery, an “Inter-Deanery Transfer Application Form“(GP IDT1 or ST IDT1) should be completed confirming that the trainee fulfilled one or more of the four principles/criteria for IDT and was currently progressing satisfactorily in training and not subject to any disciplinary procedures within their existing Deanery area. It should be acknowledged, however, that in exceptional circumstances a trainee whose educational progression is not deemed satisfactory may be transferred if it was deemed the correct educational decision and had been agreed by both Postgraduate Deans/Directors of Postgraduate General Practice Education.
• Trainees should confirm their circumstances for IDT by signing a declaration on the “Inter-Deanery Transfer Form” and this is considered more appropriate than requesting personal information from the trainee eg formal occupational health assessments. If this information is subsequently found to be untrue, this will be considered a professional probity issue and may be referred to the GMC.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Click here for FAQs which may assist trainees and others in understanding how the new process is expected to work.

Formal Advice to Trainees:  A Model "Statement"

Page owned by Becky Trainer | Last update 2012-05-04 13:28:34