All You Need to Know About Recorded Consultation Assessment (RCA)

Due to social distancing and the limitations associated with Covid-19, the Royal College of General Practitioners has sought alternative approaches to examining candidates in practical settings. As a result, MRCGP Recorded Consultation Assessments (RCA) have replaced Clinical Skills Assessments (CSA) - and they look set to remain at least in some form going forward, although plans are in the pipeline for a permanent format. You've probably never taken an exam like the one currently being offered. A total of 13 consultations covering the full range of the GP curriculum will need to be recorded by telephone, video, or face-to-face.

RCA applications should be made as follows:

The RCGP application form is available online. The candidate's academic advisor must verify the candidate's identity and the authenticity of the candidate's supplied consultations. Each candidate is responsible for selecting their own set of 13 consultations. Any interviews or focus groups that were part of an assessment that wasn't the RCA can't be included in the RCA.

RCA Marking:

RCA RCGP marking scheme range from a clear pass to a pass, to a fail, and to a clear fail. There will be no marking after the first ten minutes. A marker will review each candidate's consultation separately. Once the results are published, the RCGP examination department won't be able to re-mark consultations.

How do You take it?

You will need to submit 13 actual consultations conducted in the course of your regular job. Consultations can be recorded in person at a Practice or at home, depending on the practitioner's preference and current workflow. Examiners use a central platform developed by Fourteen Fish to grade the submitted cases. A new examiner will review each case. There should be no pauses or cuts in the presentation of the case. The consultation video will mark just the first 12 minutes.

When Should You take it?

It is only possible to take the RCA in your third year of study (ST3). The dates frequently shift due to the novelty of the test, but there are typically three to four annual sittings in addition to the emergency sittings established to accommodate candidates who are dangerously close to their CCT due date.

What happens during the recording period?

Upon submitting your application via the RCGP account, you will be assigned a submission date by which time you must have uploaded all 13 of your consultations. Fourteen Fish, the business in charge of this review, requires either a recording or upload of all consultations. However, many participants begin recording far in advance of the exam registration deadline. Cases must be recorded within six months of the submission date, although obtaining patient agreement to do so is essential.

After the RCA examination board has finalized the results and made them public, all submitted recordings will be removed from the centralized server. After 26 weeks, any content posted to the centralized IT platform but not submitted for the RCA will be erased (182 days). The Examination Board may grant a request for an extended retention time, which will be subject to GDPR guidelines.

Conclusion

The RCA is an intense test that can be very stressful for candidates as well as for their peers who are tasked with grading it. However, it is essential to remember that the RCA is designed to give you a sense of not only your own strengths but also your weaknesses. You can do better on this test and get a better job in the future by retaking it in the next year or so.

To get more information visit our website https://medic-exams.co.uk