Trust Contact Details

Royal Surrey NHS Foundation Trust Egerton Road, Guildford, GU2 7XX  

Trust switchboard:  
01483 571122  
x6390/2307 

Trust website:  
www.royalsurrey.nhs.uk  

Foundation Training Programme Directors  
Miss Julie Kohls (F1)  
Dr Bhavesh Patel (F2)  

Medical Education Manager  
Tracey Cookman  

Foundation Programme Manager  
Chantel Brandon
chantelbrandon@nhs.net
Becky Wallace
rebecca.wallace16@nhs.net

Facilities

Postgraduate Centre

Our purpose built Education Centre is on site and houses a library with 24 hour access as well as a state of the art simulation suite for clinical and communication skills teaching. We are recognised as a centre of excellence for simulation by HEKSS.  

Accommodation

Onsite rooms with laundry room available. Please refer to www.a2dominion.co.uk for up to date information and prices. Local accommodation may also be found in www.gumtree.com.  

Knowledge and Library Facilities  

• 24 hour access to the library and PCs
• Wi-Fi
• Helpful library staff available to assist Monday to Friday 9am to 5pm
• Seminar room available to book for group study/journal clubs
• Access to a comprehensive range of full text ejournals and ebooks via Open Athens
• Point of Care Tools: UpToDate Anywhere, BMJ Best Practice and Clinical Key
• Good range of core textbooks available for loan
• Health & Wellbeing Area

IT facilities

7 networked PCs in the Learning Resource Centre, 11 networked PCs in the main library area, plus a further 6 with external broadband access.  

Full Range of Information Services 

• Fast and efficient inter-library loan service for items not held by the library
• Looking for the latest evidence and information?  
  Sign up for personalised KnowledgeShare evidence alerts or use our evidence searching service and let us find it for you  
• Want to update and improve your searching skills?  
  The library team provides full training in the effective use of medical databases, point of care tools and e-resources. 

For more information, please contact us via: rsc-tr.library@nhs.net or visit the library website: www.libraryroyalsurrey.nhs.uk  

Parking Arrangements  

On-site parking permits can be applied for.  

Local Area

Doctors’ Mess

We have an active doctors’ mess which is run by the foundation doctors.

Social Activities  

The Doctors’ Mess organise monthly pay day socials and extra events at Halloween and Christmas. There is also a social club onsite.  

Transport Links  

The Royal Surrey is only 10 minutes by bus from Guildford train station and a 30 minute walk.  

There are regular trains to London Waterloo (approx. 30 mins). Gatwick and Heathrow are within the hour.  

Foundation Specific

Induction/Shadowing Arrangements

We organise a Professional Practice Week/Induction for F1 doctors which includes ILS. We also have a social induction which includes a social and an F1 mess night. All F2 doctors are invited to meet the Foundation Programme Director prior to their start date.  

Tasters

All F1 doctors will have the option to take a taster week towards the end of their year. Study leave will be deducted from their F2 allowance. F2 doctors can apply for tasters during their F2 year.  

Educational and Clinical Supervision

The Educational Supervisor who is also your Clinical Supervisor for your first attachment will have responsibility for your education throughout the year. They will agree your personal development plan, discuss career progression and make recommendations to the faculty with regard to sign off. In addition you will also be supported by a Clinical Supervisor as you rotate through your attachments that will be responsible for your teaching and supervision whilst you are on their firm.  

Simulation

Here at the Royal Surrey Medical Education centre we have grown and developed MediSim a purpose built facility for the delivery of full immersion simulation described as an HEKSS centre of excellence. As a foundation doctor, access to simulation takes place on a regular basis throughout the year. For F1 trainees 2 three-hour sessions are available throughout the year, giving a total of 6 hours of individual involvement in simulation covering varied appropriately developed scenarios. F2s attend 2 three-hour sessions which have an increased level of complexity. All the scenarios have been developed and mapped to the curriculum and look at many aspects of practice encountered in the first 2 years of training. These simulation sessions are aimed at assisting the on-going development of the foundation doctor at all levels, from communication and practical skills to management, prioritisation and leadership.  

For F2 doctors there is also the opportunity to be involved in the Faculty for the creation, implementation and delivery of simulation scenarios for F1 doctors and medical students. After each session we evaluate delivery and collate feedback from participants. This informs the simulation team which areas need revision and result in effective pattern of delivery. All F1 and F2 doctors also have the chance to be involved in various multi-disciplinary simulation sessions that are also run on a number of occasions throughout the year and again involve many different areas of practice. Reflection and teaching session post simulation are very relaxed and aim to give 360° feedback, as well as practical advice.  

“Really supportive atmosphere. No pressure and good feedback.”

– F2 doctor

“Previous session was very useful and has impacted on practice last week.”

– F1 doctor

Foundation Doctor Forums  

F1 and F2 doctor representatives are appointed at the beginning of the year. They represent doctors in training at the Foundation Local Faculty Group which takes place every 4 months, and the Foundation Doctors’ Forum which occurs every month giving doctors access to share concerns at high level with the Medical Director and the Director of Medical Education attendance. A doctors in training representative workshop is held in the autumn.  

Teaching Programme

We currently have over 52 F1 posts rotating through medical, surgical and psychiatry specialties. There are also 45 F2 posts. We have been able to accommodate changes to these rotations with internal swaps where educationally appropriate.  

Foundation Teaching takes place for an hour every week, with separate F1 and F2 sessions. Our programme covers a wide range of clinical and professional competencies, as well as including Lessons Learnt; an opportunity to discuss cases and share insights and knowledge. There are also weekly medical journal club breakfast meetings which our foundation doctors are invited to attend if appropriate. We organise surgical teaching for those with an interest in applying for surgical training. There are formal weekly medical student teaching sessions that foundation doctors can be involved in. We organise six annual Educational Half Days with a Medical Director’s Hour which gives doctors the opportunity to meet and learn in their teams.  

Any Additional Information

The Foundation team is well established having worked together for more than five years. There are strong links with KSS Foundation School and other local Trusts.  

The Foundation Programme is run by an experienced and dynamic team. 

Trust Information

Accolades/Achievements of The Trust  

The Royal Surrey NHS Foundation Trust is a leading general hospital and specialist tertiary centre for cancer, oral and maxillo-facial surgery and pathology. The hospital serves a population of 320,000 for emergency and general hospital services and is the lead specialist centre for cancer patients in Surrey, West Sussex and Hampshire, serving a population of 1.2 million.  

Our annual income is £350 million and we have 527 beds and 14 operating theatres. We employ approximately 4,500 staff, making us the second largest employer in Guildford. We have very close links with the University of Surrey and have an extensive education, training and research portfolio.  

The Trust has a very strong reputation for minimally invasive surgery and laparoscopic surgery is used widely across the surgical specialties. The Trust is a national leader in surgical training and laparoscopic surgery and MATTU (Minimal Access Therapy Training Unit) is one of the most advanced training centres for this type of surgery. It has also been designated as a national training centre for laparoscopic colorectal surgery.  

Any Additional Information

The Royal Surrey NHS Foundation Trust is a district general hospital with a few differences. It has a tertiary referral cancer centre (St Luke’s) providing care for patients from a large catchment area. Many surgical firms also offer complex surgery to patients from a wide area. There is an efficient, well run A&E department with separate medical and surgical assessment units.  

There are strong links with University of Surrey supporting academic excellence.