Tony Delamothe's Editorial and the bulk of the letters in which
distressed trainees rage against MTAS are perhaps too focussed on the
symptoms rather than the aetiology of this unpleasant but avoidable
disease. Bodies that have had to deal on a regular basis with the gospel
according to MMC and its bastard offspring MTAS and PMETB know only too
well that the real problem is the culture underlying the day to day
dictats and deliberations of these bodies. Too often they appear to
harbour basic assumption that their own pronouncements are sacrosanct and
that the challenges from Royal Colleges, working clinicians, specialist
committees, deans...in fact anyone with hands on experience.. can always
be set aside in favour of the novel but uninformed views of office
functionaries, educationalists, and politicians. Until MTAS, PMETB, MMC
and their cosy advisers are prepared to put their hands up and accept that
their culture is wrong and that evolution and experience can usefully
guide change, the MTAS fiasco, the Article 14 fiasco and all the others
will simply be replaced with new ones.
Rapid Response:
MTAS. Focus the aetiology not the symptoms
Tony Delamothe's Editorial and the bulk of the letters in which
distressed trainees rage against MTAS are perhaps too focussed on the
symptoms rather than the aetiology of this unpleasant but avoidable
disease. Bodies that have had to deal on a regular basis with the gospel
according to MMC and its bastard offspring MTAS and PMETB know only too
well that the real problem is the culture underlying the day to day
dictats and deliberations of these bodies. Too often they appear to
harbour basic assumption that their own pronouncements are sacrosanct and
that the challenges from Royal Colleges, working clinicians, specialist
committees, deans...in fact anyone with hands on experience.. can always
be set aside in favour of the novel but uninformed views of office
functionaries, educationalists, and politicians. Until MTAS, PMETB, MMC
and their cosy advisers are prepared to put their hands up and accept that
their culture is wrong and that evolution and experience can usefully
guide change, the MTAS fiasco, the Article 14 fiasco and all the others
will simply be replaced with new ones.
Competing interests:
Member of the SAC in Surgery
Competing interests: No competing interests