Placement Aims: The aim of the placements is to deliver the community and primary care modules, where clinical learning is integrated with theory learnt in Years 1 and 2. It also aims to give an overview of a range of health care professionals, services and care pathways outside of the hospital that supports patients and their carers in the community.

For Year 4 and 5, the aim of the placement is to build upon the experience gained in Years 1 and 2, and apply knowledge and skills gained from adjacent specialist modules. It also aims to promote understanding of public health in General Practice, such as health inequalities, health protection, and health improvement.

In Year 1 and 2, students will be allocated in groups of six to eight students to a single PCN. For each of the blocks in year 4, students will be allocated in pairs. Where possible, this will be a different PCN for each year so that students are exposed to different models of working and patient populations.  The allocation for the Year 5 block in Senior Rotations is usually to another community setting where Primary Care is delivered.

• Curriculum Themes for Placement Weeks in Year 1
• Curriculum Themes for Placement Weeks in Year 2
• Curriculum Themes for Placement Weeks in Year 4
• Curriculum Themes for Placement Weeks in Year 5

 

• What is Expected?
• Payment
• Overview of a Typical Placement Week
  
• Primary Care Placement Dates 2025-26
• GP Educational Supervisor Handbook
• GP Placement Contacts

Community and Primary Care in Practice (CPCP), General Practice and Public Health Medicine (GPPH) and Senior Rotations (SnR)

CURRICULUM THEMES FOR PLACEMENT WEEKS IN YEAR 1 (CPCP1) 

• Foundations of Health and Disease (weeks 1-2) 
• Heart, Lungs and Blood (weeks 3–4) 
• Nutrition, Metabolism and Excretion (weeks 5-6) 
• Professional Development and Person–Centered Practice (PDPCP1) 
• Skills for Clinical Practice 1 (weeks 1-6) 

CURRICULUM THEMES FOR PLACEMENT WEEKS IN YEAR 2 (CPCP2)

• Neuroscience and Behaviour (weeks 1-2) 
• Reproduction and Endocrinology (weeks 3-4) 
• Musculoskeletal and Immune Systems (weeks 5-6) 
• Professional Development and Person-Centred Practice (PDPCP2) 
• Skills for Clinical Practice 2 (weeks 1-6) 

CURRICULUM THEMES FOR PLACEMENT WEEKS IN YEAR 4 (GPPH)

The aim of the module is to demonstrate the breadth and skill of general practice, and how primary care interacts with specialist services across a range of disciplines.

The module builds upon the learning gained in preceding modules. It covers the clinical and theoretical basis to general practice, particularly with regards to public health, and public health as a discipline. It covers the primary care management of common issues across the curriculum. Students will develop and apply more senior skills in communication and examination and will become more fluent with complex presentations.

CURRICULUM THEMES FOR PLACEMENT WEEKS IN YEAR 5 (SnR)

The experiences gained on placement, as well as centralised teaching, aims to enhance clinical and diagnostic skills, and expose the students to managing uncertainty in community care. The rotation aims to strengthen management skills to the level of a foundation doctor, including appropriate community management and when to refer a patient to Secondary Care.

What is Expected?

These clinical placements are configured as immersion weeks spread across the year. The Lead Educational Supervisor (LES) of the PCN meets with students at the beginning and end of their immersion week. They oversee their placement and carry out joint teaching sessions. 

All Supervisors facilitate student learning through varying multi-disciplinary clinical activities that align with the curriculum themes. The students attend clinics and other services with a range of healthcare professionals who supervise and support the students. 

Supervisors should arrange protected clinical teaching time during the placements for both patient-facing and non–patient-facing teaching activities. As students progress through the course they will be facilitated by educational supervisors and will become increasingly independent in their practice. These opportunities allow the students to repeatedly practice and attain competence.

Students should be supported to prepare for the assessment requirements of the respective modules. In CPCP1 they are required to complete a small group presentation and a quality improvement project whilst in CPCP2 they are required to complete workplace-based assessments in their e-portfolio and an SSC project related to long term illness management. In Year 4 (GPPH) students are required to complete reflective entries in their e-portfolio, and complete a case-based discussion (CBD) in the form of an individual oral presentation.

Payment

Placements for the academic year 2025/26 shall be remunerated with a fee of £110 per student per session. Fees are subject to funding from NHS England and are reviewed on an annual basis. Information about the process for payment of placement fees can be found here: PCN Lead GP Practice Invoicing Process 2025-26. This includes what details need to be included on your invoice and what dates invoices need to be sent through by. All purchase order and payment enquiries relating to placements should be sent to finance@kmms.ac.uk

Overview of a Typical GP Placement

• Induction, orientation and introduction to PCN during the first week
• Briefing at the beginning and end of immersion week by the Lead Educational Supervisor
• Over the course of programme students will gain experience in clinical history taking and examination
• Placement specific teaching by multidisciplinary team members
• Contact with selected patients with relevant conditions
• Case-based interactive sessions on the allocated “themes of the week”
• Specialised clinics
• Immersion weeks in CPCP2 will also include an introduction to unscheduled care. These will be organised centrally on a rotational basis (details of this are to be finalised)
• Each Year 4 block will be 7-weeks long. The first week will be campus-based teaching followed by 6-weeks of placement. During the 6-week placement there will be centrally timetabled sessions with optometry and with the hospice, as well as weekly online teaching on Wednesday morning
• The three-week block in Year 5 includes centrally delivered teaching for one day of each week
• This guide is intended to give a brief overview of the teaching on placements. Handbooks with detailed guidance will be available before placements commence

GP Educational Supervisor Handbook

Year 1: Community and Primary Care in Practice 1 (CPCP1) GP Educational Supervisor Module Handbook 

Year 2: Community and Primary Care in Practice 2 (CPCP2) GP Educational Supervisor Module Handbook 

Year 4: General Practice and Public Health (GPPH) GP Educational Supervisor Module Handbook 

Year 5: Senior Rotations (SnR) GP Educational Supervisor Module Handbook