The South West Educational Supervisor Job Description

(Published 2016)

An Education Supervisor is an experienced general dental practitioner (4+ years post BDS) with high clinical standards, good ethical values, is currently included in the dental Performers List and who employs a dentist as a FD in the practice. As well as this, the ES needs to have the skills to create a learning environment for the FD, and to be able to assess learning that takes place.

  • The Foundation Dentist (FD) works in the practice for 35 hours per week. On those weeks when the Day Release Course is being attended, the FD works in the practice for 28 hours.

  • For 30 weeks of the year the FD has to attend a Day Release Course (DRC) at one of seven Dental Foundation Training Schemes around the South West region.

  • The FD’s working week must not be more than five days in any week, including the study day, and the FD must not work for more than eight hours in any one day.

  • The ES must be available in the practice to provide help and advice, be it chair side or otherwise, and must be present for at least three days a week whilst the FD is working in the practice. It is de-sirable that there is in the practice another experienced dentist who is able and available to provide supervision for the FD at times when the ES is not present.

  • Joint ESs must ensure that 4 days or 8 sessions are covered by their presence in practice and are not expected to be away from the practice for any significant time eg. annual leave .

As well as the normal help and advice, the ES also has to:

  • Provide a weekly tutorial lasting one hour, during normal working hours (not lunch time).
  • Take part in fourteen sessions (seven days) of postgraduate activity associated with DFT (as agreed with the appropriate scheme’s Training Programme Director.
  • Attend the Educational Supervisors Course in June each year (as part of the 14 sessions).
  • Attend two ES workshops during the year, organised by the Training Programme Directors(as part of the 14 sessions).
  • Work with the FD and their e portfolio to carry out regular assessments of development, with the aid of learning and developing action plans.
  • Complete the ES parts of the e portfolio in a timely fashion and also ensure that the FD maintains their sections of the e portfolio fully and promptly.
  • Visit at least one nearby training practice for the purpose of carrying out at least one ADEPT and one Case-based discussion with an FD other than their own.
  • Each Foundation Dentist should be assigned a nominated Educational Supervisor who is responsible for overseeing the educational progress of the trainee, agreeing a learning plan, undertaking tutorials, appraisals, 3 monthly progress reviews, carrying out workplace based assessments, providing regular feedback on progress to the trainee, advising the Deanery about progress and providing evidence and recommendation for completion of training.
  • S/he should require the trainee to regularly complete the Dental Foundation Training Portfolio and use the educational tools provided to support the trainee.