ABSTRACT

Examining ears, measuring blood pressure, giving injections, taking blood and syringing ears are all in a day’s work for a general practitioner (GP). Some GPs extend their service to patients by acquiring more specialized skills, for example minor surgery, doing electrocardiograms (ECGs) or rectal examination by proctoscopy – procedures for which other patients would be referred

to hospital. With busy work schedules in general practice, the management of patients is shared with other members of the primary healthcare team especially practice and community nurses. GP training demands high standards in skills performance as well as responsibility for ensuring competence in staff to whom work is delegated. Training in clinical skills involves the acquisi-

tion of specific technical competencies and an appropriate professional approach, combining both the art and the science of medicine.