General Information
College Mediation
Adverse Supervisor's Report
Occasionally an adverse supervisor’s report will be received by the SAC/JSAC. This should be submitted only after the process of problem identification and remediation at the hospital or training site has failed. An adverse report to an SAC/ JSAC is passed on to the CPT and may result in an Independent Review of Training (IRT).

Independent Review of Training (IRT)
The IRT may be initiated whenever clarification is needed by the CPT on the quality of the trainees' training experience or the level of competence reached by trainees at a specific stage in the training program.

The aim of the IRT is to provide an independent assessment of the situation that gave rise to the review. This is so that the CPT may make an informed decision about a trainee’s progress or training situation on the basis of the information provided at the interviews and the recommendation of the review panel.

The IRT is part of the process of training. Trainees and supervisors are required to attend an IRT, however, the requirement may be waived where satisfactory supervisors’ reports have been received. If trainees decide they do not wish to attend an IRT, this would represent a breach of the requirements for physician training and the supervisors’ assessment will stand unless there is clear evidence from other parties who participated in the IRT.

An appointed review panel interviews trainees, supervisors and other relevant trainers. The interviews allow the panel to hear, in detail, the circumstances leading to the independent review, assessments by the supervisor and other consultants of a trainee’s performance and to learn, separately, the trainee’s views on the experience gained in the training position and the level of performance in that position.

For more information on the process please see the following document: Independent Review of Training

Appeals Process
It is essential that the dictates of natural justice are followed, especially when the outcome may be serious, e.g. dismissal from the training program. Trainees are given the opportunity to respond to specific and detailed lists of problems and are entitled to seek reconsideration and review of a decision which affects them adversely.

For more information please see the following document: College Appeals Process

The College Appeals Process has three stages including reconsideration, review and formal appeal hearing.

Reconsideration
The first step in the Appeals Process is to ask the committee making the decision to reconsider the decision. In order to facilitate the reconsideration, the appellant is asked to provide the committee with reasons for the request and any additional information for consideration by the relevant committee.

Review
If the appellant remains dissatisfied, the next step in the process is a review of the decision. The review is by the committee overseeing the committee which made the original decision. The appellant needs to provide reasons for the request for review and has the opportunity to provide additional information to the review committee.

For more information please see the College document on Reconsideration and Review of decisions.

Sexual Harassment
The RACP is committed to ensuring that all registered trainees of the College, its faculties and its employees are treated fairly, and in a training or work environment which is free of embarrassment, discomfort, humiliation or intimidation arising from sexual harassment.

Officers of the College have been appointed to deal with individual cases. The names of the current officers are available from the College.

For more information, see the College Policy on Sexual Harassment.

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