The 16 th European Meeting of Trainees in Obstetrics and Gynaecology (ENTOG) took place in the impressive Ferring PharmaScience Center in Copenhagen. One hundred delegates from 23 European Countries convened for the meeting which was on ‘Research and Training' and ‘Methods of Assessment'. For the first time this year, the President of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, Professor Laube, attended along with three junior specialists from the USA who had participated in the exchange programme.
The issues discussed were whether research should be made a mandatory part of training. Involvement in research varies considerably from country to country and the recurring themes of lack of funding, limited laboratory access, time and the importance of mentorship were felt across all of Europe.
The main consensus was that doing research properly required a well structured programme leading to a higher degree. There was no place for dabbling in research late at night or during weekends in order to publish for career enhancement. It was felt that research methodology, searching the literature and ‘how to read a paper' were all mandatory parts of training and should be incorporated into the specialist training programme.
The afternoon session was dedicated to Multisource Feedback (MSF) There was an impressive lecture given by Dr Helena Davis on MSF which would have converted even the most sceptical person into believing that it is an effective and worthwhile tool.
The ENTOG Council Meeting took place the following day with new appointments to the executive board. A new President was elected - Erica Werner from the Netherlands. Ilinica Gussi has now become the Secretary General. Ferenc Macsali remains as Treasurer. Two new members were voted onto the executive committee; David Rodriguez from Spain and Panos Christopoulos from Greece.
There was a long discussion about the amalgamation of the ENTOG meeting with the EBCOG meeting every two years and having part of the exchange over a weekend. This is the way ENTOG meetings used to run, and it was decided we would try out this format again, with the next stand-alone ENTOG meeting being held in 2007 in Vienna and the next combined meeting with EBCOG to take place in Lisbon in 2008.
The EBCOG website has been revised and now has a trainees section with e-learning systems.
Regarding hospital recognition visits in Europe, two members of EBCOG currently attend, and the majority of participants at the council meeting felt that a member of ENTOG should also be invited on these visits, as trainees were more likely to be honest about training and working conditions to another trainee.
The Council meeting concluded with an excellent presentation from our American colleagues on Residency Training in the USA.
The next exchange and meeting will take place in Vienna in December 2007. Further details will appear on the trainees section of the website and can also be found on the ENTOG website, www.entog.org . The application process for a place on the exchange programme will occur during the summer of 2007.
Nicky Roberts and Louise Hayes
RCOG ENTOG representatives