The online Three-Monthly Formative Appraisal for FRANZCOG trainees was launched on 16 March for trainees in New Zealand. The Australian launch followed four weeks later. Formative Appraisals have been now completed by trainees and supervisors in New Zealand, Australia, Switzerland, the UK, Hong Kong and Papua New Guinea.

Dr Celia Devenish, Chair of the New Zealand Training Accreditation Committee, said:

Reviewing the training assessments is always an exercise I look forward to, because seeing trainees progress through the Core and Advanced Training modules is both rewarding and reassuring. The electronic format offered by the new online portfolio adds a new dimension of ease and accessibility that is immediately addictive. The trainees readily record their thoughts and experiences and offer new insights using this modality. Our training supervisors have readily taken up the new technology, and thanks to the hard work done by the development team, there have been no real snags. I vote the change a resounding success of common sense, consensus and know how.

The next component launched was Additional Requirements. Trainees can now upload completed training requirements and submit them instantly to the College for review. Training requirements included in this component are: APSS, Workshops, Research, IHCAs, CLIMATE modules, Statement of Understanding and Activities. This new functionality also includes a dashboard for each trainee. The dashboard displays the relevant training requirements, what has been completed and what is outstanding.

The next components of the online portfolio to be implemented will be the Six-Monthly Summative Assessment and recording of leave.

Dr Celia Devenish reviews her first Three-Monthly Formative Appraisal via the online portfolio.