EURACT - European Academy of Teachers in General Practice

Network organisation within WONCA Region Europe - ESGP/FM

 

The establishment of the European Academy of Teachers in General Practice can be traced back to the formation of the first Leeuwenhorst Group in 1974. This group acted as a workshop for new ideas on the teaching of general practice, and is remembered for defining the role of the general practitioner and this definition remains valid today. Its successor the New Leeuwenhorst Group, which was formed in 1982, was concerned with the further development of general practice as a discipline by teaching and learning.

 

It felt that there was a need to develop further in order to realise its aim of promoting the discipline of general practice through learning and teaching, and that there was a need for an organisation to support the many individuals involved at all levels (undergraduate, vocational training and CME) in the teaching of general practice.

 

The European Academy of Teachers in General Practice (EURACT) was launched in March, 1992. It was felt that support for teachers would best be provided by an organisation for individual membership, rather than an organisation of large national bodies or societies. The overall aim of the Academy is "to foster and maintain high standards of care in European general practice by promoting general practice as a discipline by learning and teaching."

 

The use of the word Academy in the title of the organisation was deliberate and is intended to imply a European structure to provide support and resources for general practice teachers. It is intended to complement and collaborate with existing general practice organisations in Europe, using its special emphasis on teaching.

 

Since the launch of the Academy it has grown to be the largest personal membership organisation in Europe, with 650 members in 30 countries. Teachers in each country in the WONCA European region may be members, and each country with members has one representative on the Council, which is the ruling body. Council meetings are held twice a year in different countries, and are usually associated with a meeting or course for national teachers. It has regularly participated in WONCA European meetings starting in the Hague in 1993.

 

With the formation of the WONCA Region Europe/European Society of General Practice/Family Medicine, EURACT has become one of the three network European organisations with special interest in education, and took a leading part in the first three network conference in 1999 in Majorca, and the second in Tampere in 2001. It was the instigator and provided the principal authors of the European Definition of Family Medicine published in 2002.

 

EURACT also runs its own international meetings, and ran its successful first international meeting, on Drug Education in General Practice, in Göttingen in 1994, which resulted in the publication of an occasional paper by the Royal College of General Practitioners. A full list of subsequent meetings are available on our website, but recent ones have been:

• 1999 WHO Charter & family medicine in Europe - Bled
• 1998 Lessons from Educational Research – Maastricht
• 2001 Conference on new definition and core content of family medicine - Barcelona
• 2002 Higher Professional Education - Maastricht

It runs courses for teachers – skills courses have been provided in Greece, and Turkey, and a new Leonardo-EURACT course for trainers, moving annually to different parts of Europe. The first edition of this course with participation of trainers from 6 countries took place in Poland in May 2004. There are annual courses in Bled in September and Paris in November, and EURACT gives its support. EURACT also patronize the annual course in Dubrovnik in May.

It publishes booklets:

• "A survey on recertification and reaccreditation in Europe" 1995
• "Attributes and learning needs of general practice teachers" 1995
• "Hospital Posts for general practice training" 2000
• "Selection of trainers and training practices for specific training" 2002        
• And in collaboration with EQUIP "Quality Standards for CPD in Europe" 2003.

Further information, including an application form, is available from the EURACT website.

 

All teachers of general practice in the WONCA European region are invited to apply for membership of the Academy. Applications should be made to your national representative, or to the secretariat in Leuven. They will be considered by the Council of the Academy at its next meeting. All applicants for full membership must be family doctors active in teaching general practice.

Students and trainees are invited to apply for special membership (at half the normal membership fee).

 

Associate membership is available for those who wish to join but do not meet the criteria for full membership.

Teaching organisations such as university departments, or national teaching bodies can apply to be given the status of an organisation in collaboration. Further details on this is available from the secretariat.

 

The membership fee is arranged in Euro to symbolise our common European base, and is for two years in the first instance, and is thereafter payable annually.