Robin Benstead Email & Phone Number

Manchester, United Kingdom

The role of the Quality Assurance Monitoring & Improvement team is to ensure GMC standards for the delivery of medical education and training are met, and that appropriate action is taken when they are not. As Principal within this team, I provide leadership and support to a team of Education QA Programme Managers across the Manchester and London offices, as well as a team of analysts who support this work, while working closely with the senior leadership team on the strategic direction of the QAMI team. This involves working with medical schools, postgraduate training organisations, local education providers and other key stakeholders, both internal and external, to achieve this.I am also responsible for leading the education QA activity Northern Ireland, Prior to 2020 I was also responsible for Scotland and Wales.Examples of QA activity undertaken include;National review of medical education and training across Scotland (2017)New medical school and programme approval process - Ulster University, ScotGEM, University of Aberdeen Sri Lanka Medical Pathway, Edinburgh Medical School HCP -Med.National pilot of Proactive Quality Assurance – Wales (2019)Routine and enhanced monitoring activity, including analysis of National Training Surveys.I have presented both internally and externally on quality assurance, including at national events such as the Scottish DME group, the Professional Standards Authority (PSA) and the Associations for the study of Medical Education (ASME).I have also provided consultancy work as part of GMC Services International, and have been involved in a range of projects undertaking QA reviews of medical education processes or organisations in India (2019), Cairo (2022) and Indonesia (2022).

London, United Kingdom

I was responsible for the education QA activity across Scotland, as well as Yorkshire and the Humber, the North East and (up until 2016) the South West of England, and managed a team of analysts to achieve this. Examples of QA activity undertaken include;Regional review of Yorkshire and the Humber (2014-15)Regional review of South West of England (2015-16)New medical school application process – Exeter and Plymouth medical schoolsNew (overseas) undergraduate medical programme application process; NUMed Malaysia, St George’s (Nicosia)UK wide review of Clinical Academic TrainingI was lead manager for GMC enhanced monitoring process, the process by which we support organisations to address serious and persistent patient safety concerns. This involved reviewing the process, and supporting/training a team of 11 associates to act as GMC representatives on visits to local education providers to check on progress addressing concerns. Prior to 2016 all education QA activity was carried out from the London office; In 2016 I permanently relocated to the Manchester office to establish a hub in this office to cover the north of England and the devolved countries. I recruited a team for this purpose, which I inducted, trained and continue to support and manage.

London, United Kingdom

I acted as lead analyst for regional review of London (2012-13) – supporting the team attached to UCL medical school and the London Deanery.I lead on a pilot on quality assuring small specialties, leading on reviews of occupational medicine, medical psychotherapy and paediatric cardiology. Establishing business rules for future reviews of small specialties.Scrutiny of routine monitoring updates from medical schools and deaneries.Small specialties pilot – developing and managing reviews of occupational medicine, medical psychotherapy and paediatric cardiology. Establishing business rules for future reviews of small specialties.Scrutiny of routine monitoring updates from medical schools and deaneries.

MST is a care and support provider based in London and the East Midlands. MST provides care and support customers with a wide range of needs, specialising in services for older people and for people with mental health issues and learning disabilities. Responsibility for developing and reviewing a number of organisation wide policies and procedures, e.g contingency planning, extreme weather (heat wave) guidelines and Care Charge Arrears Monitoring Framework, among others.Responsibility for quarterly KPI reporting in line with local government requirements and Care Quality Commission. This included development of workbooks to gather required information from managers and frontline staff, and benchmarking with other care and support providers. I also undertook internal audits.Involvement in business analysis project reviewing and standardizing reporting and processes across four organisations prior to a merger to form MST in April 2007.Involvement in creation of London Regional Service User Group, and responsibility for updating group on quality, as well as managing the 2006 Service User Conference, and presenting at the Lambeth Good Practice Conference (2007).