General Practice

The Department of General Practice is involved in teaching across both Undergraduate and Postgraduate levels within RCSI. Throughout all GP education, there is a strong emphasis on the practice of evidence-based medicine, professionalism, appropriate prescribing and reflection.

Contact us

Telephone: +353 1 402 2304 / 402 2306
Email: gp@rcsi.ie

Teaching and education

At Undergraduate level, the department is involved in teaching throughout Junior, Intermediate and Senior Cycle 1.

In Junior Cycle we coordinate the ‘Introduction to Professional Clinical Practice (IPCP)’ course. This provides students with the opportunity to meet patients early in their training and aims to develop clinical competency and contextualise theoretical learning of knowledge, skills and attitudes.

During Intermediate Cycle students may undertake a Student Selected Component (SSC) which involves a six-week research placement. The department supports students to partake in SSC placements with the HRB Centre for Primary Care Research. The SSC placement aims to provide students with an understanding of the fundamentals of study design and data analysis in primary care research.

During Senior Cycle 1, students undertake a seven-week General Practice Rotation. During rotation, students attend lectures and teaching within the department and spend time in attachments in two separate practices. During the attachment, students will hone their clinical skills by taking histories, performing physical examinations, making differential diagnoses and formulating management plans. Teaching is on a one-to-one basis with one student per surgery for each attachment. Students are given the opportunity to experience one attachment in a rural setting and one attachment in an urban setting.

At Postgraduate level the Department of General Practice is responsible for the delivery of the MSc Healthcare Ethics and Law and the methodological component of the Masters of Surgery programme.

Research

The Department of General Practice provides a vibrant research environment allowing researchers from various disciplines such as general practice, pharmacy, epidemiology, biostatistics, information technology and occupational therapy to collaborate on innovative research.

Over the last 13 years, it has been the home of the HRB Centre for Primary Care Research, which was established in 2008 and is funded by the Health Research Board (HRB) in Ireland. Research work continues on two major Collaborative Doctoral Award programmes both due for completion in 2023-24: Right Care – Enhancing safe and appropriate care to older patients in Ireland; and Managing complex multimorbidity in primary care.

The Department’s overall research aim is to enhance patient safety in terms of prescribing, diagnostic and therapeutic approaches to the care of patients utilising information and communication technology (ICT). Themes include: