During or after each GP visit you are required to complete a log-sheet which must then be filed in your portfolio. The purposes of these are to enable you to:

1. Record your encounters with patients and to identify what you have learnt from them and areas that you need to learn more about.

2. Provide a basis for undertaking PPD coursework.

3. Provide you with material for discussion in group learning.

4. Allow you, your personal tutor and the course organisers to evaluate the range of experiences that you are receiving.

In common with all medical records, your log should be ‘contemporaneous’, which means that it is completed at the time, or just after seeing the patient. Each record should be dated, legible and concise. Discuss the best way of doing this with your GP tutor, since it can sometimes be disconcerting for a patient if you are writing about them whilst they are in the room. Do not record any ‘patient identifiable’ information (e.g. names or dates of birth) in your log. You are expected to see at least six patients on any GP visit, and your log-sheet should reflect this.

The log sheet is available in Microsoft Word format