A portfolio of learning is one way of showing evidence of performance over a period of time.
Worldwide, the need for social accountability and health services reforms has led to an increased
interest in competency-based medical education with specific outcomes. Postgraduate training
increasingly focuses on life-long adult learning, placing emphasis on close supervision with
feedback and workplace-based assessment.
South Africa, although better resourced, faces many similar socio-political and health services
challenges as the rest of Africa. The democracy is less than 20 years old, with 80% of the
previously disadvantaged population now having access to health services. In this new era
medical schools have aligned their curricula to focus on patient-centred primary health care. The
huge demand for appropriately trained family physicians has become a national priority.
Subsequently, the College of Family Physicians of the Colleges of Medicine of South Africa
developed a national exit examination for postgraduate family medicine training. One component
of the examination is the submission of a satisfactory portfolio of learning.
The aim of this thesis was to develop a national portfolio for postgraduate family medicine
education in South Africa. It needed to be valid, acceptable, useful for learning, and be assessed
in a reliable way. The research process involved a collaboration with registrars, supervisors and
programme managers from all eight medical schools in the country over four years and
culminated in the first national portfolio for family medicine in the country. The thesis was done
by way of publication, which involved four articles being published in international journals,
outlining the development, implementation and assessment of our portfolio.