Questionnaires: the bane of our lives?

Abstract

One of my particular bugbears, and I suspect I am not alone, is receiving a request via email to fill out a questionnaire (except College questionnaires, of course!). The number of such requests has increased exponentially as email has become the key means of communication. These requests are always accompanied by a message to say that this particular questionnaire will take no more than five minutes to complete – usually an underestimate in my experience. My natural inclination is to delete the request unless I really think it is an important topic and that my participation might change thinking. I would therefore like to thank all those individuals who completed the College's questionnaire regarding concerns related to the Health and Social Care Act. The results of the questionnaire can be found at www.rcseng.ac.uk/policy/publicaffairs and you will see that the principle concern of respondents is the impact of the changes on education and training.