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Revalidation for NHS users

Guide to help NHS users with resources and training aimed at aiding them through the process of revalidation.

What is revalidation?

Revalidation is a process by which healthcare professionals show that their skills are up to date, and that they are fit to continue practising. Revalidation is a requirement for most healthcare professionals, and the process is usually managed by your specific professional body.

  • GMC (for doctors, physician associates and anaesthesia associates)
  • NMC (for nurses, midwives and nursing associates)
  • GPhC (for pharmacists and pharmacy technicians)
  • HCPC (for different allied health professions)

Although the individual requirements of each body vary, there are several common elements that professionals have to meet in order to fulfil the terms of revalidation.

  • Professional activity: Professionals need to have been in practice during the period since their last revalidation, and in some instances may have to produce reflections on that practice.
  • Continuing Professional Development: Professionals need to show that they have undertaken continuing professional development (CPD) activities between their last and current submissions, which may also include reflecting on those activities.
  • Practice-related feedback: Professionals need to note and reflect on feedback they have received that relates to their practice, whether from colleagues or patients.
  • Reflection: Professionals need to produce written reflections on the different types of evidence they include in their revalidation submission.

 

The General Medical Council (GMC) mandates revalidation for its registrants every 5 years. In order to revalidate, you need to gather and reflect on six types of supporting evidence:

  • CPD: Based on day-to-day activity, covering the whole of your practice, and relevant to the current and future knowledge and skills of your chosen specialty.
  • Quality improvement: You need to participate in at least one quality improvement activity relevant to your practice during the revalidation cycle, as well as taking part in regular reviews and audits of your team’s work.
  • Significant events: You need to declare and reflect on every “significant event” – this is any unintended or unexpected event that could or did lead to some form of patient harm.
  • Patient feedback: You need to collect and reflect on feedback from patients via a formal feedback exercise at least once per cycle. In addition, you need to also reflect on any informal feedback you receive from patients.
  • Colleague feedback: You need to collect and reflect on feedback from colleagues from different roles (not just doctors) at least once during the revalidation cycle.
  • Compliments and complaints: You need to declare and reflect on any formal complaints received since your previous revalidation, as well as any complaints and / or compliments that have been received outside formal procedures that provide useful learning.

You will also have an annual appraisal covering UK medical practice based on the principles laid out in Good Medical Practice.

For detailed information on the process, go to the GMC Revalidation website.

The Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) mandates revalidation for its registrants every 3 years. In order to revalidate, you need to meet a standard set of requirements during that period, providing evidence that you have done so:

  • Practice hours: You need to have undertaken a minimum amount of hours of professional practice during the current revalidation cycle. For hours to count towards the total, you need to have used your knowledge, skills and professional practice.
  • CPD: You need to have completed at least 35 hours of CPD, of which 20 hours must be participatory – this is any activity that involves interacting with other professionals in some way.
  • Practice related feedback: You need to include five pieces of feedback related to your practice – this can be either written or verbal, and from either colleagues or patients.
  • Written reflective accounts: You need to include five written reflective accounts that refer to either an instance of CPD, or a piece of practice related feedback, or an event / experience in your professional practice.
  • Reflective discussion: You need to have a reflective discussion with another NMC registrant covering what you have put in your written reflective accounts.
  • Other requirements: In addition to the above requirements, there are a number of others you need to meet
    • You need to declare your fitness to practice, both in terms of your health and your character, which requires declaration of any formal caution, charge or conviction for a criminal offence.
    • You need to confirm that you have a professional indemnity arrangement in place, either personally or via your organisation.
    • You need to show that you have demonstrated you have met all of the requirements to an appropriate confirmer (usually your line manager).

​​​​​​​For detailed information on the process, go to the NMC Revalidation website.

The General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC) mandates revalidation for its registrants annually. This involves fulfilling a standard set of requirements, at the same time providing evidence that you have done so:

  • CPD: You need to document at least four CPD events during the year, of which two need to fall into the category of “planned learning” – this covers activities where you identify knowledge or skills you wish to develop, and find appropriate learning activities to undertake.
  • Peer discussion: You need to have a reflective discussion with a peer of your choosing; this is intended to help you reflect on your professional practice.
  • Reflective account record: You need to produce an account intended to display how you have met one or more of the Standards for Pharmacy Professionals, including examples to help support this.

For detailed information on the process, go to the GPhC Revalidation website.

The Health & Care Professions Council (HCPC) does not have revalidation requirements in the way that other professional bodies do, instead only requiring that registrants make a declaration that they have continued in practice for 2 years, and meet the HCPC’s standards of proficiency and CPD. However, at the start of the renewal period, 2.5% of registrants are randomly chosen for a CPD audit to check that CPD standards of registrants are being met. This requires the submission of a CPD profile made up of four sections:

  • Summary of work / practice: A description of your role, including responsibilities, specialist areas that you are involved in, and people you work with most. This is to assess whether the CPD you have undertaken is relevant to your practice.
  • Dated list of CPD activities: A record of all your CPD activities since your last registration renewal.
  • Personal statement: A reflection on how the CPD activities you have undertaken have improved what you do, and how they have benefitted your service users.
  • Supporting evidence: Evidence of the CPD activities you have undertaken, and that you have referred to in your personal statement.

For detailed information on the process go to the HCPC Registration renewals and CPD audit websites.