CPD diary
CPD requirements
Physician associates are required to keep up to date with the 18 specialty areas in the Core Clinical Practice Curriculum (CCPC). Physician associates are expected to obtain 50 CPD annually and 250 CPD very 5 years. These are split into:
- Category A (core CPD) – 125 CPD
- Category B (additional/supplementary CPD) – 125 CPD
From the total hours achieved in category A and B, 20% should be verifiable CPD (learning that have been awarded formal certification from a body such as RCP, FPA or other accredited body).
From the total hours achieved in category A and B, 80% should be non-verifiable CPD (this includes self-directed learning you have done without formal approval of the content).
Physician associates need to record their CPD activities whether they are clinical or non-clinical events.
FPA ePortfolio – maintaining a record of CPD activity
From 1 April 2024, the FPA requires all qualified physician associates to be registered with the FPA ePortfolio and using this to record all CPD activities This is access if free to all members. Should a qualified physician associate member not have access, they are encouraged to contact the FPA via [email protected] for assistance.
The FPA ePortfolio allows qualified physician associate members to:
- Maintain a consistent record of their CPD activity.
- Review the CPD that they have logged and display their activity in a simple easy to understand format.
- Monitor progress on how much CPD they have completed.
- Summarise all your annual CPD activities.
- Allow their supervisor to review their activities as part of their annual appraisal.
CPD diary guidance for physician associates
Guidance and information on the requirements for physician associates is available in the CPD guidance document. This includes details on:
- credit requirements
- eligibility
- how to access the CPD Diary
- how credit is rounded up/down
- clinical/non-clinical events
- audit
- verifiable and non-verifiable CPD.
CPD diary cycle
The CPD diary runs from 1 April to 31 March each year. Please note that this period is separate and operates differently to the FPA membership year. It is vital that all qualified physician associate members ensure that they undertake and record their CPD and reflections each CPD year, as this is a requirement for continued FPA membership. At the end of each CPD year, members can export a PDF of their annual CPD report detailing their CPD credits. This can be used as evidence during the annual appraisal process.
The General Medical Council's Good Medical Practice domains
As of December 2024, it is expected that the General Medical Council will regulate the physician associate profession. It is therefore vital that qualified physician associates are aware of the GMC’s expectations. The four domains from within Good Medical Practice, the GMC’s professional standards guidance and what physician associates will be required to adhere to are:
- knowledge, skills and development
- patients, partnership and communication
- colleagues, culture and safety
- trust and professionalism.
RCP CPD diary
Please be aware that from 1 April 2024, physician associates will no longer be using the RCP CPD Diary. All physician associates must transition to the FPA ePortfolio where they must start recording their CPD. Physician associates are no longer able to register for an account on the RCP CPD Diary.
