Now you have discovered why lifelong learning is important for veterinary professionals you might be wondering what actually counts towards your continuous professional development (CPD). Could reading an article on cherry eye or reflecting on a tumultuous case in a team meeting add up to your annual CPD requirements? Look no further for answers!
In this article, Paula Hotston Moore of The International School of Veterinary Postgraduate Studies (ISVPS) considers what types of CPD are available for veterinary professionals and how you can track this.
What counts as and towards veterinary CPD?
Veterinary events
When we think of CPD, we likely think of congresses, events or courses delivered by commercial CPD companies. Certainly, veterinary congresses, webinars, seminars, workshops, lectures and practical courses are an integral part of professional development. Indeed, in a recent Veterinary Practice article, David Babbington of Improve Veterinary Education (IVE) discussed career progression, flexibility and personalisation through CPD. He described how “building blocks” of courses (such as those provided via “My Veterinary Career”) can build on one another to achieve, for example, the Master General Practitioner (for veterinarians) or the Lead Veterinary Nurse Practitioner (for veterinary nurses) awards.
Veterinary congresses, webinars, seminars, workshops, lectures and practical courses are an integral part of professional development
Courses leading to further qualifications, such as IVE’s My Veterinary Career and My Veterinary Nurse Career, are often attractive to the early and mid-career veterinary team as they provide a signposted way to develop professionally. However, there are also other methods of achieving formal and informal learning and development.
Formal learning
Online and face-to-face formal learning certainly contribute to your professional development, but you should also consider other less-structured ways we can learn and develop professionally. Self-directed study, through reading veterinary newspaper articles, journals and information hubs (such as the one you are currently reading!), for example, is an important part of keeping up to date with clinical areas.
When clinicians and nurses need to research a procedure or recent findings to help them manage or nurse a case, the research can be recorded as professional development. Or if you are writing an article or preparing a presentation or information sheet for staff, clients or colleagues, the research in preparing for this is also part of your continuous professional development. Taking time to consider what you can do and have done for self-directed study, as demonstrated in these examples, can be a worthwhile practice when planning for and calculating your yearly CPD.
Online learning
One major benefit of online learning is having the flexibility to meet your CPD requirements in a way that suits you. You can access a wider range of learning resources while also choosing to study whenever and wherever you like.
With Improve Veterinary Practice, you can use several CPD resources at any time via a free trial and then one manageable fee if you decide to continue. We have a membership with access to unlimited CPD and the option to choose a CPD bundle of your choice so it’s a great place to start your online learning.
Day-to-day learning
Workplace learning happens week-by-week and, certainly, month-by-month, alongside your usual work, but we rarely consider it part of our development and learning. Nonetheless, having in-depth case discussions with colleagues is an excellent part of self-development and should be recorded as CPD.
Having in-depth case discussions with colleagues is an excellent part of self-development and should be recorded as CPD
Here are some examples:
- Participating in a significant post-event analysis, such as leading on a discussion following a case where a patient took longer than usual to recover from a lengthy surgery, also develops your clinical reasoning and can be recorded as CPD
- In-house training might be provided by an external company, such as a laboratory machine company representative, and might take place more as a quick 15-minute discussion about new equipment, how to best make use of the machinery and how to access maximum profitability from it: all of which contributes to your professional development
- Has a member of your team attended a course or congress and is sharing key points learned? Learning from others by listening to their experiences and knowledge is another form of in-house training that aids your learning
- Mentoring other members of the team – veterinarians, veterinary nurses and support/front-of-house staff – and reviewing their work or clinical decisions to provide feedback also enhances your knowledge and further understanding, thus enhancing your own professional growth
When we consider the day-by-day or week-by-week journey through our professional lives, we soon see multiple opportunities to learn, develop and delve deeper into things, all contributing to our CPD! We should consider CPD as not only the valuable yet more traditional form of lectures and webinars provided by formal training but the hour-by-hour informal, self-directed and workplace-centric development and study that forms part of our weekly working life, no matter what sphere of veterinary work we are involved in.
How can I record my veterinary CPD?
Almost all of us have a smartphone or quick, easy access to another device to record CPD. In the UK, the veterinary team are strongly encouraged to use the 1CPD platform to record CPD, which is available as an app.
We are all constantly thinking of life hacks to minimise time and hassle; recording your CPD in small snippets directly into the 1CPD app almost as it occurs is undoubtedly a time-saving life hack. Recording as you go along saves time having to remember what you did and how long it took. It is possible to record CPD in small amounts of time, and recording CPD in this way (for example, as a brief 15-minute discussion or reading) should save you time and ensure you remember to log those small chunks of time that all add up over the months.
How to plan your yearly CPD
CPD should be planned, completed, recorded and then reflected upon. It is easier to plan the more formal types of CPD – congresses, lectures, webinars, etc – as they usually need booking or planning time for attendance. Workplace CPD can be planned but often with much smaller timescales known; maybe you know a couple of days in advance of the case you need to research, so you can plan post-significant-event analysis or in-house training. If all CPD is not planned but just occurs, that is acceptable too – just remember to record it on 1CPD.
If all CPD is not planned but just occurs, that is acceptable too – just remember to record it on 1CPD
Setting a diary reminder at the end of each month to reflect on any CPD you have done but not yet reflected on can be a useful tool; a month is not too long that you will have forgotten what you learned or, going forwards, how it will influence the way you work. Voice recordings can also be useful in recording reflections. This is because they are easily done quickly in-between other tasks, from the sofa, when waiting for a cake to bake or while watching a kids’ football match!
| Did you know Improve Veterinary Practice provides a range of CPD resources? |
