CPD, Reflection and Improvement Workbook
HTML edition updated 9 September 2026. This is an educational planning aid, not an official application form or individual advice.
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Purpose and boundaries
Connect a learning need with activity, application and review. Use the same disciplined approach for a course, supervised learning, teaching, case discussion or improvement activity. A record of activity and evidence of beneficial change are different things.
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Worked example: a fictional planning situation
A doctor attends a session on communicating uncertainty. Instead of storing only the certificate, they identify the practice issue that prompted attendance, discuss an approach with a supervisor and apply it in an appropriate setting. They reflect on what was useful and arrange a later review. If they also contribute to a team improvement project, they describe their own role and the available evaluation rather than claiming that the whole outcome was personally caused by them.
1. Start with the need
Identify the practice question, new responsibility, feedback theme or gap that makes learning useful. Relate it to your scope and PDP where appropriate. GMC guidance does not impose a single annual CPD-points total for every doctor; separate any relevant college or local requirement from the regulator’s expectations.
2. Choose the learning method
Select a method suited to the need: discussion, supervised practice, reading, a course, simulation, teaching preparation or another relevant activity. Consider time, access and feedback. Attendance at an expensive event is not necessarily more useful than well-targeted learning at work.
3. Reflect authentically
Explain what you learned, what challenged your assumptions and what remains uncertain. Focus on the learning rather than a detailed case narrative. Do not include identifiable facts or treat a polished account produced by someone else as evidence of your own reflection.
4. Apply and evaluate
Describe the change you intend to make within your approved scope and how you will review it. Distinguish an output from an outcome and avoid unsupported causal claims. A small, proportionate evaluation may be more credible than an ambitious measure that cannot be collected.
5. Describe improvement participation
For quality improvement, state the problem, your contribution, the method and what the evidence shows. Appropriate activity can take different forms; not every doctor needs to lead a large audit. Follow local governance requirements and involve the right colleagues before changing a service.
6. Keep incident learning in the right place
Significant events require appropriate reporting and reflection, including relevant team events. Appraisal does not replace incident systems or immediate safety action. Keep the factual record in the proper system and the reflective account focused on learning. If there were no relevant events, do not manufacture one.
Review the plan before using it
Check that the notes describe what is known, what remains uncertain and what someone still needs to agree. A completed field does not prove approval, competence or revalidation readiness. Keep official correspondence and actual deadlines separate from illustrative planning dates. Seek appropriate advice where an individual decision or a licence may be affected.
Sources and related learning
Editorial source review: 9 September 2026. The links below are primary sources; publication dates vary. Current official guidance and approved local arrangements take priority. This is independent education, not a GMC-endorsed form or individual advice.