The Annual Conference meets the criteria for formal endorsement by the College of occupational Therapists as a CPD opportunity as a result of the self-assessment tools.
What is Continuing Professional Development (CPD)?
HPC has defined CPD as: "A range of learning activities through which health professionals maintain and develop throughout their career to ensure that they retain the capacity to practise safely, effectively and legally within their evolving scope of practice." www.hpc-uk.org
How does CPD affect you?
All HPC registrants were required to engage in Continuing Professional Development (CPD) activities from 1 July 2006. OTs will be audited in 2009. Registrants need to record and evidence their CPD activities and, if selected for audit, complete their CPD profile, which will be audited by CPD assessors. The College worked closely with HPC to provide CPD exemplars for practice, education, and management which are available on the College website.
OTs have to provide evidence of CPD relating to their previous two years of practice. The evidence will show how the CPD that has been undertaken by the individual has contributed to the quality of their practice and should demonstrate its benefit to the service user. The standards apply to clinical practice, research, management and education.
HPC Standards of CPD
A registrant must
- maintain a continuous, up-to-date and accurate record of their CPD activities
- demonstrate that their CPD activities are a mixture of learning activities relevant to current or future practice
- ensure that their CPD has contributed to the quality of their practice and service delivery
- seek to ensure that their CPD benefits the service user
- present a written profile containing evidence of their CPD on request
How can both Conferences help you with your CPD and lifelong learning?
Professional development is a key aim of the College of Occupational Therapists' Annual Conference and Exhibition and the Specialist Section - HIV/AIDS, Oncology, Palliative Care Annual Conference. Throughout your attendance you will be able to develop your abilities to critically appraise by listening and debating the new ideas and approaches being presented and share your good practice experience with other delegates.
CPD tools available
Learning outcomes
Most of the sessions have identified learning outcomes to help you select the right sessions for your professional development, as well as providing tangible evidence for your CPD portfolio.
CPD action plans
A CPD action plan form will help you to record and subsequently to implement your new learning when you return to work.
- CPD action plan form (304KB
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Skills matching tool
Use this new web based interactive skills matching service to help you identify the most appropriate sessions at conference to meet your CPD and lifelong learning needs and create your personal conference programme.
Interactive Learning Opportunities Database
The Interactive Learning Opportunities Database (ILOD) provides a range of CPD tools that will help you to produce and to organise your evidence of learning.
The reflective log is an open-ended, broad-based tool, which facilitates a clear account of your learning from all the different learning opportunities at conference.
The delegate self-assessment pro-forma is a log that emphasises the need to consider how your learning will benefit your service users and practice. You may also like to consider how your learning at conference relates to your Personal Development Plan (PDP). To record this, use the PDP pro-forma on ILOD.
Your reflections will be invaluable in your portfolio and may be used to demonstrate and evidence CPD activity, when writing your CPD profile. In addition, if you wish to share your learning from conference with work colleagues, these tools are invaluable, as they provide you with a format to do so. These structured and organised reflections on your learning should help you and your colleagues to develop your services for the further benefit of service users.
Career opportunities
The Annual Conference is an ideal way of exploring new career paths and opportunities that are available to you. Find out about the new opportunities open to OTs as a result of the Mental Health Act , and the exciting and varied career independent practice can offer you (link to Jacqueline Webb session 63).
