Our newly qualified vet shares ideas and inspiration for Continuing Professional Development (CPD) – where as a new vet you can gain points for CPD and the benefits of being part of a corporate graduate scheme…
Continuing Professional Development (CPD) is an RCVS requirement for all veterinary surgeons. We are expected to pursue lifelong long learning in order to broaden and advance our knowledge and skills.
As a minimum, we are expected to do 35 hours a year of CPD, which works out at 105 hours over three years….and that is the minimum!
I have found the graduate schemes are a great way to stay on top of CPD as most of the corporate practices integrate CPD days into the scheme. And usually a lot more than the minimum so it means you don’t have to stress about reaching the minim amount.
I am on the IVC Graduate Academy and attend two-day CPD conferences every other month…yes, that’s right, two days “off work” every other month!!
So far we covered topics such as endocrinology, dentistry, surgical skills, ophthalmology, emergency medicine and coping in practice. That is to name just a few! Each conference makes up 12 hours of CPD and has both practical and lectures based elements.
Another benefit of being at an IVC Academy is that you automatically become a member of Vet e-CPD. This is an online resource with recorded lectures which you can enjoy from home! At the end of the video, you do a test and then are emailed a certificate as proof!
The other corporate practices can offer a similar scheme but I am less familiar with those but they are definitely worth looking into!!
The Webinar vet is another great online CPD resource and you can ask your practice to buy you a membership.
As much as attending conference and practicals can be fun, it is also nice to not have to travel and watch some CPD in your pyjamas! I find the online videos useful if I have a difficult case and want to brush up on some of my knowledge. The online resources have a wide range of topics which can be accessed any time! The website logs which videos you have watched so that you can then log that information onto the RCVS database.
Remember, other things such a reading a veterinary journal or discussing a case with your mentor or colleague can also be classed as CPD, so long as you are reflecting on your knowledge and skills!
I would recommend doing a mixture of online and conference days in order to mix it up and keep it interesting!
For more information about CPD, have a look on the RCVS website.
If you would like to explore opportunities with IVC or other veterinary practices that offer CPD programmes for newly qualified vets call the Prospect Health Vet team on 01423 813 453 or email [email protected]