The GMC requires doctors to carry out CPD that covers the whole scope of their practice, but does not require doctors to record a certain number of credits annually. The GMC emphasises that at a doctor’s appraisal the quality of the CPD and their reflection on that CPD are particularly important.
We believe that providing guidance to physicians about the amount of time that they should devote to their professional development is helpful and also believes that a CPD record that includes an indication of the time a physician has committed to their professional development can be useful for appraisers. We also recognise that some physicians prefer a credit-based approach to CPD.
Therefore, we continue to make recommendations regarding the amount of CPD it advises physicians to undertake and for the 2023-24 diary year, the recommendation is that physicians undertake 50 hours of CPD, of which 25 hours should be external CPD, although this is not mandatory.