Continuing professional development in the last decade – A scoping review

Abstract

Background: Continuing professional development (CPD) provides support to healthcare workers to keep up to date with best practices and addresses deficits in their knowledge and practice. Aim: The purpose of this scoping review is to summarise data from the past decade on CPD models. Method: For this scoping review, we searched PubMed, Web of Science and Scopus databases and conducted a grey literature search for studies/documents describing models of CPD. We limited our search to those written in English and published since 2010. Results: 74 references were included. These were grouped under two main questions: (1) What CPD models are available in various settings globally? (2) What are the perceptions and views of medical practitioners towards these? Under the first question, they were grouped into six categories: (a) Legislation, theoretical framework/learning theories, (b) CME credit systems, revalidation/recertification and maintenance of certification, (c) content delivery (choice of format), (d) quality standards, monitoring and evaluation, (e) funding and (f) country/region CPD models. Conclusions: CPD should be supported by appropriate legislation and policy, be directed at the needs of practitioners, and based on adult learning theory, have a mechanism in place for evaluation and improvement and have sustainable funding.

Evaluation of a Disaster Preparedness Curriculum and Medical Students’ Views on Preparedness Education Requirements for Health Professionals

“…Disaster preparedness training is well-suited for continuing clinical professional development as it includes content beyond just traditional clinical medicine, and skill improvements can be demonstrated. 15 Disaster preparedness training could reasonably be a legislatively mandated medical professional development topic. Because it can occur in the practice setting, it allows physicians to practice and update their disaster skills throughout their careers, it can be presented in a variety of learning formats, it can be implemented inter-professionally, and the topic can lead to quality improvement in professional practice.…”

“…Because it can occur in the practice setting, it allows physicians to practice and update their disaster skills throughout their careers, it can be presented in a variety of learning formats, it can be implemented inter-professionally, and the topic can lead to quality improvement in professional practice. 15 As a mandated topic, some physicians may not see its relevance to their specialty; however, when a disaster strikes, emergency knowledge and skills will become highly relevant to all. Mandating disaster preparedness training holds the potential to create a culture shift that emphasizes the role of physicians in emergency preparedness and sends a global message that disaster preparedness training is just as essential as other aspects of medical training, thus, diminishing issues surrounding perceived relevance.…”

“…Specifically, professional development topics should be personalized to the physician's expertise needs, stage of practice, and type of practice issues commonly encountered. 15 Some physicians may view mandated topics as less important or interesting than those they personally chose and place less emphasis on that content.…”

Continuing professional development (CPD) system development, implementation, evaluation and sustainability for healthcare professionals in low- and lower-middle-income countries: a rapid scoping review

“…The review does not point to any particular framework that should be adopted when developing and implementing a CPD system in a LLMIC but rather it suggests that it should incorporate a regulatory perspective, as well as a conceptual/theoretical lens, and should consider contextual factors. As remarked by others, regulation, standards and/or a legal framework, can provide CPD legitimacy, while a conceptual approach (to inform the CPD goals and guide the methods and activities), that aligns with the local/profession’s culture, attitudes and values, optimizes effectiveness of the system [ 1 , 13 , 17 , 19 , 68 ]. Magwenya et al (2022) further specify that the use of validated theories (e.g., adult learning, behavioural change, reflective practice, problem-based learning, quality improvement) can lead to more efficacious CPD activities [ 17 ].…”

“…It is only recently that reviews, and protocols for reviews, that include or focus specifically on CPD systems in LMICs, have begun to emerge [ 12 – 20 ]. Magwenya et al (2022) provide a global overview of CPD systems in different countries, including guiding frameworks and their characteristics, however, the countries examined in the review are mostly high-income countries [ 17 ]. The reviews conducted by Azad et al (2020) and Chan et al (2021) are restricted to CPD for nurses and pharmacists respectively; the former does not discuss CPD system development or implementation processes, while the latter is focused on only two countries (Pakistan and Jordan) [ 14 , 19 ].…”