Dietitians may feel a sense of anxiety or worry about being called up for HCPC audit which comes up every two years purely on a random basis. So what do you do? Firstly,  Don’t panic! Look at it as a compliment! This blog will outline what is required if called up for audit and provides a summary of useful pointers to think about in the future.

Around 2.5% of those registered with the HCPC are called up for audit and asked to submit a professional profile.1 (HCPC, 2024) At this point you are also required to re-register at the same time and pay your renewal fee. The main purpose of being called for audit is  to ensure that you are meeting the required standards for the HCPC code of conduct to renew your registration and to keep ‘up to date’ with relevant information required. You also need to demonstrate that you are partaking in ‘safe, professional practice’.

When I was called up for an audit, I initially felt a sense of anxiety but being honest, I was more anxious about the time needed to complete and submit the portfolio, as I had other deadlines at the same time, not about the actual audit information.

I had kept a record of the CPD activities which I had undertaken electronically to make sure that I was keeping up to date with a variety of CPD over the last two years.

My first port of call was to access the HCPC website ‘How to complete a CPD professional development profile’. This outlines the expectations needed and what the HCPC would like you to provide as evidence for the portfolio. Luckily, at the time, I was constructing my own development portfolio for other purposes, so this was a useful thing to be able to use as reference and see exactly what evidence and CPD I had actually done. 

I was then putting together my personal statement and realised I had done much more on a day-to-day basis than I'd realised. For example: student training, mandatory training, supervision to junior members of the team  and even presentations / journal clubs, which are all good ways to show how your practice has changed for the better.

When I was telling colleagues in work about being called up for audit, I was surprised at the amount of professionals who weren't aware that they could be called up for this on a two-yearly basis. There needs to be more education within the first year of practice / university or when registering with the HCPC about the audit process as outlined in Health Care Professions document, 2015.

WHAT EXACTLY COPUNTS FOR CPD?

1. Work based learning: reflections, considering feedback from service users on services, member of a committee
2. Professional activities: being involved in a professional body / branch meeting or giving a talk / presentation at a conference or study day
3. Formal education examples: formal courses, research, doing further education such as an MSc
4. Self-directed learning: reflections: reading and writing articles, books, improving practice fully

Other items, such as peer review, secondments, job rotation, supervision of staff and students and filling in self assessment questionnaires, can also count.

 WHAT DO YOU NEED TO COMPLETE FOR AUDIT?1 (HCPC, 2024)

In theory, it shouldn't take too long if you have been keeping a list and it is a matter of just getting the basics down in your personal statement. Here's what you need to include:

• Summary of recent work completed/ practice: 500 words
• CPD Activities: dated, listed and any gaps need to be accounted for
• Personal statement: 1500 words minimum
• Evidence to support full statement: this can be records of audit, minutes, certificates, policies written. You will need to attach these to the online link

You will need to show the following in your statement and how you are able to show you have met these standards, in particular:

Standard 1:
A registrant must maintain a continuous, up-to-date and accurate records of their CPD activities. What the standard means: you need to carry out regular CPD activities. However you keep the CPD as it is individual to you (if your preference is  paper or electronic, etc); as long as you can produce the evidence, that is sufficient.

Standard 2:
A registrant must demonstrate that their CPD activities are a mixture of learning activities relevant to current or future practice.

Standard 3:
A registrant must seek to ensure that their CPD has contributed to the quality of their practice and service delivery. Everyone's CPD will be different depending on your speciality, how this has changed your practice and what you have learnt from this.

Standard 4:
A registrant must seek to ensure that their CPD benefits the service user. There is no point taking further study and CPD where it will not benefit the patient case. Everything we do is ‘at the heart of the patient’, so this is something we need to think about: change your CPD to ensure that your practice is more patient-centred going forward.

TOP TIPS TO CONSIDER:1 (HCPC, 2024)

1. Keep it simple. Use simple language to describe the CPD undertaken, what you have learnt from it and how you have made a difference to your patient/service users.
2. Choose four to six CPD activities over the last two years.
3. Think about the activities; discuss a mixture of them and what was undertaken over the last two years.
4. Include a dated list in chronological order with all of the CPD activities you have been completed within the two-year period.
5. Proofread your application before sending it over and make sure all documentation is attached.
6. CPD is individual to YOU. Other colleagues may have different experiences than you.

Facts: A total of 232 dietitians registered with the HCPC were audited in 2022:1 (Taken from HCPC  website 2024)

 

Outcome	No registered	% sample
Accepted for another 2 year cycle	168	72%
Deferred until next time (2024)	46	19.8%
Did not renew	6	2.6%
Voluntary deregistration	12	5.2%
removed	0	0
Still awaiting	0	0

 

The future:

To summarise, going forward  anyone can be audited, remember it is a random selection from the HCPC register. Everyone has an equal chance. Make sure that you are prepared, keep a copy of your CPD and make sure you regularly partake in activity over the two years , this can be a variety of things as previously stated. If you decide to take a career break, maternity leave, it is still a requirement to keep up to date with CPD.

 

Remember, to stay calm and continue the CPD…

 

 

References

 

HCPC,  2024

Bda, 2024

 

Perceptions and experiences of the HCPC’s approach to continuing professional development standards and audits For Health & Care Professions Council. QA research.  June 2015