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GP Appraisal

GP Appraisal was introduced in 2003 and has been managed and co-ordinated by NIMDTA since April 2006.  Appraisal is intended to be a formative process, giving GPs the opportunity to review their performance, chart continuing progress and identify any developmental needs. 

In managing the appraisal process in Northern Ireland, NIMDTA works in partnership with the DHSSPSNI and the Health & Social Care Board under the guidance of a Central Board of Management, which has representation from the General Practice Committee of the BMA and the Royal College of General Practitioners.

GP Appraisal has the potential to develop the individual doctor and interface with the clinical governance agenda at a practice level to improve the overall quality of GP care across the region.

Appraisal Year

  • January – Opening Date for Registration and Declaration Forms
  • 30 June – Deadline for Appraisees who wish to state their preference of: Appraiser, month, date and venue for your appraisal
  • After 30 June – Appraisees who submit Registration and Declaration forms after this date will be allocated
    • An Appraiser, based on regional availability (Please note, you may be required to travel to your appraiser, anywhere in the region)
  • 1 January – Appraisees who have not applied will be allocated an appraiser and an appraisal slot, convenient for the appraiser

  • Your revalidation date is available from the GMC online. It is each doctor’s responsibility to check this date and plan their appraisal accordingly. It is essential the revalidation date is included on the R&D form completed when booking an appraisal.
  • Appraisal should be booked 5-9 weeks prior to the revalidation date.
  • Your Patient Colleague Feedback (PCF) report must be available for discussion at the appraisal before revalidation. If the appraisal is arranged outside of these time frames, it is possible that the PCF report will not be available for discussion at the appraisal.
  • Please note for those revalidating around April & May of any year some planning is required as the 5 to 9 weeks’ timeframe falls between two appraisal years (see examples below).
    • If you have a revalidation date falling around April / May or you have a query about when to schedule your appraisal please feel free to contact us at gpappraisal.nimdta@hscni.net  alternatively discuss with your appraiser or contact gprevalidation@hscni.net  
    • For those GPs who have already completed PCF within the last 5 years but not before the last revalidation date, (for example an MSF completed in ST3 year); local processes dictate that these appraisals must take place no more than six months before the revalidation date, it is still preferable that the appraisal takes place closer to the revalidation date.

Patient Colleague Feedback (PCF): PCF is generally undertaken once in every revalidation cycle. This process is co-ordinated by the GP revalidation office at HSCB and the PCF is provided by the Beeches Leadership Centre who will generally contact appraisees about six months prior to their revalidation date. It is sometimes possible to undertake a PCF earlier than this and subject to capacity at the Beeches the PCF may be completed at any time within a five year revalidation cycle.

To activate an early PCF the appraisee should contact the GP revalidation office at gprevalidation@hscni.net  PCF should be discussed at appraisal during one of the appraisals in the 5 year cycle, this will usually be the final appraisal before the revalidation date but may be at an earlier appraisal if the PCF is available. A PCF carried out in another of the UK countries can be used for the purposes of revalidation provided that the PCF meets the GMC requirements for revalidation.

 

Timing of the Pre-revalidation Appraisal: The final appraisal before revalidation should ideally take place between five and nine weeks before the revalidation date. It is acknowledged however that there are times particularly for those with revalidation dates in April, May and June when an appraisal in January, February or March of the preceding appraisal year is necessary to ensure that all the processes associated with revalidation can be completed in a timely manner.

Appraisees with a revalidation date after 1st July should generally have their pre-revalidation appraisal in the same appraisal year however the situation may arise whereby it is not possible for an appraisal to be completed in the timeframe available and an appraisal in the January, February or March of the preceding appraisal year may be required. In all cases the pre-revalidation appraisal should not be undertaken more than six months prior to the revalidation date.

 

Alternative PCF Tools

PCF & Revalidation
If you are revalidating, you will be offered the opportunity to complete Patient and Colleague Feedback (PCF) before your revalidation date.  Should you wish to undertake your PCF earlier in the revalidation cycle please contact Revalidation and Governance Support Office via the email address gprevalidation@hscni.net 

 

(NB. Those GPs who have access to appropriate PCF completed within five years of their revalidation date will not always need to complete further surveys if the previous feedback is available for discussion at appraisal e.g. those doctors who have completed PCF as part of training).

This process is co-ordinated by HSCB and PCF is provided by the Leadership Centre.

It is important that your appraisal is used as a vehicle for discussion of the PCF completed.

You need to arrange your appraisal prior to your revalidation date at a time which ensures that patient colleague feedback is available for discussion at this appraisal.

Your appraiser does not know your revalidation date.

It is therefore imperative that you request your appraisal date whilst keeping this in mind.

Ideally your appraisal should be at least 5-9 weeks before your revalidation date.

If PCF is not available for discussion at appraisal and you are revalidating; then this may result in a non-engagement statement being made to the GMC by your responsible officer.

Please see the “Guidance on timing of appraisal before revalidation” section, above.

HSC Leadership Centre

12 Hampton Manor Drive,
Belfast,
BT7 3EN

Email: enquiries@leadership.hscni.net 

Tel: 028 9536 1750

 

You must not arrange an appraisal with the same Appraiser for more than 3 consecutive years and that you should not book with that Appraiser again for 2 subsequent years.

If you have not undertaken an appraisal within the previous appraisal year due to extenuating circumstances, you are only required to complete one appraisal in the current appraisal year. You do not need to complete two appraisals in the same appraisal year. See FAQs for further details.

The first step in organising your appraisal is to complete and submit a Registration & Declaration Form.

The 2024-25 Registration & Declaration Form can be found below:

 

2024-25 Registration & Declaration Form

 

(As in previous years this form can also be completed as a word document and emailed to the appraisal team, see the guidance below) On receipt of your Registration and Declaration Form, NIMDTA will:

  • Send you a confirmation email within 2 working days. Please contact us on 028 9536 0218 if you do not receive this.
  • Contact an appraiser on your behalf.  Your appraiser will contact you to arrange a suitable date, time and venue.

Please do not arrange an appraisal date with an appraiser before sending in your GP Appraisal Registration and Declaration Form.

Please be advised, you may be entitled to a £300 payment towards your appraisal depending on your status. Please see Guidance to Appraisee document for further details.

Application for extenuating circumstances

2024-2025 Appraiser Availability Profiles

All GPs appraising in NI are expected to attend a CPR update every 15 months. In 2020, due to Covid19 it was decided that this training could be undertaken virtually. This Covid measure was extended until 31st March 2023 and will expire on 1st April 2023.


For any GP who completed non face-to-face training in the period from 1st January 2023 to 31st March 2023, this training will be accepted as evidence for their 2023-2024 GP appraisal, for GPs who undertake CPR training after this date such training should be face-to-face.

As you will be aware, the GMC document Good Medical Practice sets out the standards of care and behaviour expected of all medical professionals.  This guidance was recently updated from the 30 January 2024 and can be viewed at https://www.gmc-uk.org/professional-standards/professional-standards-for-doctors/good-medical-practice

The annual appraisal forms used for all GPs in Northern Ireland have now also been updated to reflect Good Medical Practice 2024.

In order to ease the transition to these new appraisal forms, all GPs can choose to use either the new or old forms throughout the 24/25 appraisal year.  However from 1 April 2025 these new appraisal forms will become mandatory.

You may find the recent educational webinar hosted by GPNI introducing the new GMC guidance helpful, it is available to view at  https://gpni.co.uk/webinars/gpni-primary-care-update-good-medical-practice-2024-the-new-guidance-from-the-gmc/

 

If you have any queries or need any help or assistance, please contact gprevalidation@hscni.net

 

      • The Quality Indicators Table has been produced to aid doctors, appraisers and Responsible Officers in the collection of information under the GMC’s supporting information framework.Revalidation is intended to be a five year process and it is unlikely that every section of supporting information will be complete for every appraisal. This table is guidance only and may be used if there are areas of doubt over information being suitable to support a positive revalidation recommendation.Each of the six types of supporting information has been further broken down – this reflects the descriptions of the supporting evidence on the GMC website.The supporting information provided will be examined and three criteria will need to be met:-
        • Is it enough?
        • Is it timely (within the five year cycle)?
        • Is it of sufficient quality to demonstrate the activity?

        In order to ensure that the appraisal process remains developmental and supportive, decisions made about the supporting material should be by agreement between the appraiser and the doctor. This agreement should take the form of three outcomes:-

  • Management of Appraiser Slots

  • Leicester Statement – Evidence for Medical Appraisal (Produced by the National Association of Primary Care Educators and the Clinical Governance Support Team. There are some elements of it which may assist you in preparing for your appraisal).

CP2a Form Guidance for Completion

 

Why are CP2a forms required?

The Responsible Officer is required by legislation to make a judgement on Fitness to Practice for all aspects of the doctor’s work. GMC guidance on appraisal and revalidation advises that appraisal for doctors should encompass the entirety of their roles.

 

The CP2a form enables information from non-GMS roles requiring a licence to practice to be discussed at appraisal. The CP2a also alerts the appraiser to any outstanding complaints or performance concerns currently under investigation in those roles.

 

When is a CP2a needed?

A CP2a should be completed annually for all roles outside of daytime GMS. The CP2a should cover the post for the period since the last appraisal or the date on which the GP was admitted to the Northern Ireland performers list, whichever is earlier.

 

When should the CP2a form be requested?

CP2as can be issued by the relevant individual at any stage during the appraisal year. If there have been concerns or complaints relating to the role since the CP2a has been signed these should be discussed and documented at appraisal.

If you have not received a form CP2a for the relevant appraisal year six weeks before your appraisal date, it is recommended that you contact your supervisor to request the form at this stage, so that it can be submitted to your appraiser with the rest of your appraisal documentation.

GPs are advised to ensure that they are in possession of an up to date CP2a at least 4 weeks prior to their appraisal date.

 

Suggested process for completion of the CP2a:

  • The GP requests their CP2A from the appropriate supervisor
  • The supervisor gathers all information relevant to the performance of the GP
  • The supervisor and GP may meet to discuss the information and establish any areas for development.
  • The CP2a should be signed by both the supervisor and the GP and retained by the GP.

 

Advice for those completing a CP2a form:

The form should relate to the previous 12 months but any unresolved concerns or complaints from previous years should be included.

Where the appraisee has a performance review in their role any areas identified for development should be listed as these can be included in their PDP at appraisal.

Where there are serious concerns about a General Practitioner working in your organisation these should be notified to the Responsible Officer Dr Margaret O’Brien.

Please Note:

  • An appraisal cannot be signed off by an appraiser without the appropriate CP2a(s)
  • The absence of all relevant CP2as may undermine the ability of the Responsible Officer to make a positive revalidation decision for that GP.

 

What roles require a CP2a?

CP2as should be completed for the following areas of work:

  • All roles requiring a licence to practice
  • Any role outside of normal in-hours GMS work for which there is a clinical supervisor or manager.

Examples of roles requiring a CP2a and who may provide these include:

Role: CP2a provided through:

Out-of-hours (OOH) GP work

 

Clinical Director of OOH organisation

 

Post-graduate Training

 

NIMDTA

 

Undergraduate teaching

 

UU / QUB (see specific guidance below for QUB)

 

Trust employed GPs (including work in Urgent Care Centres)

 

Clinical Supervisor within the Trust

 

GPs providing clinical leadership to service delivery and development or with clinical oversight and governance roles eg. within a Federation / Integrated Care Partnership including Clinical Directors, Clinical Leads and Clinicians

 

Relevant Clinical Lead / Federation Chair / FSU Chair

 

Forensic Medical Officer

 

Clinical Supervisor

 

Prison Service

 

Clinical Supervisor

 

GPs working for Charities

 

Clinical Supervisor or Manager (if no Clinical Supervisor)

 

Work for ATOS

 

Clinical Supervisor or Manager (if no Clinical Supervisor)

 

Work for private companies eg. BUPA

 

Clinical Supervisor or Manager (if no Clinical Supervisor)

 

 

Important note in relation to Urgent Care Centres in Northern Ireland:

Work undertaken in an Urgent Care Centre that functions as an extension of the emergency department within a hospital is not considered by the Responsible Officer for General Practice to be part of GP General Medical Services or GP Out-of-hours work.

To avail of the GP appraisal and revalidation system within Northern Ireland GPs must provide GP General medical services in day-time General Practice or work in a GP Out-of-hours organisation providing GP  OOH cover for such practices.

Working solely in an Urgent Care Centre that functions as an extension of an emergency department within a hospital does not meet this requirement.

 

A CP2a is NOT required for the following roles:

  • Work where a GP solely fulfils a leadership and management role for example sitting on a federation board or executive committee; although service development and delivery would be expected to be discussed as part of a broader overall agenda, this is not considered a provision of specific clinical leadership and therefore a CP2a is not required.
  • Committee work undertaken for the BMA or RCGP does not require a CP2a form
  • Roles where there is no clinical supervisor or manager

 

What is the process if there is no clinical supervisor or manager?

If there is no clinical supervisor or manager and the work is independent then the Independent Clinical Practice form should be completed by the GP.

Examples of when an Independent Clinical Practice form should be competed include:

  • GPs acting as Practice and/or Prescribing Assessors for students engaged on the Nurse Prescriber course through the University of Ulster

 

CP2a process for doctors involved in UU undergraduate teaching and examining:

GP tutors will have a form CP2a issued at the end of the academic year which will be available for download via their GP portal page.

Any other GP in the practice involved in teaching who requires a CP2a or any new tutor who has not yet completed an academic year can request a form by emailing medicine@ulster.ac.uk

The aim is to facilitate these requests within an absolute maximum of 2 weeks.

 

CP2a process for doctors involved in QUB undergraduate teaching and examining:

All GPs regardless of their teaching or examining role will use the same process for obtaining a CP2A.

This will allow those with more than 1 QUB teaching role (eg GP tutor in practice but also examine OSCEs) to have this included in a single CP2A.

To request a CP2A for your QUB role, please complete the short MS Form at this link a minimum of 2 weeks before your appraisal:

https://forms.office.com/r/QpsiWHBrtX

A CP2A will be emailed to you at the email address you provide (within 5 working days) to cover any QUB teaching/examining during the previous academic year.

All CP2A forms are issued retrospectively (unless you are being appraised and only started teaching within the current academic year).

Where a GP has a query about this process in relation to QUB teaching, he / she should send an email to the GP admin team, Centre for Medical Education: gpadmin@qub.ac.uk

 

 

The following document outlines the responsibilities of the Northern Ireland Medical and Dental Training Agency and the Health and Social Care Board regarding GP Appraisals in Northern Ireland.

Communications Protocol

Following your appraisal you should retain:

 

All of the above should be signed and dated. Please complete the following surveys:

  • Q3 Appraisee Evaluation Form 

For your information, following your appraisal your Appraiser will submit the following forms to NIMDTA:

  • Form 6 – It must be signed and dated by both yourself and your appraiser to confirm your appraisal has taken place.

Guidance for sessional doctors to claim payment for appraisal:


GP Appraisal Claim Form

Appraisal FAQs

 

Do I get paid for my appraisal?

Your status on the day your appraisal takes place will determine your entitlement to a £300 payment.

Doctors eligible for £300 payment include:

  • Sessional doctors
  • Salaried doctors
  • GP retainers
  • Senior lecturers at QUB (who work in salaried positions in practice)

Doctors not eligible for £300 payment include:

  • Profit sharing principals in practice
  • GPs who are training in other specialties, but who remain on the performers’ list

Doctors who are partners are paid through their practice global sum or global sum equivalent.

This payment should be claimed within 6 weeks of the date of appraisal and the Claim Form can be found on the NIMDTA website here.

 

Can I choose an appraiser from another geographical area?

Yes, however we would encourage you to choose an appraiser from your area, but it is not essential.

 

Do I have to complete an appraisal every year?

All GPs on the Northern Ireland Performers List should undertake an appraisal every year. (In Northern Ireland the appraisal year runs from 1st April to 31st March.)

If there are particular circumstances that mean you cannot appraise, for example due to absence from work due to ill health, you should contact the GP Revalidation team at SPPG as soon as possible and discuss your situation with them. On occasion the Revalidation Team may grant “Exceptional Circumstances” that permit a GP not to have an appraisal.

If a GP does not participate in the appraisal process and they have not been granted “Extenuating Circumstances” then this is known as “Non-participation”. In such cases these GPs are referred to the SPPG and their inclusion on the Primary Medical Performers List (PMPL) may be affected. 

A GP must be on to the PMPL in order to provide a clinical service in General Practice regardless of status.

 

I have recently completed the GP induction & refresher scheme and am now working as a GP. when should I complete my next appraisal?

An appraisal should be completed six to twelve months from completion of the       scheme.

 

I am a doctor training in another specialty, but am still on the performers list and working in OOH/GMS. when should I complete my appraisal?

To remain on the Performers List and eligible to work in GMS or GPOOH, you must undertake a GP appraisal every appraisal year.

You will not be eligible for payment for this appraisal.

 

How do I apply for extenuating circumstances?

If you have extenuating circumstances e.g. illness you can request exemption from the appraisal scheme for the current appraisal year.  

You should contact Dr Moya McAleavy regarding your circumstances.

Contact details are as follows:          Email: gprevalidation@hscni.net 

Tel: (028) 9536 2056

If these circumstances are accepted NIMDTA will be informed.

When your extenuating circumstances period has ended you should register for your appraisal as normal.

 

What do I do if I am retiring?

If you are fully retiring from General Practice and will not be completing any further GMS or GPOOH sessions you must inform the Revalidation Team at SPPG of your decision.

Their email address is: gprevalidation@hscni.net

Please also inform NIMDTA by emailing gpappraisal.nimdta@hscni.net.  

If you have any further queries please contact 02890 400015.

 

I also work in another part of the UK and have recently joined the Northern Ireland PMPL. When should I have my next appraisal?

If you are working in two or more different countries within the UK, the appraisal should be carried out through the GP Appraisal organisation based in the country where you are carrying out the majority of your GP work.

(In NI this organisation is NIMDTA).

An appraisal should be completed within one year of joining the NI PMPL however in Northern Ireland the Responsible Officer requires that all eligible GPs on the Performers List undertake an appraisal every appraisal year (1st April-31st March).

This may mean that an appraisal needs to be undertaken much sooner.

 

What do I do if I have already completed my appraisal elsewhere in the UK?

If you have completed your appraisal in another country within the UK please email your signed and dated “completion of appraisal documents to:

gpappraisal.nimdta@hscni.net

This will enable us to update our records and inform the SPPG to enable you to remain on the Northern Ireland performer’s list.

 

What is a form CP2a?

This form should be completed annually for all roles that require a licence to practice not included in the provision of general medical services.

It should be completed by you and your clinical supervisor or manager in the role.

A separate Form CP2a should be completed for each role.

It is not always necessary to have a formal performance review in these other roles in order for the forms to be completed.

If you wish to obtain a copy of the CP2a form, it can be found on the NIMDTA website here.

 

Can I use an e-portfolio for my appraisal?

Yes.

You can record your supporting information on an e-portfolio and share this with your appraiser prior to your appraisal.

Currently appraisees using an e-portfolio are still required by the Responsible Officer to complete the relevant appraisal forms including Forms 1-3. These forms can however then be uploaded onto the e-portfolio.

Non-face-to-face Appraisals

GP appraisals continue to be undertaken predominantly via zoom. In view of this it is imperative that all the information and evidence required by your appraiser is made available to your appraiser at least two weeks before the date of your appraisal.

This information should include:

  • Previous Form 4 and PDP
  • Current Forms 1-3
  • All CP2as relating to non- GMS work
  • Evidence of CPD, Quality improvement activity, SEAs, Complaints
  • Confirmation of appropriate medical indemnity

Any other relevant information.

Appraisals can also be undertaken face to face when appraiser and appraisee agree that this is appropriate.

First Appraisal Following CCT

 The GMC has developed a video that explains the processes of revalidation post CCT.

https://www.copmed.org.uk/revalidation/revalidation-for-new-consultants

 

The Appraisal Year

The appraisal year runs from 1st April to the 31st March the following year.
All GPs should plan to complete their first appraisal within 12 months of their CCT date.

For example:

 Month of CCT  April   May   August   September   March 
 Appraise in  April (the following year)        
 Appraise in or   before    May   August   September   March 

 

There are a number of circumstances when the first appraisal following CCT may be later than 12 months after the date of CCT and this may include periods of maternity leave and sick leave when extenuating circumstances have been granted by the Responsible Officer.


If you have any queries about the timing of your first GP appraisal after CCT or if you feel you will have difficulties meeting these timescales please contact the GP appraisal team at: gpappraisal.nimdta@hscni.net


We would urge all GPs to apply for their annual appraisal as soon as the appraisal calendar opens

⚠️ Important note in relation to Urgent Care Centres in Northern Ireland:

Work undertaken in an Urgent Care Centre that functions as an extension of the emergency department within a hospital is not considered by the Responsible Officer for General Practice to be part of GP General Medical Services or GP Out-of-hours work.

To avail of the GP appraisal and revalidation system within Northern Ireland GPs must provide GP General medical services in day-time General Practice or work in a GP Out-of-hours organisation providing GP  OOH cover for such practices.

Working solely in an Urgent Care Centre that functions as an extension of an emergency department within a hospital does not meet this requirement.

Appraiser’s Area

The Appraisers area is available through the “Learning Management Site” (LMS) for GP appraisers.

This can be accessed via the link below:

https://nimdta.mylearningapp.com