ARCPs
About the ARCP process
Annual Review of Competency Progression (ARCP) is an annual review of trainees’ progress to ensure they are offering safe, quality patient care, and to assess their progression against standards set down in the curriculum for their training programme. This includes a review of trainees’ ePortfolios to ensure they are on track with exams and are progressing in meeting their learning and training requirements. ARCP is the process through which trainees’ full scope of work review is undertaken to satisfy revalidation requirements, but also provides an opportunity to identify learning or training needs or challenges as well as confirm that trainees are well supported clinically, educationally and pastorally.
According to the guidance issued by the JRCPTB, those training in medicine are required to participate in the ARCP process at the end of each year in training. Trainees will receive an email from the School of Medicine for the ARCP advising them of the process.
Most ARCPs are done in absentia and whether or not they are invited to a face to face ARCP meeting, trainees must ensure the Form R supporting documentation (Part A and Part B – revalidation for each training year, including training post and site information) is sent to the School of Medicine seven to ten days before the ARCP.
Each trainee must also ensure that they complete, as a minimum, the specified number of workplace-based assessments outlined in the Decision Aid and have an educational supervisor’s report that covers the entire year in their ePortfolio. An ARCP Medical Decision Aid gives a summary of what is required of Acute Medicine trainees at each stage, for a satisfactory outcome 1 to be issued. Furthermore, the links to the 2009 curriculum and the Capabilities in Practice (CiP) for IMTs will also require sign off from each trainee’s educational supervisor.
Once the ARCPs are completed, 10 percent of outcomes are reviewed by a lay and external representative. This is to ensure that all ARCP outcomes and processes are fair and equitable. Trainees will then be issued with a yearly outcome which should reflect their successful completion of each year of training. ARCP outcomes will be issued and sent via the Postgraduate Centres for signing by the trainee. Returned copies of the outcome forms will then be sent to the Joint Royal Colleges of Physicians Training Board (JRCPTB).
To find out more about ARCPs in KSS, visit the ARCP webpage.
What if trainees obtain an unsatisfactory ARCP outcome?
If trainees obtain an unsatisfactory outcome, they can meet with their educational supervisor or college tutor to discuss further, and if required have a progression meeting with the Head of School and the training programme directors to discuss their training and failure to meet the required competencies.
Trainees may be granted an extension to undertake more workplace-based assessments. However, this is only under exceptional circumstances, and it is the responsibility of each trainee to complete all of the required assessments before the review date.
Who is the ARCP Responsible Officer?
The HEE KSS Responsible Officer is Professor Abdol Tavabie.
Interim Reviews
For Core/Internal Medical trainees, interim reviews are usually done locally at the trainees’ respective Trusts with their RCP college tutor, or, for Higher trainees, usually with the training programme directors. For each interim review, trainees will receive an email from the School of Medicine advising them of the process.
The interim review provides an opportunity to review the progress made since the previous ARCP and ensure that the trainee is on track for a satisfactory outcome at the next end-of-year ARCP. The trainee’s ePortfolio is reviewed against the ARCP Decision Aid, and any issues or challenges can be identified and processes put in place to support the trainee’s progression towards achieving their learning and training goals and attaining a satisfactory ARCP outcome. The outcome of the meeting will be logged on the ePortfolio and communicated back to the Specialty Workforce Team within the School of Medicine.
In building an ePortfolio, it is vital trainees make every effort to use the assessments routinely and add a substantial number of them on a regular and ongoing basis. Therefore, all trainees must gain above and beyond the minimum number of competencies.