Framework of CPD Skills
The Framework of CPD Skills has been developed in conjunction with the College, the Faculties of Intensive Care Medicine and Pain Medicine, and a number of specialist societies and associations.
The Framework provides a list of specialty headings accompanied by topics which apply to each of these headings. You can use it to plan and reflect upon your CPD activities and events.
Each of the headings and topics are listed below and the Framework is embedded into the Lifelong Learning Platform and can be downloaded as a PDF document. The online learning articles available via BJA Education will also reference the topic codes from the Framework.
Each specialty heading has an option for "Other". If you feel that a specialty topic is missing you can select the "Other" option and reference this in your reflection. Please also contact us at cpd@rcoa.ac.uk so that consideration can be given to updating the Framework.
We hope that you find this important resource helpful - please do let us know - and we will be developing some case-studies to assist in how it can be used.
You can download a PDF version of the Framework here:
AIR01: Advanced airway management
AIR02: Airway assessment
AIR03: Anaphylaxis
AIR04: Basic airway management
AIR05: Can't intubate, can't ventilate
AIR06: Other Airway and resuscitation
BARI01: Bariatric
CARD01: Cardiothoracic
DAY01: Preoperative assessment and preparation for surgery
DAY02: Other Day surgery
EDUC01: The adult learner
EDUC02: Assessing educational needs
EDUC03: Careers support
EDUC04: Clinical skill teaching
EDUC05: Clinical supervision
EDUC06: Curriculum design
EDUC07: Developments in allied clinical specialties (relevant to practice)
EDUC08: Educational leadership
EDUC09: The Educational Supervisor and the ARCP
EDUC10: Ensuring quality in medical education
EDUC11: Facilitating learning in the workplace
EDUC12: Feedback
EDUC13: Inter-professional learning
EDUC14: Mentoring
EDUC15: Personal education and learning
EDUC16: Simulation in clinical learning
EDUC17: Structured assessments of competence
EDUC18: Supervision of international medical graduates
EDUC19: Technology-enhanced learning
EDUC20: Trainee in difficulty
EDUC21: Other Education
ENT01: Preoperative assessment and preparation for surgery
ENT02: Other ENT, maxillo-facial and dental surgery
GEN01: Preoperative assessment and preparation for surgery
GEN02: Other General, urological and gynaecological surgery
GLOB01: Anaesthesia in a humanitarian context
GLOB02: Anaesthesia in LMICs
GLOB03: Cultural and language considerations when working in different global settings
GLOB04: Decision making in a resource limited setting
GLOB05: Ethical considerations in a resource limited setting
GLOB06: Facilitation of bidirectional learning through mentorship, partnership or fellowship development activities with LMIC colleagues or groups in anaesthesia and critical care
GLOB07: Supporting or delivering context specific education, research, quality improvement and innovation activities in LMIC settings
GLOB08: Other Global Anaesthesia
HEPA01: Preoperative assessment and preparation for surgery
HEPA02: Other Hepatobiliary surgery
ICM01: Law and ethics as relevant to ICM
ICM02: Resuscitation and stabilisation of the critically ill adult
ICM03: Retrieval and transfer medicine
ICM04: Investigation and monitoring of the critically ill patient
ICM05: Organ support
ICM06: Perioperative care
ICM07: The physical and psychosocial consequences of critical care
ICM08: End of life care and organ donation
ICM09: The practice of anaesthesia as relevant to intensive care medicine
ICM10: The practice of surgery as relevant to intensive care medicine
ICM11: The practice of medicine as relevant to intensive care medicine
ICM12: Neuro-intensive care medicine
ICM13: Paediatric intensive care medicine
ICM14: Cardiothoracic intensive care medicine
ICM15: Other ICM and emergency management
IT01: Basic search methodology
IT02: Use of patient record systems
IT03: Other IT skills
LEGAL01: Consent
LEGAL02: Equality and diversity
LEGAL03: Ethics
LEGAL04: Information governance
LEGAL05: Mental capacity and deprivation of liberty safeguards
LEGAL06: Other Legal and ethical aspects of practice
MGMT01: Critical incident reporting
MGMT02: Human factors in anaesthetic practice
MGMT03: Quality improvement
MGMT04: Team leadership and resource management
MGMT05: Understanding of complaints process
MGMT06: Other Management of healthcare systems
MIL01: Advanced Leadership and Crew Resource Management
MIL02: Anaesthesia for Blast and Ballistic Injuries
MIL03: Anaesthesia for Head Injuries in the Deployed Military Environment
MIL04: Anaesthesia for Severe Burns
MIL05: Analgesia for Aeromedical Evacuation
MIL06: Appraisal Process During Deployment
MIL07: Awareness of the Military Anaesthesia Higher Unit of Training
MIL08: Awareness of the Military Equipment Procurement Process
MIL09: Casualty Reporting Systems
MIL10: Clinical Decision Making in the resource constrained environment
MIL11: Concepts of Vascular Access and Rapid Infusion Devices
MIL12: Control of catastrophic haemorrhage
MIL13: Critical Care Bundles in the austere environment
MIL14: Deployed Adult and Paediatric Anaesthetic Delivery
MIL15: Deployed echelons of care and evacuation
MIL16: Deployed ethical decision-making
MIL17: Deployed Hospital Care Analgesia Protocols
MIL18: Deployed Indirect Laryngoscopy Devices
MIL19: Deployed Military Clinical Governance
MIL20: Deployed PCA Equipment
MIL21: Deployed Regional Anaesthesia including equipment and protocols
MIL22: Deployed Theatre and Transfer Ventilators
MIL23: Early Prophylaxis of Neuropathic Pain
MIL24: Enduring DMS Audit and Data Collection Process
MIL25: Familiarity with DMS Structure, Hierarchy and Responsibilities
MIL26: Fluid Management for Major Burns with Trauma
MIL27: Implications of prolonged transfer care
MIL28: Inter-MTF transfer options
MIL29: Intra-osseous Devices
MIL30: Major Medical Incident Management
MIL31: Management of Critical Care patients for those not undertaking regular intensive care
MIL32: Management of TBI including ICP monitoring
MIL33: Management of traumatic airway Injuries
MIL34: Management of Traumatic Cardiac Arrest
MIL35: Military Massive Haemorrhage Protocol
MIL36: Military Pre-Hospital Analgesia
MIL37: Near Patient Coagulation Testing
MIL38: Options for TIVA in the Deployed Military Environment
MIL39: Pain Management During Rehabilitation
MIL40: Pre-Hospital Resuscitation Options
MIL41: Preparation of Patients for CCAST Evacuation
MIL42: Prolonged Field Care
MIL43: Role and capabilities of tactical and strategic CCAST
MIL44: Role of the Deployed Medical Director
MIL45: Specific Deployed ICM Equipment
MIL46: Transfer equipment and their role in different transfer platforms
MIL47: Ultrasound use in Regional Anaesthesia
MIL48: Understanding of CPNB in the deployed setting
MIL49: Understanding the end points of resuscitation including the potential role of ultrasound
MIL50: Unplanned Paediatric Resuscitation Skills and Equipment
MIL51: Other Military anaesthesia
NEUR01: Cranial: Elective management of supra tentorial and posterior fossa masses
NEUR02: Cranial: Emergencies - Chronic subdural haematoma, acute subdural haematoma, intra-cerebral haematoma, ICP monitoring
NEUR03: Cranial: Functional neurosurgery (eg. for movement disorder etc.)
NEUR04: Cranial: Intra-operative monitoring for cortical mapping and cranial nerve function
NEUR05: Cranial: Pituitary surgery
NEUR06: Cranial: Regional - scalp blocks
NEUR07: Cranial: Surgical management of aneurysms and arteriovenous malformations
NEUR08: Initial management of brain injury (traumatic or spontaneous intracranial haemorrhage)
NEUR09: Initial management of spinal injured patients
NEUR10: Management of patients with neuro trauma for imaging
NEUR11: Neurocritical care: Diagnosis of death
NEUR12: Neurocritical care: Management of acute spinal cord injury including autonomic dysreflexia
NEUR13: Neurocritical care: Management of subarachnoid haemorrhage
NEUR14: Neurocritical care: Management of traumatic brain injury
NEUR15: Neuroradiology: Elective and emergency aneurysm management (coiling/stenting)
NEUR16: Neuroradiology: Mechanical stroke thrombectomy management
NEUR17: Neuroradiology: Middle meningeal artery embolisation management
NEUR18: Pathologies of CSF: Endoscopic third ventriculostomy
NEUR19: Pathologies of CSF: Extra-ventricular drains
NEUR20: Pathologies of CSF: Shunt surgery & Ommaya reservoirs
NEUR21: Spine: Airway management in acute cervical spine injury
NEUR22: Spine: Elective and emergency spine surgery
NEUR23: Spine: Intra-operative monitoring for spine surgery
NEUR24: Spine: Multi-modal analgesia for spine surgery
NEUR25: Spine: Safe positioning, prevention of ocular and nerve damage with optimisation of surgical conditions
NEUR26: Other Neuro Anaesthesia and Critical Care
OBST01: Analgesia for labour
OBST02: Anaesthesia for non-obstetric procedures in the pregnant patient
OBST03: Assessment of the critically ill parturient
OBST04: General anaesthesia for elective and emergency LSCS
OBST05: Management of obstetric emergencies
OBST06: Principles of newborn resuscitation
OBST07: Regional anaesthesia complications in the pregnant patient
OBST08: Regional anaesthesia for elective and emergency LSCS
OBST09: Other Obstetrics
OPHTH01: Ophthalmic
ORTHO01: Preoperative assessment and preparation for surgery
ORTHO02: Other Orthopaedic surgery
PAED01: Assessment and initial management of the critically ill child
PAED02: Analgesia for children
PAED03: Fluid management for children
PAED04: Perioperative care of children
PAED05: Sedation techniques for children
PAED06: Team working between DGHs and PIC retrieval teams
PAED07: Vascular access techniques
PAED08: Other Paediatrics
PAIN-ACU01: Assessment of acute pain
PAIN-ACU02: Advanced management of perioperative pain
PAIN-ACU03: Basic assessment and management of acute pain
PAIN-ACU04: Management of acute pain
PAIN-ACU05: Management of acute non-surgical pain
PAIN-ACU06: Other Acute Pain
PAIN-AUDIT01: Service Evaluation & Benchmarking
PAIN-AUDIT02: Clinical Governance & Patient Safety
PAIN-AUDIT03: Medicolegal Considerations
PAIN-AUDIT04: Other Pain Audit & Quality Improvement
PAIN-CANC01: Specialist Assessment Tools
PAIN-CANC02: Multimodal Analgesia
PAIN-CANC03: Advanced Interventions
PAIN-CANC04: Psychosocial Aspects
PAIN-CANC05: Other Cancer Pain Management
PAIN-CHRON01: Comprehensive Evaluation
PAIN-CHRON02: Psychological Factors
PAIN-CHRON03: Social Determinants
PAIN-CHRON04: Basic assessment and management of chronic pain
PAIN-CHRON05: Other Chronic Pain: Bio-Psychosocial Assessment
PAIN-INTER01: Core Interventional Procedures
PAIN-INTER02: Advanced Techniques
PAIN-INTER03: Safety & Risk Management
PAIN-INTER04: Other Pain Interventions
PAIN-NEURO01: Patient Selection & Assessment
PAIN-NEURO02: Surgical Techniques & Programming
PAIN-NEURO03: Emerging Technologies
PAIN-NEURO04 Other Pain Neuromodulation
PAIN-PAED01: Specialist Assessment Tools
PAIN-PAED02: Multimodal Analgesia
PAIN-PAED03: Psychosocial Aspects
PAIN-PAED04: Other Paediatric Pain Management
PAIN-PROG01: Multidisciplinary Rehabilitation
PAIN-PROG02: Self-Management & Education
PAIN-PROG03: Outcome Measurement
PAIN-PROG04: Other Pain Management Programmes (PMPs)
PAIN-RES01: Systematic Reviews & Evidence Synthesis
PAIN-RES02: Clinical Trials & Real-World Data
PAIN-RES03: Translational Research
PAIN-RES04: Other Research in Pain Medicine
PERI01: Perioperative emergencies
PERI02: Perioperative management for surgery
PERI03: Other Perioperative
PLAS01: Plastic/burns
PLAS02: Other Plastic/burns
RAD01: Anaesthesia for radiology
REG01: Indications, benefits and risks of regional anaesthesia
REG02: Principles of performing local, regional and neuraxial techniques
REG03: Recognition and management of side effects and complications of regional anaesthesia
REG04: Use of nerve/plexus location techniques
REG05: Other Regional anaesthesia
RES01: Research
SAFE01: Advanced patient monitoring techniques
SAFE02: Anaesthetic management for non-operative procedures
SAFE03: Blood product checking protocols (to comply with local requirements
SAFE04: Child protection training
SAFE05: Fluid management and blood product usage
SAFE06: Infection control
SAFE07: Protection of vulnerable adults
SAFE08: The prevention and management of accidental awareness under anaesthesia
SAFE09: Venous thromboembolism prophylaxis
SAFE10: Other Patient safety
SCI01: Pharmacology and therapeutics
SCI02: Physics and clinical measurement
SCI03: Physiology and biochemistry
SCI04: Other Scientific principles
SED01: Sedation techniques
TRAIN01: Educational supervisor training
TRAIN02: Roles and responsibilities of clinical supervisors
TRAIN03: Workplace based assessment
TRAIN04: Other Training
TRANS01: Patient transfer skills
TRAUM01: Principles of assessment and management of major trauma (including burns)
TRAUM02: Other Trauma management (including pre-hospital care)
VASC01: Preoperative assessment and preparation for surgery
VASC02: Other Vascular Surgery