Latest figures on vet nurse CPD hours show exceptional levels of compliance across the profession

The RCVS has released data which reveals that an exceptionally high proportion of veterinary nurses completed their required CPD hours last year. The most recent figures showed that in 2020, 92% of veterinary nurses who had their records audited had completed their required 11 hours of CPD over the year.

The data was gathered by the RCVS Education Department through an audit of the continuing professional development (CPD) records of 1,249 RVNs, who had been registered and practising without a break for at least three years. The VNs that were included in the audit were asked to either submit their responses through the 1CPD app, the College’s platform for planning, recording and reflecting on CPD, or by submitting copies of their CPD records.

Due to the pandemic, the RCVS amended the CPD requirements for 2020, which normally require that vet nurses complete 15 hours of CPD a year. As the profession was going above and beyond to support the UK’s animals during the height of the pandemic, the College recognised that it needed to reduce the number of CPD hours needed for that year by 25% to 11 hours per annum. The College also put measures in place to help make completing CPD hours easier in the long-term, including the introduction of a new annual CPD requirement which allowed VNs to apply to pause their CPD for up to six months.

Jenny Soreskog-Turp, RCVS Lead for Postgraduate Education, said: “This is an incredibly impressive CPD compliance figure, especially considering all the challenges that vet nurses faced throughout 2020. I want to thank everyone that took part in our audit as this is a really important data source which helps us understand what the profession needs from us to help them complete their CPD.

“I know that sometimes vet nurses are unsure as to what counts towards their CPD target and often they discover that they’ve completed their CPD quota for the year without realising it. Things that take place within practice, like formal case discussions, clinical audits and in-house training, all count towards someone’s CPD target. If anyone is unsure as to what counts as CPD, I would encourage them to get in touch with the RCVS Education team and we’ll be happy to answer any questions.”

A CPD guidance document is available for anyone who wants to learn more about what counts towards veterinary nursing CPD.

There is also guidance, including webinar recordings on topics including Workplace-based CPD and Reflecting on your CPD, available in the Continuing Professional Development (CPD) section of our website.