Workforce and Quality

Education Programme Director Network Events

We organise and facilitate 2–3-hour virtual network events for both our Foundation Trainee Pharmacist and Pharmacy Technician Education Programme Directors (EPDs) across London. Outlook calendar invitations and agendas are circulated in advance of the event. Please feel free to forward the invitation on to other members of the pharmacy team who may be deputising for an EPD.

Educational Infrastructure Change Process

We circulate our communications to many staff involved in the education and training of pharmacy staff. It is important for us to know who the current Educational Leadership Team are in your department. Educational Programme Directors (EPDs) are our main link with your trust and we also require one* main contact to liaise with when specific data required for commissioned trainees is returned.

For our commissioned programmes, the Chief Pharmacist and EPD(s) should be named each year upon the return of the NHS Education Contract Annex: Provision of Training. In addition, if there is an Education & Training Lead or an EPD Support role recognised within the trust, this should be included as well.

If there are changes during the year, please inform us by completing the Educational Infrastructure Change Form below. This form should also be completed if additional colleagues are recruited into the education and training team to provide overarching leadership as a Specialist Education and Training Lead or EPD Support, as this may aid in succession planning.

We have developed an EPD Orientation guide to support EPDs in their role and how we link in with this. Please download this guide.

*in some cases where there are multiple sites for large trusts, two contacts can be named.

+

Specialist Education and Training Lead

The Specialist Education and Training Lead may act as the overarching co-ordinator for all Educational programmes (much like a Director of Medical Education ‘DME’ in medicine). whilst the EPD manages the strategy and operational aspects of a specific programme.

+

Educational Programme Director

An “Educational Programme Director” in pharmacy (EPD) oversees one or more entire training programmes locally, regionally, or both, developing and implementing programmes together with external bodies and local teams. An individual may be the EPD for more than one programme. The EPD ensures that quality criteria are met, including resource, appropriately trained supervisors, possibly selection of candidates, monitoring of progress and equal opportunities. We recommend that consideration be given to the EPD being a member of the local Senior Pharmacy team where appropriate.

+

EPD Support

This role supports the EPD and may be used for succession planning. The person filling this role will be supporting the EPD with operational aspects of the programme.

Please use this form to tell us about an Education Infrastructure Change

Type of Change

Oriel Recruitment Information

If you are going to be the Oriel Recruitment Lead for the National Foundation Trainee Pharmacist Recruitment Scheme, we also need you to inform us.

Please confirm below and provide a mobile number, which is required for the multi-factor authentication process used to enable you to log into Oriel to view and download applications.

Are you going to be the Oriel recruitment lead?

Permanent replacement of an EPD

If you have selected permanent replacement of an EPD in the drop down above, please now complete this section to inform us which EPD you are replacing.

Interim cover eg, extended absence, maternity/secondment of an EPD

Please detail the expected start and return dates of the leave/secondment (if the exact date not known please put the start or end of the month)

Governance

Please discuss this update with your Chief Pharmacist before completing this form.

Please confirm that this change has been discussed and agreed with the Chief Pharmacist

Please refer to the NHS England privacy notice https://www.england.nhs.uk/contact-us/privacy-notice/ for information on how NHS England manage your data.

Supervisor Training


Supervisors play a key role in helping trainees to develop the skills, knowledge, understanding and behaviours they need to meet the standards expected of a pharmacy professional. We are aware of concerns regarding the need to have adequate training programmes available to develop and support supervisors.

A national piece of work is currently underway, which is aligned to the General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC) reforms of the initial education and training of pharmacists. This includes reviewing the supervision offering across all NHS England regions. Whilst we await the outcome of this work, we have provided signposting to resources and accessible training for development of supervisors within London.


Educational Frameworks
Frameworks are available for both the Educational and Practice Supervisor roles within pharmacy for primary and secondary care staff who manage and deliver training. These can be used as a standalone tool for supervisors to identify competencies relevant to their role(s). It can also be used for them to demonstrate competence against the criteria set, by mapping their experience and identifying learning needs.

The frameworks can be found on our website, on the next tab.


e-Learning for Healthcare (eLfH): Practice and Educational Supervisor Training
eLfH hosts online training for Practice and Educational Supervisors. There are two programmes available which can be accessed:
• Core Skills for Pharmacy Practice and Educational Supervisors: this is for all who are new to the supervisor role and/or those that have not practiced in this role for several years.
• Enhanced Skills for Pharmacy Practice and Educational Supervisors: this is for all supervisors looking to further develop as a supervisor.

These programmes have been written for registered pharmacy professionals. However, pharmacy support staff will be able to achieve key development skills from completing the courses via eLfH.

The programme can be accessed from the eLfH platform.


General Pharmaceutical Council
The GPhC has developed resources for designated supervisors. These resources can be found here: https://www.pharmacyregulation.org/education/pharmacist-foundation-training-scheme/training-placement/designated-supervisors.

Guidance on supervising pharmacy professionals in training is also available from the GPhC website.
Note: Health Education England (HEE) merged with NHS England to create a new organisation on 1 April 2023. National guidance documents may refer to HEE until the process of harmonisation with the new NHS England is complete.


NHS England Website
A webpage designed to support designated supervisors with information about the trainee pharmacist foundation training year is available on the NHS England website.

Note: Health Education England (HEE) came together with NHS England to create a new organisation on 1 April 2023. National guidance documents may refer to HEE until the process of harmonisation with the new NHS England is complete.

Educational Frameworks

We have worked with a variety of stakeholders to develop curricula and frameworks for both the Educational Supervisor (ES) and Practice Supervisor (PS) roles within pharmacy, for primary and secondary care staff who manage and deliver training.

The ES and PS frameworks are now published and can be used in two ways:

1

As a standalone tool for supervisors to identify the competencies relevant to their role(s) and to demonstrate competence against criteria set by mapping their experience and identifying learning needs.

2

Complete the relevant supervisor training course - more information about this will follow.

Professional Development Framework for Educators

The Professional Development Framework for Educators has been developed by the Multiprofessional Faculty Development (London and South East) Team. It has been designed to guide educational practitioners, in healthcare, in their development as educators to support their learners. Each domain, within the framework has been mapped to healthcare regulatory standards for education and training and to the HEE Quality Framework. This framework meets the needs for all EPDs. It is recommended that new EPDs utilise the ES Framework and map themselves against the Professional Development Framework for Educators and identify any learning needs.

Trainee Support

It is recognised that over the course of an educational programme, foundation trainee pharmacists and pre-registration trainee pharmacy technicians may require additional support or adjustments to their training in order to successfully complete their training programme. To facilitate this, NHS England has developed a Trainee Support Process, the details of which are included within a Trainee Support Guide. This process is applicable for foundation trainee pharmacists and pre-registration trainee pharmacy technicians in training placements commissioned by NHS England.

This guide has been designed to help organisations assist individuals who require support during their training programme. Please follow the link below to refer to the Trainee Support Guide for full details on identification, support and our notification process.

Where appropriate, contact us via the Request for Trainee Support form below. It is imperative that trainee consent is obtained prior to any personal details being disclosed to us.