The Importance of Continuing Professional Development (CPD) for Nurses

In the ever-evolving world of healthcare, nurses play an essential role in delivering patient care. But this role can often be challenging, as nurses encounter difficult situations and care for diverse patient populations.

To maintain high professional standards, Continuing Professional Development for nurses is an essential part of their ongoing training. 

Whether you are currently employed as a nurse, considering becoming a nurse or are responsible for organising CPD training for nursing staff, this article is for you. It will examine the importance of CPD for nurses, outline some options for CPD training for nurses and explain why online healthcare training courses are so beneficial to nurses.

Why do nurses need CPD training?

CPD isn’t just a box-ticking exercise – it offers real benefits to nurses and their professional development.

Regulatory Compliance

In the UK, CPD for nurses is not optional – it’s a mandatory requirement. Nurses must be registered with the Nursing & Midwifery Council (NMC), which mandates CPD as part of the revalidation process. Failure to comply with this requirement can and does result in nurses being removed from the NMC register.

Maintaining High Standards

Nurses are required to maintain high professional standards so they can deliver safe and quality care to patients. Continuous Professional Development for nurses helps keep their knowledge and skills current so they are aware of the latest developments in nursing techniques, technologies and legislation.

Developing Resilience

Being employed as a nurse means managing emotionally challenging situations on a daily basis. High-quality CPD training for nurses helps equip them with the tools they’ll need to navigate these situations effectively.

CPD training for nurses: The key areas to consider

Whether you’re planning your own CPD training or you’re a training manager or supervisor who plans CPD courses for nurses, there are several key factors to consider.

You should regularly assess where there are gaps in your knowledge and skills and target these areas in your CPD programme. Remember that CPD training activities must be current and comprehensive if they are to provide meaningful professional development.

CPD doesn’t only mean classroom learning, so you can choose from a variety of CPD activities to fulfil the NMC’s mandatory CPD requirement. You could attend seminars, conferences and online webinars or read relevant books and journals. Alternatively, you might want to work with a mentor or undertake work-based training in your place of employment.

Another popular CPD activity is online learning. Caredemy online healthcare training courses are CPD accredited, which means they will count as part of your CPD hours requirement.

Our courses give you the option of studying CPD online or downloading the materials for offline study, so you can fit your CPD courses in at a time and place that’s convenient for you. And the Caredemy Learner Dashboard will help you keep track of your place in the course, so you can pick up right where you left off.

CPD topics for nurses

It’s essential to take a consistent and strategic approach to CPD planning. This means selecting courses based on your personal development needs and taking into account the advances in your specialist field.

Some online CPD courses that could be relevant to your needs include:

• Patient Care and Safety: Core training areas include safeguarding adults and children, medication management and understanding key legislation such as the Mental Capacity Act and the Mental Health Act.
• Practical Skills: This includes training in infection control and Health and Safety issues including COSHH training along with guidance on handling sharps and needles
• Diversity and Inclusion: Training on topics like equality and diversity and FGM awareness is critical for delivering sensitive and effective care.
• Health and Wellbeing: Nurses must look after themselves too. Courses on issues like stress management and managing mental health in the workplace are essential.

CPD certification and record keeping

It’s essential to keep accurate records of your CPD hours for revalidation purposes. Once you complete a Caredemy online training course and pass the quiz, you can download a nationally-recognised CPD certificate. Your Caredemy Learner dashboard will also help keep track of your CPD points so that you can be sure you’re meeting the NMC mandatory CPD requirements.

Training managers can access the Caredemy Learner Management System, which makes it easy to enrol learners on their courses, keep track of their progress and maintain records for annual inspections.

If you would like to discuss Caredemy’s healthcare training courses and how they can support your CPD training requirements, please get in touch with our Support Team, who will be able to answer your questions.

Nurses provide expert care at the frontline of the healthcare sector. High quality CPD training, like Caredemy online healthcare courses, ensures that their skills and knowledge remain current so they can maintain and improve their standard of care.