Federation of the Royal Colleges of Physicians of the UK
Distance learning guidelines: e-Platforms and e-Libraries
E-platforms these consist of a group of e-learning resources such as e-learning modules and archived
versions of streamed lectures that may have a common theme. We will accept applications with 5 or more
modules.
Educational e-libraries These are on-line information and learning services that provide access to current
information about medical topics. The Federation gives higher priority to products that provide a record of
the users activity and or include elements of active learning.
Providers
Eligible providers should be established providers of medical education, these could include:
Universities or their departments
NHS Hospitals
Recognised UK specialist societies
UK National medical bodies and associations
Established international medical education providers
As it is not possible to review all of the material contained in e-libraries and e-platforms, providers must
have a track record of excellence in medical education. For these distance learning formats, the Federation
will not accept applications from pharmaceutical or device companies or foundations linked to these
companies.
The application should be supported by a senior physician/clinician who can vouch for the product. The
individual concerned must be registered with his/her national regulatory body.
Educational content
For these e-learning formats, the Federation acknowledges the need for regular updates to keep the
information current. Providers may do this without submitting a new application, but the material must
stay within the original scope of the approved product. Providers must inform the Federation of any
significant change in sponsorship and must guarantee that any changes will not be influenced by
pharmaceutical or device companies. They must also guarantee that there will continue to be no
advertising within their product.
Approval Criteria
All products eligible for approval should fulfil the following criteria:
1. Target audience
The target audience must be identified and fall within the remit of the Federation. We approve
products primarily targeted towards Consultant and SAS grade Physicians. Provided the product is
appropriate for consultants and SAS grade physicians, the Federation will also approve educational
material that is appropriate for trainees. Please see http://www.rcplondon.ac.uk/specialty for
Federation supported specialties.
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2. Provide an educational needs assessment
Providers should provide a statement about educational needs. This might include a survey to
identify needs, evidence of a lack of appropriate educational material relating to a particular
topic/group of topics or evidence of a need for more e-learning for physicians.
3. Provide learning objectives which are appropriate for the target audience
For large products such as these we understand that the objectives are likely to be broad and
generic but please summarise the objectives for your product.
4. Provide high quality content
The content must represent current evidence-based best practice and must be able to deliver the
stated learning objectives.
5. Provide evidence that key authors or editors have appropriate specialist skills and knowledge
A statement relating to key editors and authors should be provided. This should detail how authors
are selected. We do not expect a complete list of authors with their qualifications. The information
provided might be the organisation’s policy relating to editors and/or authors, with a statement to
the effect that the organisation audits compliance with the policy and that there has been a high
level of compliance with the policy. For e-platforms please provide a brief biographical statement (a
few lines) for the lead author of each module.
6. Include active learning methods (e-platforms)
For e-platforms, there should be clear evidence of active learning techniques such as questions
during the modules and encouragement to reflect on practice.
7. There should be evidence that all legal, medico-legal and ethical considerations are met
These include: copyright, patient consent for clinical materials used, patient confidentiality and
data protection.
8. Any support, sponsorship or involvement of a commercial organisation such as a pharmaceutical
or device company must be declared in the product and must not influence the structure or
content of the e-learning
Any sponsorship must be in the form of an unrestricted educational grant and must also be
declared on the application form. There must be no advertising in the e-learning material and
commercial logos are not permitted.
The product will not be approved if there is bias towards use of any commercial product that does
not represent current evidence-based practice. Generic names of pharmaceutical products must be
used throughout rather than proprietary names, unless this is a regulatory prescribing requirement
to use the proprietary name.
9. Any competing interest on the part of the provider must be declared.
A senior person from the provider organisation, usually a senior clinician, should complete a
Declaration of Interest Form on behalf of themselves and the provider organisation.
10. Learner engagement and evaluation
Providers should describe how learner engagement will be monitored or assessed. A method of
monitoring educational activity is mandatory for the approval of e-libraries. There should be a
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mechanism for learners to provide feedback to the providers.
11. The provider’s evaluation record for their other products must be satisfactory or, where not,
reasons for unsatisfactory ratings must have been addressed
Credits
1 credit will be awarded for each hour of educational activity completed by the physician. For e-platforms
please list the expected number of credits associated with the submitted modules. For e-libraries please do
not enter a figure.
Submission process:
Currently the application process is not fully automated. Please complete the application form in detail and
return it to cpdapproval@rcplondon.ac.uk with all the recommended attachments. Payment for the
approval process should be submitted at this time. The approval process cannot commence until payment
is received. We aim to complete our process within 10 weeks from submission.
Federation review policy for e-libraries and e-platforms
The e-learning product will be reviewed against the criteria listed above. Once approved these e-learning
formats will be approved for a period of 2 years. If Federation approval is to continue beyond 2 years, a full
review will be required. In addition to this, an interim review will be carried out by reviewers on behalf of
the Federation after 1 year of each 2-year approval period. The Federation collects simple evaluation data
on all approved CPD activities directly through the CPD Diary, this will be monitored for e-libraries and e-
platforms.
Review of e-platforms
A minimum of 10% of the modules will be assessed by our specialist reviewers before a
recommendation for approval can be made. Depending on the number and duration of the modules, the
review methodology may involve a sampling approach.
For a platform covering one or two specialties, the product will be assessed by a minimum of 2 reviewers.
Where a platform covers more than 2 specialties, the product will be assessed by at least 3 reviewers. A
final decision regarding approval will be made by the
Associate Medical director for CPD or one of the College CPD Directors.
Review of e-libraries
Evaluation will involve a sampling approach. As for e-platforms, if the e-library covers one or two
specialties, the material will be sampled by a minimum of 2 reviewers. If the e-library covers more than 2
specialties, the material will be sampled by at least 3 reviewers. Each reviewer will be asked to sample
several sections within their sphere of expertise.
A final decision regarding approval will be made by the Associate Medical Director for CPD or one of the
College CPD Directors.
Applications that are not approved by the Federation
Where an application is not approved, the provider will have one opportunity to address the reviewers’
concerns and submit a revised application. If the revised application does not fully address the reviewers’
concerns, a new application may be submitted at a later date, but this will be treated as a new application,
requiring payment of an additional fee.
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Appeals
If an application is not approved by the Federation, the applicant may appeal. An appeal must be made in
writing within 1 week. The application will be reviewed by a CPD Director. This will be the Associate
Medical Director for CPD or one of the College CPD Directors. They may consult appropriate experienced
specialists in relevant specialties if necessary. A decision will normally be reached within 4 weeks of the
appeal being received. The decision of the CPD Director will be final.
Fees
E-libraries:
2-year approval period
£4,000+VAT (£2,000+VAT per annum) for any organisation or income stream
To initiate the approval process, we require an initial payment of £500+VAT, with the remainder of
the first year’s fee (£1,500+VAT) becoming due on approval of the product. Payment for the second
year will be due at the start of the second year of approval.
E-platforms:
2-year approval period
To initiate the approval process, we require an initial payment of the appropriate fee from the table
below or where this is over £500+VAT, the initial payment should be £500+VAT, with the remainder
of the fee becoming due on approval of the product.
5-10 CPD
11-25 CPD
26-50 CPD
Commercial or For-profit
organisations
£1500+VAT
£2500+VAT
£4000+VAT
Non-Commercial with income
stream
£750+VAT
£1250+VAT
£2000+VAT
£250+VAT
£450+VAT
£750+VAT
Making payment:
Please ensure you make your payment in a timely manner as it may affect the time it takes to
approve your event. We strongly recommend that you make payment by credit or debit card
online. Cheques are no longer accepted.
If you wish to pay by BACS, you must include the CPD event code in the transfer reference (i.e.
‘CPD123456’).
Terms and Conditions of CPD Approval by the Federation
Upon written confirmation of approval the provider will be asked to agree to the following:
When indicating Federation CPD approval within the product and in any communications or
promotional material, the following statement (or similar wording) must be used:
“This product has been approved for Distance-Learning CPD Credits by the Federation of the Royal
Colleges of Physicians of the UK. The expiry date for CPD approval is month / year.
The use of a logo for the Federation of the Royal Colleges of Physicians or of any Royal College logo
is not permitted.
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The product will automatically be removed from the electronic events database at the end of the
approval period unless an application for reapproval has been received.
A CPD activity code or codes will be issued to the provider upon approval. The activity code will be
valid until the agreed expiry date
A report summarising the results of evaluation of the product must be provided to the CPD office
upon request.
The Federation of the Royal Colleges of Physicians reserves the right to withdraw CPD approval at
any time, should it feel that any of the above terms and conditions has been contravened, in which
case the provider must no longer communicate that their distance-learning product has been
approved for CPD by the Federation.
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CPD Approval: e-Platform and e-Library Application Form
Once complete, please email cpdapproval@rcplondon.ac.uk with this form and all applicable supporting information listed in Step 11.
Step 1. Title of e-library or e-platform:
Step 2. Basic Details
User Fee (£)
Type (Clinical or Non-
Clinical)
Contact Name
Contact Job Title
Contact Email
Contact Tel
Registered
Organisation Name
Organisation Type
(Commercial or Non-
Profit)
Organisation
Website
Step 3. Product hyperlink and login details
Website/URL
Username
Password
Approval Duration
2 years
Step 4. Additional Details
For large products such as these we understand that the objectives are likely to be broad and generic but please summarise the objectives covered by your
product.
Learning Objective 1
Learning Objective 2
Learning Objective 3
Competing interest
In compliance with Federation guidelines, the provider/applicant confirms that they of have disclosed any potential
or actual competing interest. This includes any financial or other support that might cause bias. The
provider/applicant accepts responsibility for ensuring that all potential competing interests relevant to the product
are declared to the user prior to the user engaging in that CPD activity.
Do you have any competing interests or potential sources of bias to declare?
Yes No
Competing interest
declaration
I/we agree that I/we have provided all the requested information regarding competing interests of the
organisation and faculty and have been accurate and truthful about the status of our organisation (Not-for-profit
or For-profit).
Yes No
Code
(to be generated by
the CPD Team)
Start Date
Title of E-library or E-platform
Approximate Total Hours
of Learning Content (for
e-platform only)
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Step 5. Target Audience
We approve products primarily targeted towards Consultant/SAS grade Physicians. Provided the product is appropriate for consultants and SAS grade
physicians, it is also acceptable for the educational material to be appropriate for trainees and other healthcare professionals. Please list the target audiences
for your content below:
Please also list the Physician specialties from our specialty list that your content would be particularly relevant for below:
Please confirm if your audience is national or international. If relevant to a specific region, please state so below.
Step 6. Educational Needs Assessment
Please provide a statement below about educational needs. This might include a survey to identify needs, evidence of a lack of appropriate educational material
relating to a particular topic/group of topics or evidence of a need for more e-learning for physicians:
Step 7. Active Learning (E-Platforms Only)
For e-platforms only: Please provide a summary of the way in which active learning is provided (for example are there questions for the user throughout the
product or at the end of each section or module?)
Step 8. Legal, Medico-Legal and Ethical Considerations
Please confirm below that all legal, medico-legal and ethical considerations have been met. These include copyright, patient consent for clinical materials used,
patient confidentiality and data protection.
Step 9. Sponsor Details
Do you have any sponsors? Yes No
If yes, please provide details below.
Step 10. Learner Engagement
Providers should describe how learner engagement will be monitored or assessed. A method of monitoring educational activity is required for the approval of
e-libraries.
How will this product be evaluated by users?
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Step 11. Supporting Information
Please email the following documents (where applicable) to cpdapproval@rcplondon.ac.uk in support of your application:
Evidence that key authors or editors have appropriate specialist skills and knowledge
Statement about how authors are selected for their content
Sample certificate of completion
Completed Declaration of Interests Form
For assistance, please email or call 020 3075 1309.
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Declaration of Interests Form (e-learning)
Date:
Name:
Professional details:
Main occupation:
Name of the employer(s):
Please declare any interests here:
Commercial
The existence of any significant financial activity or other relationship the senior clinician/provider organisation has with:
(a) manufacturer(s) of any commercial product and/or providers of commercial services discussed in educational material
(b) any commercial supporters of the activity
This will apply to any relationships that are in place at the time the submission or in the 36 months preceding the submission
Research & Publishing
Financial compensation received by the senior clinician for publishing publications from a healthcare company, organisation or marketing
company
Educational Activities
Financial compensation received by the senior clinician in relation to training of health professionals or planning training packages
Ownerships and possessions in health care companies
e.g. Relevant stocks and shares owned by the senior clinician (e.g. pharmaceutical or medical device companies)
Expert functions in health care and health guidance processes
Other roles held by the senior clinician e.g. Board member in a development project, member of health board in the municipality
Signature: