Preparing Your Supporting Information for Medical Appraisal
Gathering supporting information for your medical appraisal needn’t trigger overwhelm. You’ve been learning, improving, and delivering excellent patient care all year – it’s simply a matter of recognising and organising it effectively.
Supporting information isn’t about creating new evidence. The GMC designed requirements to capture professional development and quality improvement work you’re already doing. Understanding what counts and how to present it makes the process manageable.
The Six Types of Supporting Information
GMC requires six types, each demonstrating fitness to practise:
- Continuing Professional Development (CPD) – maintaining and developing skills
- Quality improvement activity – commitment to enhancing patient care
- Significant events – learning from challenging situations
- Colleague feedback – external validation of practice
- Patient feedback – insights into communication and care
- Complaints and compliments – professional relationships
Each element tells part of your professional story. Together, they create a comprehensive picture of you as a reflective practitioner committed to excellent care.
Recognising CPD in Daily Practice
Many doctors underestimate their CPD, thinking only formal courses count. Your professional learning happens constantly:
- Journal articles during lunch breaks
- Challenging case discussions with colleagues
- Guidelines reviewed before treating patients
- Departmental meetings and clinical updates
Document these meaningfully. Keep a simple log throughout the year, noting activities and their impact on practice. Focus on quality over quantity – the GMC values relevant, impactful learning over arbitrary hours.
Link CPD clearly to your scope of practice, showing how learning translates into improved patient care. Your Personal Development Plan provides a starting point, but let your learning reflect current needs rather than historical plans.
Quality Improvement Made Simple
Quality improvement needn’t mean formal audit cycles. Every practice reflection and change demonstrates improvement thinking:
- Streamlining clinic letters after patient feedback
- Adjusting prescribing after reviewing guidelines
- Improving consultation efficiency
- Enhancing team communication
Document the improvement cycle – what prompted change, what you did, and what difference it made. Show systematic thinking: why you chose this area, how you measured practice, what changes you implemented, and how you evaluated impact.
Gathering Meaningful Feedback
Colleague and patient feedback often causes anxiety yet usually provides the most affirmation. Formal multisource feedback provides structured evidence, but informal feedback counts too:
- Thank-you cards from patients
- Positive colleague comments
- Collaborative working examples
- Constructive suggestions leading to improvements
Plan collection strategically. Create simple feedback mechanisms capturing meaningful insights rather than just satisfaction scores. Quality matters more than quantity – thoughtful responses outweigh tick-box forms.
Effective Organisation
The best portfolios tell coherent professional stories. Start preparing early in your appraisal year. Use whatever system works – digital portfolios, physical folders, or cloud storage. What matters is regular updating and easy retrieval.
Create clear links between elements:
- Show how CPD addresses identified needs
- Connect quality improvements to practice reflection
- Demonstrate how feedback informed development
Keep evidence proportionate. Select representative examples demonstrating breadth and depth. A well-curated portfolio with meaningful reflection outweighs exhaustive collections lacking insight.
Making It Manageable
Preparing supporting information becomes smooth when you recognise you’re documenting existing good practice. Start early, maintain simple systems, and focus on telling your professional story meaningfully.
Integrate evidence gathering into routine practice. Your supporting information should celebrate your commitment to excellent patient care while identifying realistic development areas. Transform this annual requirement into an opportunity for meaningful professional reflection.