CPD is an essential activity in many professions, especially within the healthcare sector, but if you’re new to the world of work, or indeed the healthcare sector, you might be wondering about the advantages and disadvantages of CPD, and why it’s such an important activity.
So, what are the pros and cons of CPD? The key advantage of CPD is the maintenance and expansion of knowledge, skills, and updates in your profession. On the other hand, disadvantages of CPD include not having enough time or motivation for professional learning, lack of relevance, and high costs.
Read on to learn more about the key advantages and disadvantages of CPD with Breeze Academy, one of the leading CPD providers in the UK.
What are the Advantages of CPD?
The advantages of CPD are vast, but the key reason to complete CPD is to maintain current skills and knowledge, and to expand upon them to provide customers, clients, and patients with the best level of service possible.
We’ve outlined some of the key advantages of CPD below, but this list is by no means exhaustive, and we’re sure that each of you will find other benefits of continued professional development as you advance through your career.
Maintaining Existing Knowledge
The purpose of CPD is not only to expand your knowledge and skills but to also maintain current knowledge and skills. It’s imperative that you don’t allow standards to slip, or allow yourself to get lazy with what is comfortable.
Also, it’s important to recognise that we’re only human and knowledge can fade over time. If you haven't touched upon a certain subject for a while, you might one day find yourself forgetting key information, elements, or steps.
Expanding Knowledge and Skills
That being said, it is still important to build upon your existing knowledge base in order to provide the best possible service to your clients, customers, or patients. Formal CPD courses are a great way to do this, especially where there are elements of both theory and hands-on practice.
Industry Updates, Trends, and Best Practice
Another key advantage of CPD is the chance to observe industry updates, best practices, and to learn about new trends in the industry. Whilst this isn’t formal learning to skills-building, it’s important to know what’s going on in your industry.
Professional Memberships and Registrations are Maintained
Some professional bodies require a particular number of hours to be spent on CPD within a given time frame in order for memberships or registrations to be renewed. This is particularly important as some employers and professions require these memberships and registrations as standard.
Building Confidence and Credibility
Since CPD encourages the maintenance and expansion of skills and knowledge, not only will your credibility within your profession improve, but you should also build confidence in yourself and your abilities.
Promotion of Career Advancement
As well as the above, one of the advantages of CPD is the promotion of activities that encourage or help towards career advancement. Building upon skills, knowledge, and personal qualities shows your superiors that you are serious about your career and are ready for advancement.
Time for Reflection
Lastly, CPD gives you time to reflect on your career as a whole, your skills, knowledge, any gaps, where you can improve, what you may wish to learn in the future, and more.
What are the Disadvantages of CPD?
The disadvantages of CPD tend to fall around barriers to accessing CPD, time management, and information provided during CPD activities.
- Some professions require a large number of hours to be spent on CPD each year. Whilst beneficial, this is obviously time-consuming, and professionals must find time somewhere to complete their CPD profile, often during their own time.
- Costs, Whilst many CPD activities are free or low cost, some formal CPD courses can be very expensive and may not be covered by the employer.
- Some employers may not allow time for informal CPD activities such as internal training, shadowing, and discussions.
What are the Benefits of CPD to Employers?
The advantages of CPD to employers are directly related to the advantages of CPD for employees. The skills, knowledge, and confidence gained from CPD activities allow an individual to perform their role better, to provide additional support and services, and, ultimately, to achieve business objectives.
- More effective workforce
- More engaged workforce
- Lower staff turnover as staff often feel more committed to their profession
- Meeting legal and industry requirements
- A workforce with up-to-date, highly skilled employees
Are CPD Courses Worth It?
In our opinion, all CPD activities are worth the effort, time, or cost as they allow you to perform your job just a little bit better, more efficiently, or with more confidence. What’s more, it assures both employers and clients that you are at the top of your game and that they can trust you with the service that you provide.
What Qualifies as CPD Hours?
In most cases, almost any form of learning or reflection is considered to be CPD, whether it is in a formal learning environment, or is some kind of internal training. Below we have listed some of the most common CPD activities that you can undertake. That being said, before undertaking any CPD activities, make sure to confirm with your professional body that such activities are counted towards your CPD portfolio.
Formal CPD
- External courses
- Online courses
- Seminars
- Conferences
- Specific internal training exercises
Informal CPD
- Reflective practice
- Portfolio building
- Use of library facilities
- Evidence-based practice resources review
- Journal reading- Participation in discussion groups
Is CPD Mandatory? / What Happens If You Don’t Do CPD?
Each professional body will handle incomplete CPD portfolios differently, but a hearing will often be called to assess the situation. In these cases, the professional body may choose to allow an extension to complete the portfolio, or they may revoke membership/registration as a consequence.
If you are unsure of the CPD requirements for your professional body, make sure to familiarise yourself with these rules as soon as possible to avoid negative consequences. Also, if you feel that you may not complete your CPD portfolio in the given time, do not ignore this and hope for the best. Get in touch with your professional body as soon as possible as they may be able to offer a solution to those with genuine reasons for incompletion.
CPD Courses with Breeze Academy
Breeze Academy is one of the leading CPD providers in the UK, with a range of professional development courses including Acupuncture and Dry Needling, Yoga Teacher Training, and Sports Massage Therapy Training.
As a formal learning environment, our CPD courses count towards CPD requirements and provide several advantages from skills and knowledge building to confidence building, and networking.
Get in touch with us today for more information about our CPD courses, or have a look on our website at the courses that may benefit you.