quote HEE facebook linkedin twitter bracketDetail search file-download keyboard-arrow-down keyboard-arrow-right close event-note

You are here

  1. Home
  2. Our work
  3. Pharmacy
  4. Initial education and training of pharmacists - reform programme
  5. Newly Qualified Pharmacist pathway

Newly Qualified Pharmacist pathway

Contents

The HEE Newly Qualified Pharmacist pathway aims to link the initial education and training reforms to a continuum of development into post-registration. The pathway is intended to help pharmacists make the transition to more independent learning and acts as a stepping-stone towards enhanced and advanced practice.

Register your interest for future pathway intakes here

Step on to the pathway

newly qualified pharmacist pathway graphic

The goal is to establish lifelong learning along the pharmacy education and career continuum. 

This optional pathway is designed for learners across all sectors of pharmacy, to help them meet their development needs as they enter newly qualified practice. 

Core elements

Working with partners and stakeholders, we have identified four core elements that will contribute to developing newly qualified pharmacist' learning and growth:

  • Access to the RPS e-Portfolio: Developed to support learners assess their learning needs, develop an action plan, and reflect upon their experiences. 
  • Curriculum: The RPS Post-registration Foundation Pharmacist Curriculum is designed to support pharmacists grow from meeting the initial standards of education and training through to being confident practitioners who can provide increasingly complex care.
  • Learning resources: Curated resources have been mapped against the new curriculum domains. This virtual library will support the professional development of newly qualified pharmacists, based on their individual learning needs, and can complement resources available locally. The learning resources library is available online.
  • Access to supervision: We will support access to supervision for all pharmacists on this pathway.  

Diagram representing the four elements of the Newly Qualified Pharmacist pathway: Curriculum, Portfolio, Learning Resources and Supervision

Video resources

We have produced three videos which explain the core elements of the Newly Qualified Pharmacist pathway. Click on the links below to find out more: 

Pathway delivery

This pathway is learner-led has been designed to integrate with work commitments and complement existing workplace and postgraduate learning. It is designed to provide a consistent approach to training across service providers and across organisations.

There will be no mandated assessments or time out of practice. Structured learning events (SLEs) will take place in the workplace, enabling your educational supervisor greater flexibility and responsibility over assessing your progress against the RPS Post-registration Foundation Pharmacist Curriculum learning outcomes

Registration

Registration for the Newly Qualified Pharmacist Pathway 2021/22 is now closed.

    Benefits

    The pathway will benefit you and your employer by augmenting and enhancing existing learning programmes. It will:

    • Offer the opportunity to assess your own progress against the RPS Post-registration Foundation Pharmacist Curriculum learning outcomes
    • Provide access to a funded e-Portfolio for professional development: helping you to assess your learning needs, develop an action plan and reflect upon your experiences over time
    • Provide access to a virtual library to help you develop your professional skills: resources are mapped against the new curriculum domains and will support your professional development based on your individual learning needs
    • Provide access to educational supervisor training/support for those receiving educational supervision through their workplace
    • Foster a culture of life-long learning and career-long professionalism by utilising experiences in the workplace
    • Utilise learning in the workplace - no additional study time over and above the learning programme you are already following (eg CPPE programme, diploma or in-house learning), using validated supervised learning event tools to receive feedback and improve performance

    Frequently Asked Questions

    Who is eligible for the Newly Qualified Pharmacist pathway?

    The HEE Newly Qualified Pharmacist pathway is open to pharmacists in any pharmacy sector who:

    - Completed their foundation training within a year of pathway registration opening.

    - Have GPhC registration

    - Are in employment in England

    - Have access to a workplace educational supervisor (those who are enrolled on the CPPE Newly qualified pharmacist programme will have access to an educational supervisor via CPPE).

    What if I don’t meet the eligibility criteria?

    To enrol on this pathway you will need to have GPhC registration, be employed in England and have access to a workplace educational supervisor. Those who completed their foundation training more than one year before pathway opening should contact their regional HEE pharmacy team or CPPE to discuss available options. Exceptions may include those who have been qualified for longer than a year but have not had access to a HEE-funded learning pathway such as a previous Newly Qualified Pharmacist Pathway or the Primary Care Pharmacy Education Pathway.

    Will the pathway be open to pharmacists who completed their pre-registration or foundation training more than a year before pathway registration opens?

    Where employers identify staff who would benefit from the pathway but don’t meet the eligibility criteria, they should contact their regional HEE pharmacy team to discuss:

    - East of England: pharmacy.eoe@hee.nhs.uk  

    - London: lasepharmacy@hee.nhs.uk 

    - South East: lasepharmacy@hee.nhs.uk  

    - Midlands: pharmacy.me@hee.nhs.uk  

    - North East and Yorkshire: medicinesoptimisation.north@hee.nhs.uk    

    - North West: medicinesoptimisation.north@hee.nhs.uk   

    - South West, Thames Valley and Wessex: pharmacy.south@hee.nhs.uk  

    - CPPE Newly qualified pharmacist programme: newlyqualified@cppe.ac.uk 

    Is the Newly Qualified Pharmacist pathway mandatory?

    No. The programme is not mandatory. However, participation in the pathway will help you demonstrate progression against the RPS Post-registration Foundation Pharmacist Curriculum learning outcomes. The pathway is also intended to help pharmacists make the transition to more independent learning and to act as a stepping-stone towards advanced practice. 

    Is the pathway open to all sectors of pharmacy?

    Yes. The pathway is open to pharmacists from all sectors, including locums.

    How can pharmacists in different sectors access the pathway?  

    Registration for the Newly Qualified Pharmacist Pathway 2021/22 is now closed. Register your interest for future pathway intakes here.

    For community pharmacy (except those with in-house training programmes), primary care*, health and justice, including locums, access is through the CPPE Newly qualified pharmacist programme. Registering with the CPPE programme will give you fully funded access to educational supervision, a full learning programme, and the RPS e-Portfolio.

    *If you are employed as part of the PCN Additional Roles Reimbursement Scheme (ARRS), you will be expected to enrol for the CPPE Primary care pharmacy education pathway as a requirement of the PCN Directed Enhanced Service (DES) specification. You can find out more information about the pathway and how to apply here. Do not enrol for the CPPE Newly qualified pharmacist programme if you are employed via ARRS funding.

    For secondary care pharmacy (hospital and mental trusts) and community pharmacy large multiples, who provide their own learning programmes, including supervision support, registration to the HEE Newly Qualified Pharmacist pathway will give registrants access to the suite of learning resources mapped to the RPS Post-registration Foundation Curriculum and fully funded access to the RPS e-Portfolio. Employers will receive a contribution towards supervision costs for each learner enrolled.

    Is the pathway open to locums working in community pharmacy?

    Yes. The pathway is open to eligible locums via the CPPE Newly qualified pharmacist programme. See above for registration details.    

    I am already studying for a Diploma. Do I need to register for the Newly Qualified Pharmacist pathway?   

    The Newly Qualified Pharmacist pathway is not mandatory. However, the pathway is designed to complement existing programmes including postgraduate diplomas. As such, we strongly encourage all eligible pharmacists to register to benefit from the supplementary tools and targeted support.

    The pathway is learner-led and designed to fit around working practice, whilst complementing existing programmes and post graduate learning. Learners working in these settings should continue with their organisation’s Newly Qualified Pharmacist programme concurrently, as these programmes will augment the development from undergraduate studies towards advanced practice, with a focus on moving to independent learning.

    The pathway is aligned to the RPS Post-registration foundation curriculum and enables pharmacists in any sector to demonstrate that they meet the learning outcomes. This will enable pharmacists to demonstrate their capabilities and should facilitate a more flexible workforce that can transfer between sectors.

    What are the benefits of the RPS e-Portfolio?

    The RPS e-Portfolio provides a dashboard to help learners track their progress against the RPS Post-registration Foundation Pharmacist Curriculum learning outcomes. It gives access to validated Supervised Learning Events (SLEs) and the ability to collect feedback from colleagues and patients – via Multisource Feedback (MSF) and a patient survey. The platform also enables learners to record evidence of their learning and professional development, undertake learning needs analysis and develop action plans.

    Do I need to upload information on the RPS e-Portfolio if I have already started using an e-portfolio provided by my employer?

    Where you have already started using an e-portfolio to track your progress, please contact your HEE regional pharmacy team or CPPE to discuss:

    - East of England: pharmacy.eoe@hee.nhs.uk

    - London: lasepharmacy@hee.nhs.uk

    - South East: lasepharmacy@hee.nhs.uk

    - Midlands: pharmacy.me@hee.nhs.uk

    - North East and Yorkshire: medicinesoptimisation.north@hee.nhs.uk 

    - North West: medicinesoptimisation.north@hee.nhs.uk

    - South West, Thames Valley and Wessex: pharmacy.south@hee.nhs.uk

    - CPPE Newly qualified pharmacist programme: newlyqualified@cppe.ac.uk 

    Where can I get more information about the RPS e-Portfolio?

    The RPS has run webinars to support the launch of the e-Portfolio to access these recordings, please use the links below to register:

    - Recorded webinar registration (for educational supervisors)

    - Recorded webinar registration (for learners)

    Further information about the e-Portfolio including technical user guides is available on the RPS e-Portfolio webpage.

    If you require technical support with the e-Portfolio, please contact the RPS e-Portfolio support team (Monday to Friday, 9am-5pm) at: eportfolio@rpharms.com.

    When does registration open and close?

    Registration for the Newly Qualified Pharmacist Pathway 2021/22 is now closed.

    Register your interest for future pathway intakes here. 

    Is there a timeframe by which the pathway must be completed?

    As there is no endpoint to the pathway, there is no defined timeline. We would anticipate newly qualified pharmacists would use the pathway for between one and three years. HEE will provide access to the RPS e-Portfolio for a fixed time period, after which learners may wish to continue their access to enable RPS credentialing.

    HEE educational supervision support funding will enable educational supervision for the first 12 months of registration on the pathway.  

    What will the educational supervision requirements be?

    Please refer to the Newly Qualified Pharmacist pathway educational supervisor ‘Getting started’ guide, available below.  

    What will the educational supervision training requirements be?

    HEE offers an e-learning for healthcare (elfh) programme to support educational supervisors develop the skills and knowledge they require. We would expect educational supervisors to have completed the core module (Module 1) within the last 2 years. We would also encourage educational supervisors to undertake the enhanced module (Module 2). Education supervisors will be able to use this as evidence towards their advanced practice portfolio.

    Please note: We will accept equivalent learning through accredited providers (such as regional HEE-funded courses or HEI-delivered educational supervisor training or CPPE-delivered educational supervisor training).

    Does the Newly Qualified Pharmacist pathway provide a contribution towards supervision costs?

    Yes. The CPPE Newly qualified pharmacist programme is fully funded by HEE for those who are eligible (see eligibility and registration FAQs). The 12-month programme takes a blended learning approach, and offers a mix of online learning, workshops, assessment and work-based support through a designated CPPE education supervisor.

    For those in community pharmacy large multiples and hospital trusts, HEE will contribute towards learners' supervision costs - per learner signed up to the pathway. The learner registration process will be via the e-Portfolio. Registration to the e-Portfolio will initiate the payments-to-employers process, through existing payment mechanisms.

    Independent prescribing

    Does the pathway include an independent prescribing qualification?

    No, the pathway does not include an independent prescribing qualification. It is, however, mapped to the RPS Post-registration Foundation Pharmacist Curriculum learning outcomes that have been designed to develop prescribing competence. This means that the HEE Newly Qualified Pharmacist pathway, using these learning outcomes, helps you develop the skills and competence you need to prepare for a prescribing course.

    As described by the General Pharmaceutical Council, applicants to prescribing courses must have relevant experience in a pharmacy setting and be able to recognise, understand and articulate the skills and attributes required by a prescriber. They also specify that course providers will be required to assess the quality of the applicant’s previous experience, to make sure that pharmacists have the necessary skills and experience before starting the course.

    Where can I find more information about independent prescribing?

    There is information on the work that HEE is doing to support independent prescriber training for pharmacists on the HEE Pharmacy Integration Programme page. The RPS Post-registration Foundation Pharmacist Curriculum also contains information on how it can be used to support safe prescribing practice.

    Are there academic credits attached?  

    There will be no pathway endpoint, and as such no certification process by Health Education England. You may wish to pursue accreditation by the RPS against the Post-registration Foundation Pharmacist Curriculum – more details about this process, including costs and independent prescribing requirements, are available from the RPS.

    Related Documents

    Return to the top of the page.