As a locum doctor you get to enjoy many benefits including increased flexibility, more varied work and the ability to pick and choose your working schedule. However, locums and doctors in short-term placements don’t have access to some of the usual systems in place to support CPD, appraisal and revalidation.

The NHS has recently released a guide to support locum doctors with these challenges. Head of Quality and Compliance at Athona, Tracie Spires contributed to this document which is available on the NHS website: Supporting locums and doctors in short-term placements: A practical guide for doctors in these roles.

The guide highlights some of the responsibilities a locum agency has for its doctors, including:

  • Appointing a Responsible Officer and informing them of any fees relating to the appraisal and revalidation process
  • Carrying out all pre-employment checks before any shifts takes place
  • Monitoring the doctor’s practice and collecting feedback on the placement and sharing it with the doctor for appraisal and professional development
  • Ensuring that appraisals take place annually

When Athona becomes your designated body, you’ll have access to our dedicated revalidation and appraisal team who are on-hand to help with your documentation and compliance. Since 2012, we’ve successfully helped hundreds of doctors through revalidation and we’re proud of our exceptionally low deferral rate.

Our appraisal cost is simple and transparent, with no hidden or unexpected costs. We include the full package of services, including:

  • Annual appraisal with an experienced appraiser
  • Ongoing revalidation support
  • Responsible Officer’s appraisal review
  • 360 feedback
  • Responsible Officer’s ongoing support and advice
  • Section 12 references

By registering with Athona, you’ll also have access to our doctors’ training at our regular Open Days across the UK, you can complete CPD-accredited training including Basic Life Support (BLS) and Manual Handling.

Want to find out more? Contact our team at revalidationsupport@athona.com or call 01277 217777.