Dear Colleagues

In my previous message of March 2022 I confirmed that we were working with the Academy of Medical Royal Colleges and other partners, including the GMC and British Medical Association, to develop a settled format for appraisal, based on the successful Appraisal 2020 model. I am pleased to report that the Academy has now published their updated Medical Appraisal Guide, describing the new format and the associated Medical Appraisal Template, illustrating this. These are now available on the Academy website.

You will find that it is very resonant with the Appraisal 2020 format. In particular, the essential principles are maintained, of shortened written preparation, a prime focus on the appraisal as a catalyst of professional development, and an offer to the doctor to include an option to review health and well being as a component of professional development. I am pleased to tell you that our internal report on the impact of the Appraisal 2020 model affirms the positive impact of this approach, in similar fashion to similar evaluations by individual regions, the Academy and GMC. This is at a late drafting stage and will be shared with you when finalised.

NHS England and NHS Improvement will now adopt this new Medical Appraisal Guide and template as its format for medical appraisal. For doctors connected to a NHS England and NHS Improvement responsible officer, who use one of the main electronic portfolio providers, this should involve minimal change, as we are assured by providers that they will update their products very soon. As previously with the Appraisal 2020 model, responsible officers in other designated bodies are encouraged also to adopt them in the same way. Responsible officers who have not adopted the 2020 format are also encouraged to review the new format with a view to adopting it.

I hope you are encouraged by this news, and that your doctors will continue to find the refreshed approach to their appraisal valuable. Good patient care depends on doctors who are flourishing in their work. Many thanks for the work you and your teams are doing to generate the environment and processes that support this philosophy. It is important that through appraisal we recognise the efforts that each doctor is making in their unique working circumstances and support them to positively shape their development in that context.

Yours sincerely,

Maurice Conlon MBE FRCGP
Clinical Lead,
Professional Standards Team | Medical Directorate