PMST 2021 Curriculum

Changes to structure:

• Replacement of seven competency modules with 14 Capabilities in Practice (CiPs).
• All capabilities to be reviewed every year (spiral curriculum).

Changes to assessments:

• Four levels for assessment of specialty CiPs, three levels for rating generic CiPs.
• Introduction of new WPBAs (QIPAT and OAT) and retirement of PbD.
• Increased emphasis on assessments (12 PMATs, 4 OATs, 1 QIPAT, 1 MSF) each year.

Changes to approach to sources of learning

• No mandatory courses, learning can be achieved through work experience, internal / external courses, simulated events etc.

Knowledge gained for the DPM exam can be used to support CiPs.

There are four entrustment levels for the eight specialty CiPs, these are: level 1 – entrusted to observe only; level 2- entrusted to act with supervision; level 3 – entrusted to act with indirect supervision; and level 4 – entrusted to act unsupervised. Both the trainee and their educational supervisor must rate the trainee’s entrustment level for all the specialty CiPs each year of training. The trainee must reach level 4 for all the specialty CiPs by their final year of training (i.e. ST6) as well as passing the Diploma in Pharmaceutical Medicine exam before an ARCP panel can issue them an outcome 6.

The trainee and educational supervisor must also rate the trainee’s achievement of the six generic CiPs each year of training using the following ratings: below expectations, meeting expectations and above expectations.

Please read the ‘Pharmaceutical Medicine ARCP Decision Aid 2021’ for the expected rate of progression for each training year.

There is no requirement to complete additional WPBAs, but the trainee should continue to add evidence and reflective practice commentaries of their ongoing development in the area until they reach ST6.

Yes, trainees following the 2021 PMST curriculum must undertake MSF each year of training. Please read the ‘Pharmaceutical Medicine ARCP Decision Aid 2021’ for details. We will review the curriculum and the frequency of workplace-based assessments and MSF periodically to ensure that the number of assessments trainees must complete is proportionate.

The ‘Pharmaceutical Medicine ARCP Decision Aid 2021’ states an indicative 12 respondents. Our advice to trainees following the 2010 PMST curriculum was to receive at least 12 respondents before their educational supervisor releases the MSF summary report on the e-portfolio and we believe this should be the same advice to trainees following the new 2021 PMST curriculum. We may reconsider this advice after our periodic review of the curriculum.

Yes, the OAT form that the trainee and educational supervisor must complete is built into the e-portfolio. The form that an observer must complete with their feedback is on our website here. The trainee should download the observer form from our website, print it out and hand out to potential observers at situations such as meetings and training sessions for example.

There is an indicative 12 PMATs that a trainee should complete across the 14 CiPs for each year of training; please refer to the ‘Pharmaceutical Medicine ARCP Decision Aid 2021’. We have mapped the PMAT to the most appropriate specialty and generic CiPs; please see pages 44-45 of the 2021 PMST curriculum for our assessment blueprint table.

No, the trainee will be expected to undertake MSF for each year of training. Please refer to the ‘Pharmaceutical Medicine ARCP Decision Aid 2021’ for the number of workplace-based assessments a trainee should or is expected to complete during each year of training.

Please read the ‘Pharmaceutical Medicine ARCP Decision Aid 2021’ for the indicative number of PMATs and OATs that a trainee should complete each year of training and the number of QIPATs a trainee is expected to complete each year of training.

Yes, trainees must collect and link evidence to the relevant CiPs and write reflective practice commentaries in addition to complete the WPBAs. The trainee’s reflective practise commentaries should state what they learnt from participating in or undertaking the activity and how they applied their learning to demonstrate their capability. The evidence, reflective commentaries and WPBAs will provide the trainee’s educational supervisor the information to make an informed professional judgement on their trainee’s level of  entrustment.

We strongly encourage trainees to attempt the Diploma in Pharmaceutical Medicine as soon as possible, but no later than ST5 (year). The trainee and educational supervisor should review the trainee’s progress against his or her expected completion date and design a personal development plan (PDP) that ensures that the trainee has sufficient time to sit and pass the exam before their final ARCP.

The trainee should only be using the WPBAs for the 2010 curriculum (‘the old curriculum’), so he must continue to use the PbD and TO tools as well as the PMAT. There is no requirement for trainees following the old curriculum to complete the QIPAT, and they should also continue to follow the expected rate of progression in the 2010 ARCP decision aid (see page 76 of the old curriculum). The recommendation of ARCP panels to trainees on the old curriculum is to complete 5-10 WPBAs across all the modules each year of training using the full range of assessments.

We have published a series of guidance documents including supplementary guidance for educational supervisors on our 2021 PMST curriculum page of the FPM website.

For the trainee’s first ARCP (review of their ST3 year), the ARCP panel must review all 14 CiPs. At subsequent ARCPs, the panels might want to focus on the specialty CiPs that are rated level 2 – 3 and any generic CiPs that have been rated below expectation. At the trainee’s final ARCP, the panel should review all the CiPs again with a particular focus on any CiPs that were not rated level 4 or below expectation previously.

An ARCP panel will expect the trainee and their educational supervisor to rate the trainee’s entrustment level for each year of training so that the panel can review the trainee’s progress towards achieving level 4 for the specialty CiPs and having met expectations for the generic CiPs by ST6 (i.e. the final year of training) before issuing the trainee an outcome 6 confirming completion of the PMST programme.

FPM-approved courses can be used to supplement a trainee’s in-work activities/experience, but the trainee cannot ‘sign-off’ a CiP on just the completion of the course. Trainees are not limited to attending courses approved by FPM, they are free to attend any in-house or other external courses that they and their educational supervisor consider relevant and will provide the trainee with the knowledge to apply their learning in the workplace, for example by working with colleagues in other departments or completing a simulated exercise designed by the educational supervisor or a subject-matter expert in the pharmaceutical medicine organisation.

The educational supervisor must only give their trainee an entrustment level rating after the trainee has uploaded and linked evidence of their application of the knowledge they gained by attending the course, completed WPBAs and written a reflective practice commentary. A CiP cannot be completed by a course alone.

Trainees can attend any courses including FPM-approved courses that they and their educational supervisor are relevant to the trainee gaining the knowledge to apply their learning in the workplace to complete the CiPs.