We will play our role in advocating a realistic work life balance.
Our members made it clear in the 2024 member survey that they are determined to deliver the best possible care for children and young people. However, the NHS continues to be stretched as never before and members across all career stages are facing high levels of stress leading to burnout for many. We will play our role in advocating a realistic work life balance and also retention of paediatricians in the workforce.
We want to improve the experience of being a College member, responding to different needs throughout the career journey. We will provide effective training, development and technology, designed around our members to support day-to-day work, career progression and impact in clinical practice.
We will use our role to:
- Reduce stress and help our members thrive by increasing flexibility in our training
- Support more members to use new digital resources, mapping out the skills required to do this and supporting through CPD planning and management
- Empower members to more effectively support each other and their wellbeing
- Influence at the top, using our unique access to powerful, frontline evidence
- Lead world class and forward thinking assessments
We will complete the following actions to reach our goal:
- Develop the tools members need to support paediatric services and workforces, including case studies, exemplars and business cases for workforce change and innovation. We will do this alongside reviewing and refining our eLearning education portfolio, identifying where we can use bitesize learning to increase flexibility
- Expand and enhance Thrive networks, creating a welcoming and innovative space for members to support each other
- Review and improve the College exams and continuing professional development process for members, creating industry-leading platforms that focus on user-experience, a new
theory exam delivery system and centre provider, and more sustainable and progressive College examinations that harness the best in digital and education - Define a case for change based on the most up-to-date data and evidence, gathered from key workforce data, Facing the Future Standards and State of Child Health report
By the end of 2027 we will know we are successful when:
- Members can access our expanded eLearning capabilities that include new formats and subjects, including clinical subjects and also training in research, leadership and management
- An increased proportion of our members are actively accessing our training resources (including signposting), skills roadmaps, and CPD planning and management
- Due in part to our support of members and influence on their behalf, there is a reversal in current data trends in General Medical Council workforce modelling and membership surveys that show increasing mental health concerns and burnout in paediatrics
- Progress+ allows more training journeys for paediatric doctors to be designed flexibly to their needs and is underpinned by a refreshed and progressive assessment strategy
- College examinations are redeveloped using the best in digital and educational structures and access to flexible and digital education and resources are maintained to at least the same level as pre-pandemic
