In Scotland, to ensure a consistency in approach and quality, it was agreed by the national steering group that NHS Education for Scotland (NES) would be the provider of appraiser training for those doctors who wish to take up the role of a medical appraiser.
NES offers two types of appraiser training: New Appraiser for those new to the role; and Refresher Appraiser to support the continued development of the medical appraiser workforce in Scotland.
Prior to applying to the New Appraiser courses, please review the Medical Appraiser Role description document at bottom of the page which highlights the duties and person specifications.
More crucially, applicants must have permission and support from the employing health board's Appraisal Lead(s). Applications received without their support will not be processed.
Please note: NES is only responsible for the training provision. Employment terms and contracts are negotiated between appraisers and the employing health boards.
Apply to New Appraiser courses >>
To support the ongoing development of the appraiser workforce in Scotland, appraisers are invited to a half-day update training session once every 3 years. In addition to this, a number of webinars are available throughout the year for appraisers to attend. Topics can be suggested by the appraisers and are typically based on current themes and demands.
There are also a number of modules that have been developed for appraisers to work through at their own pace, akin to the materials used in the New Appraiser courses.
In addition, appraisers are strongly encouraged to attend any local peer group meetings organised by the health boards.
Access Refresher Appraiser programme >>
If you have already attended formal Medical Appraiser training in other parts of the UK (e.g. relocating to Scotland from England or Wales or Northern Ireland etc), or you were previously trained in Scotland and are returning after an extended absence, dependant on your experience and how active you have been as an appraiser, it might be that your health board may recruit you to the role without the need to attend further training.
Liaise with your employing health board's Appraisal Lead first to ensure there is vacancy in your health board; if so, they will conduct an interview with you to determine experience and suitability and proceed from there.
To ensure a safe delivery and educational experience for all, the majority of our training events will be carried out remotely (usually via MS Teams). Limited face-to-face training will also be part of our schedule but the remote training will remain our default delivery option.
Applicants to the "New Appraiser" training will be assessed throughout two half-days and prior to this attendance, they are required to complete 7 online modules.
On completion of the course you and your Medical Director / Appraisal Lead will be informed of the training course tutors' recommendation.
The Refresher Appraiser training is not assessed and will run for half a day. Some time will also need to be made for some prep work (reviewing videos/modules prior to attending).
You are advised to carefully read the role description / personal specification criteria included below.
To apply for a place on any of the training courses:
Once your place is confirmed we will add you to the setup on MS Teams. Meantime you can access the pre-course modules before then. Completion of the modules prior to attendance is critical as they form the large and small group exercises and discussions on the day(s).
Medical Appraiser: Role description and Personal specification
NB: Recruitment and employment of medical appraisers is managed locally by the health boards – this document is intended as an example for boards to adapt for local use.
Date updated: 27/05/2022
Size: 81876 - KB
Type: docx
This page was last updated on: 07/02/2024
