2. Agenda
• New qualification
• Reaccreditation process from April
2016
• Communications and websites
• Questions
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3. New qualification
• PHE, HEE and Skills for Health are introducing a new screener qualification in 2016
• Diploma for Health Screeners (AAA)
• Only for new staff
• Level 3 on QCF (not agenda for change)
• Why???
• Provides the non-professionally regulated staff within screening a nationally recognised
qualification
• Will enable staff to have a huge number of opportunities and career progression
• Other screening programmes
• Maternity support workers, healthcare support workers
• Nursing, paramedics, emergency medical technicians
• Foundation and undergraduate degrees
• Will be a big change to the existing qualification
• Will require a significant amount of work based assessment and competencies
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4. Structure
• 13 mandatory modules that cover competencies for underpinning of basic
healthcare
• Communication skills
• Consent
• Infection control
• Health and safety in healthcare settings/safeguarding etc.
• Most should be covered in the induction resources that each trust has
• Generic screening module
• Screening programme specific modules
• Three for AAA screeners;
• Principles of AAA screening and treatment
• Principles of Ultrasound (physics)
• Undertake a screening scan
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5. Assessment
• Change in structure to the current qualification
• Local assessors/internal and external quality assessors
• More local oversite
• CST’s/nurses/co-ordinators to become assessors to sign off techs
• Will take between 9-12 months to complete
• Clinical ‘sign off’ to enable semi independent scanning
• Work based assessment of competence
• Core modules competencies are demonstrated utilising their roles within their departments
• Portfolio of experience (including minimum scans of AAA and non AAA)
• Clinical assessments
• E-learning
• On-line tests
• Assignments
• Case-studies/reflective practice
• Short notes
• Professional discussions
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6. Assessment continued….
• 3 AAA specific units
• 13 mandatory units
• 2 AAA units will have eLearning to support the technicians
• Will require a portfolio for the qualification where technicians will have to
collate evidence
• Self directed learning
• Professional discussion where the Learner/technician will have one on one
discussions with the CST/assessor
• Needs to be documented
• To ensure quality the assessments need to be sent for external marking and
CST’s will receive feedback relating to this
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7. Assessors
• As this is a Nationally recognised qualification assessors of competence will now need to have
appropriate qualifications in vocational assessing
• Skills for health requirement
Clinical skills trainers
• CST’s still required for scanning assessment and will need to undertake this qualification in
vocational assessing
• Exemption for prior learning/block training of CST’s in new role
• PHE Screening to fund this in 2016/2017
Accredited screening technicians
• Will allow role development for accredited screening technicians
• Can be officially involved in the training and assessing of new technicians
• Won’t be able to sign off clinical scanning competency (CST’s only)
• Will need to undertake the vocational assessors course locally
• Not being funded by
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8. Awarding organisations
• There are now 4 awarding organisations that will be providing the qualification
• Oversite from NAAASP
• 4 awarding organisations will be able to provide the qualification across England
• Pearson Qualifications
• Lifetime Awarding
• Future Quals
• NOCN
• Local programmes will need to determine which of these AO is best suited to provide
the qualification this will usually depend on where the awarding centres are based
• Most NHS Trusts will have links with one of the 4 awarding organisations already
• Allows more local decision making/oversight into the qualification
• NDESP oversite group to ensure quality with AO
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9. Awarding centres
• Local centres that administrate and oversee the qualification
• They issue the qualification
• Provide quality assurance of how the qualification is delivered locally
• Local programmes must register with one of the awarding centres to
provide the qualification
• An number of centres will be available
• You can become an awarding centre yourself if you want to
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10. Reaccreditation
• New process from April 2016
• Two sections:
• Knowledge assessment
• Scanning assessment
• Still every two years, 20-28 month window to undertake
• University of Salford to remain the providers
• Why change it?
• Incidents
• More rigorous and meaningful process
• Techs not maintaining knowledge of core principles and physics
• Became apparent during reaccreditation
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11. KnowledgeAssessment
• Undertake two eLearning modules on the CPD website
• Principles of NAAASP and AAA treatment
• Principles of Ultrasound
• Pass the two associated exams
• Mirrors the content of the new qualification
• Ensures that technicians retain the core fundamental knowledge required to
scan in NAAASP
• Undertaken and passed within the previous 6 months
• Cannot undertake scanning assessment before completing the eLearning
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12. ScanningAssessment
• Half day session at University of Salford
• Successfully complete 2 scans of men with aneurysms to NAAASP
standards
• Funded by NAAASP (expenses funded locally)
• 12 sessions/year (6 days AM or PM)
• Technicians must pass both scans
• Undertake a recovery portfolio if unsuccessful
• Not suspended from screening
• All scans to be QA’d by programme locally
• 10 hours of supervised learning
• 20 scans wit CST
• 6 weeks before you can register to retake
• Local programme to decide if the tech should continue to screen
• Potential incident if technician fails, involve QA teams
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14. Websites and communications
• Blog and emails
•Primary method of communication
• Helpdesk
•Send all queries
•Log queries
• Websites
•Gov.uk, NHS choices, CPD
•Extranet
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15. • GOV.uk
• All professional related information
• Policy, procedures, standards
• All screening programmes and QA
• NHS choices
• All patient centred information
• Easy to read and understand
• accessible
• CPD website
• All education, training and eLearning
• Updates regarding the new qualification
• Generic eLearning modules/QA/induction
• Extranet
• Legacy site
• Has all old content, not updated
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16. Next steps
• Programmes to start looking at which awarding organisation to register with
• Contact hem to determine if they have a centre near by
• Register CST’s to undertake the assessor qualification
• If requiring reaccreditation initiate the starting of the eLearning
• Register for the Salford course once completed
• Do not register for the course until completed the eLearning (spot checks
will be undertaken)
• Only need to register with awarding centre once you know you are going to
have a new member of staff…..don’t rush!!
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