Training

HPC registration

scientist working at the laboratory Since 2003, in order to work using the protected title Clinical Scientist you must be registered with the Health Professions Council (HPC). The Association of Clinical Scientists (ACS) currently acts as the validation organisation to assess and certificate applicants for HPC registration as Clinical Scientists. The ACS is an umbrella organisation which assesses all members of the ACB and 14 other branches of Clinical Science and other healthcare professions, including clinical embryology, blood transfusion, haematology and molecular genetics.

To register with the HPC candidates need to submit a portfolio of evidence to the ACS to support competency in specific areas of their profession and undertake a viva voce examination. Registration can be applied for after 4 years of training to achieve this competency (Route 1) by completing the 3-year training scheme managed by the ACB Microbiology Professional Committee (MPC) (formerly known as Grade A training) or after 6 years of academic and vocational training (Route 2). Successful candidates will gain a Certificate of Attainment from the ACS, a process which is subsidised if you are a member of the ACB. This Certificate of Attainment is presented to the HPC, after which candidates are HPC-registered (formerly known as "state registration"). HPC registration needs to be renewed every 2 years to ensure that registrants remain fit to practise.

The ACS website is a critical source of information for HPC trainees, including example portfolios, reports on numbers of applications (both successful and unsuccessful) and which of the competences cause failure of applications. These documents do get updated periodically, so check the website for the latest updates. Trainees should also check the current registration and renewal requirements on the HPC website, where you can also check whether a person is registered on-line using HPC Check.

New HPC standards of proficiency and conduct

The new HPC standards of proficiency (SoPs) are the competencies which trainees need to meet in order to become HPC-registered. These competencies are reviewed and defined for Clinical Scientists by the ACS, who have now produced an updated generic competencies document which is available on the ACS website. This document forms Appendix 1 of your portfolio of evidence when applying for the Certificate of Attainment, and all submissions made to the ACS after 1^st January 2011 should use this updated Appendix 1 document. The ACS is currently reviewing the modality-specific competencies, which demonstrate how competencies in each area of Clinical Science map to the HPC SoPs. As the Professional Body for Clinical Microbiologists, the ACB MPC is working on the Clinical Microbiology competencies to ensure that the mapping is correct and that all SoPs are covered. You can use the current Clinical Microbiology-specific competencies as guidance on how to demonstrate competency in the modality of microbiology, but please ensure that all of the revised generic competencies are covered in your portfolio.

The HPC has also produced a new document entitled "Guidance on conduct and ethics for students". This guidance gives students and educators in healthcare education programmes information on the HPC’s standards of conduct and ethics, which apply equally to those who are HPC-registered and those applying for registration. Students include anyone studying to be a member of a HPC-regulated profession and healthcare scientist trainees, and educators include academic staff teaching students on a HPC-approved programme and placement supervisors. If you wish to become HPC-registered please bear these standards in mind during your training and education.

The current training programme for Clinical Microbiologists

At present, the ACB MPC provides training schemes, supports qualifications and provides approved standards and curricula for training as a Clinical Microbiologist. For registration with the HPC as a Clinical Scientist by the 4-year route (Route 1), a 3-year formal practical training course (formerly known as Grade A training) is delivered in dedicated posts in the NHS. The training manual and standards to be followed are available on the Members only page.

The ACB MPC also approves particular MSc courses which should be undertaken as part of its Grade A training programme. These courses have been assessed by the ACB MPC (or former ACM) as containing sufficient relevant content to count towards HPC registration as a Clinical Microbiologist. Full details of these MSc courses can be found on the Members only page.

There is no official training scheme for registration with the HPC as a Clinical Scientist by the 6-year route (Route 2), and training is received "on-the-job". However, applicants must still meet the same requirements and competencies as those applying via Route 1, and must submit a portfolio of evidence to the ACS. If you require advice on HPC registration via Route 2 please contact the ACB using the details on the Home page, who will forward your request to the appropriate MPC member.

STP – the new training programme for Clinical Microbiologists

In November 2010 a new programme for training Clinical Scientists was introduced as part of the implementation of Modernising Scientific Careers called the Scientist Training Programme (STP). Initially the STP will run alongside the current Clinical Scientist training programmes. The first batch of STP trainees were recruited in March 2011, to commence their training in September/October. Once training is completed these scientists (also known as Healthcare Scientists) will no longer be assessed for registration with the HPC using criteria produced by the ACS, but instead a new Academy of Healthcare Science (AHCS) was formed in March 2011 to fulfill the Education and Training Board function. The ACB MPC Education Chairs, along with the whole ACB Education Committee, are currently working very hard with the fledgling AHCS to ensure that training curricula are set up correctly for the STP so that these new trainees will eventually emerge as fully developed Clinical Scientists. Further information on the STP is available on the NHS Careers website.

New curricula have been release for the workplace-based training part of the STP and for the MSc that will be studied during the training programme, and are available on the Members only page. For more information on what a HCS is and training and career progression after the STP please see the Professional Updates page.

Training assessment – a new process

Due to new requirements for HPC registration from the ACS, and in line with current ACB policy, the ACB MG have started conducting annual assessments of trainee CSs in their third year of training to coincide with award of the ACS Certificate of Attainment. From May 2011, everyone submitting their training manual to the ACS should also have had a training assessment. The ACB MPC are aiming to ensure that all trainees in their third and fourth years of training have been assessed by April 2012. However, all ACB MG trainees should be assessed annually.

A letter giving more detail on the training assessment process, an assessment protocol and a training complaints procedure can all be downloaded from the Members only page.

How to create trainee Clinical Scientist posts

As many of us are aware, an aging population in the Clinical Scientist workforce and lack of trainee posts mean that there will soon be a real shortage of skilled Clinical Scientists. The new training and career structures developed under Modernising Scientific Careers will attempt to address this but will take time until they are fully operational and able to do so. New trainee posts need to be urgently created, but the problem is often a lack of awareness or understanding of how to do this. The former ACB MPC Chair, Professor Paul Klapper, has written a letter to all Clinical Scientists explaining how to create a post, whom to approach and the support that is available.

Professor Klapper’s letter references a "toolkit" provided by the Royal College of Pathologists. This toolkit provides information and a framework for producing a case for creation of a trainee post. It is hoped that senior Clinical Microbiologists can use this information to create new training posts in their areas and help prevent a major skills shortage in our profession in the future.

ACB MG Training Days

Did you know that the ACB MPC holds annual Training Days, usually in February or March, for both HPC registration (Grade A) and Higher Specialist trainees (HSTs) and their trainers? For trainees it is your opportunity to get together with the ACB MPC Education Chairs and Trainee Representatives and ask those important questions about HPC registration or getting your FRCPath, discuss issues and learn more about upcoming changes in the requirements, and for trainers it is a chance to ensure you are doing all you can to help your trainees achieve success. Invited speakers often give specific talks to subgroups of Grade A’s, HSTs or trainers, and of course there are always opportunities to network and share experiences. The ACB MPC are always willing to organise additional events as required for our trainees, so please feel free to contact the Education Chairs using the details on the Home page.

Reports and presentations from previous Training Days and extra training events, such as those for HSTs and Route 2 HPC trainees, can be downloaded from the Members only page.

Infectious Disease Research Network Student Placement Programme

This scheme, run by the IDRN, was successful last year and so will be repeated this year. The IDRN acts as a free match-making facility between talented and committed students and institutions in the United Kingdom, by allocating volunteers to infection-related research projects. Researchers looking for extra help on a study, with projects ranging from literature reviews to database work to basic laboratory skills, send details to the IDRN. At the same time, students looking for a work placement in a research institution register their interests and requirements. The IDRN then match the project to the student!

For more information and to register your interest see the IDRN website.