Planning Your CPD for the 2025/2026 Year

Why the planning phase is the most important step in the CPD cycle - and how to do it well.

When it comes to continuing professional development (CPD), most people focus on the hours. But those who get the most value from their learning? They start with a plan.

The CPD cycle consists of four phases: planning, learning, documenting, and reflecting. The planning phase is where everything starts, and how you plan will shape the learning outcomes, impact, and compliance of your CPD for the year.

Why Planning Matters

Remember the saying:

“Proper planning prevents poor performance.”

The same absolutely applies to CPD.

Planning your CPD is essential because it:

• Leads to positive learning outcomes
• Supports evidence-based changes to practice
• Helps you make the most of your time and effort
• Keeps you aligned with registration standards

As the NMBA CPD Guidelines (2016) state:

“You will get the most benefit from your CPD activities by planning your learning goals and the activities to meet these goals, completing your CPD and then recording reflections on your learning.”

What Does Planning Involve?

The planning phase involves several steps:

• Self-reflection: What knowledge, skills or confidence gaps exist in your current practice?
  
• Needs assessment: What has changed in your work, team, patients or scope? Are you seeing new risks, products, policies or even patients in your practice?
  
• Goal setting: Define learning goals based on these identified needs.
  
• Activity selection: Choose activities that are relevant, accessible, and evidence-based - and meet your learning style and preferences.
  
• Validation: Check that your goals and activities align with your context of practice.

What is a Context of Practice?

Your context of practice is everything that defines how, where, and with whom you work. This includes:

• Your setting (e.g. acute care, aged care, education, research)
• Location (urban, rural, remote)
• The population you work with
• The focus of your work (clinical care, leadership, education, etc.)
• The resources and support available to you

Your CPD must always align with your current (or anticipated) context of practice. This means that if you’re planning to change jobs or move into a new speciality, you can tailor your CPD to help you prepare

.

Specific Planning Activities

To create a quality learning plan for your CPD each year, we encourage you to undertake the following activities in the planning phase:

• A needs analysis or gap assessment (see below for some key questions you can reflect on)
• Set clear learning goals
• A shortlist of suitable CPD activities (from reputable providers)
• A timeline to prioritise and space your learning

Don’t forget to write this into your CPD Portfolio - you’ll need to show evidence of planning if audited.

Practical Considerations

Once you’ve identified your learning needs and goals, there are a few important practical steps to follow to ensure your CPD plan is effective and audit-ready.

• You can’t count planning time towards your CPD hours.
• But planning is expected as part of the CPD process.
• Your learning plan must be documented.
• You are responsible for your own planning.
• Feedback from colleagues, performance reviews, or even patient outcomes can help guide you.

Tip: If you're not sure what CPD to focus on, discuss your plan with a manager, mentor, educator, or trusted peer. Sometimes, others see our gaps more clearly than we do.

Planning Prompts: What, Why, How, When?

The following prompts can assist with the self-reflection required during a needs assessment, helping you identify which areas of your practice may benefit from focused learning.

	Prompt
What	What are my learning needs or goals?
	What’s changed in my practice, team, or patients?
	What new knowledge do I want to build? Or existing areas do I want to reinforce?
	What is new, high-risk or something I am lacking confidence in in my practice?
	What incidents or near-miss events have I seen or heard about that may be relevant to my practice?
Why	Why is this learning important now?
	Is my gap a gap in knowledge, skill, or confidence?
	Why do I need to prioritise this learning?
How	How will I close this gap?
	Is undertaking CPD the most appropriate format to close or narrow this professional practice gap?
	How do I like to learn? What learning format works best for me?
	Which activities or providers are best suited?
When	When will I complete this learning?
	Am I spacing it out over the year?
	Have I planned for a mid-year review to ensure I am staying on track?

Tip: Your learning needs may evolve or change during the year, so revisit your learning plan regularly.
For example:

• After feedback or reviews.
• After a significant change in your role or scope.
• At the end of the CPD year, to prepare for the next.

Set Yourself Up for Success

Planning your CPD isn’t just admin. It’s the foundation for meaningful learning and implementing real change in your professional practice.

A strong learning plan will help you:

• Stay compliant with the registration standard on CPD.
• Make the most of your CPD.
• Avoid wasting time on activities that don’t relate to your professional practice.
• Build clear goals for you to accomplish in your career.

Take the time to plan now. Your patients and your future self will thank you!

Want to plan and track your CPD on the go? Download the Ausmed CPD App to make it easy to plan, do, document, and reflect on your CPD!