Professional Key Skills

Enhance your approach to patient care and develop the key skills needed in modern practice. Designed exclusively for qualified vet and vet nurse members, the FREE Professional Key Skills course is a self-paced, online programme supported by a broad range of BSAVA resources, journals, and audio content.

When taken alongside the BSAVAs Postgraduate Certificates, this course meets the requirements for inclusion on the RCVS Advanced Practitioners list.

With no time limit to complete the course, this flexible study option allows you to build the full suite of key skills or simply complete focused CPD on any of the six topics included.

Course content

The course consists of six modules:

Thinking and decision-making processes
Emergency care
Protection of animal and human health
Animal welfare and professional conduct
Quality and safety of service
Advanced professional and personal development

Each of the six modules draws on resources from the BSAVA practice standards pack, articles published in the Journal of Small Animal Practice, Congress MP3s and specific course notes, along with links to other relevant literature and websites. A written task, which must be uploaded, completes each module; the quality of this work is not assessed.

Upon completion of your study, you can request a certificate of participation for completed modules.

This CPD is only available to BSAVA qualified vet and vet nurse members. if you are not a member and would like to take advantage of all the other BSAVA member benefits, please join today.

Everything you need to know

How long does it take

Each module is expected to involve about 20 hours’ CPD, but candidates can progress at their own pace as there is no time limit for the completion of the course.

Who is the course for?

The course is available free of charge to qualified vets or vet nurses who are BSAVA members. To enrol, log into the BSAVA website, and a course password will be revealed below so you can access the course.

Inclusion on the RCVS Advanced Practitioners list

The course provides the evidence needed to demonstrate the mastery of key skills required for inclusion on the RCVS Advanced Practitioners list, alongside a relevant postgraduate certificate (awarded prior to 2017).

Those holding an eligible qualification awarded prior to 2017 that does not explicitly include the professional key skills elements included in the RCVS Certificate of Advanced Veterinary Practice, will have to undertake relevant CPD or a professional development module, such as is now being offered by BSAVA.

How to enrol

If you are a qualified vet or vet nurse and a BSAVA member, you can enrol on the Professional Key Skills CPD. All you have to do is log into the BSAVA website, and a course password will be revealed below so you can access the course.

Queries or questions?

If you have any queries regarding the programme or wish to request a certificate of participation for any studies already completed, please email courses@bsava.com.