Learning log requirements
- 36 Clinical Case Reviews are required each training year (36 in ST1, 36 in ST2 and 36 in ST3). This is three Clinical Case Reviews per month on average (pro rata for those who are Less Than Full Time (LTFT)). Clinical Case Reviews must be about real patients that the GP registrar has personally seen.
- A Placement-Planning meeting should be arranged and documented as a Learning Log entry at the start of each new post.
- At least 1 Learning Event Analysis should be complete in each Training Year (ST1, ST2 and ST3).
- There should be at least one log entry which addresses each capability in each six-month review period.
The requirements for CEPS, Quality Improvement Activity, and Prescribing are covered on the specific pages for these logs.
For the majority of log entries, GP registrars should suggest links to the relevant Clinical Experience Groups and capabilities, with justification provided for the selection of specific capabilities in certain cases.
Generally, all log entries should show:
- reflective practice, a core component of professionalism and ongoing learning as required by the GMC.
- some evidence of critical thinking and analysis, describing thought processes
- some self-awareness demonstrating openness and honesty about performance and some consideration of feelings generated
- some evidence of learning, appropriately describing what needs to be learned, why and how
- appropriate links to the curriculum capabilities.
Types of learning log
Templates and examples of each Learning log type can be found here:
Clinical case reviews
36 Clinical case reviews are required each training year (36 in ST1, 36 in ST2 and 36 in ST3).
Clinical Case Reviews must be about real patients that the GP registrar has personally seen, and should be about a clinical learning experience. Other logs that don’t demonstrated clinical learning, or are not about patients that the GP registrar has personally seen, should be recorded in the other learning log formats available, such as Supporting Documentation.
CCRs should account for the majority of a GP registrar’s learning logs and provide the best opportunities for links to the Capabilities and Clinical Experience Groups. The clinical learning from acute, chronic, emergency or unscheduled care experiences is recorded here. There is now the option within the Clinical Case Review to document learning in a variety of settings (both in and out of standard GP hours) in addition to the type of consultation.
The process for writing a CCR is as follows:
- Briefly describe case
- Reflect on what needs to be maintained, improved, or stopped.
When reflecting, consider what went well – and why – and also what didn’t go well – and why. This reflection should include actions required in response to emotional needs as well as clinical and educational actions - ‘how did it make you feel?’.
The supervisor should comment on each capability linked. Whenever the supervisor disagrees with a suggested Capability or Clinical Experience Group link, their explanation should appear in the comments section.
It is particularly important to document learning in Unscheduled Urgent Care/ OOH care within Clinical Case Reviews, as this will provide evidence of understanding of working in this setting. It is not mandatory that a Clinical Case Review is completed for each Unscheduled / OOH care session undertaken but documentation of any attendance in this setting should be entered in the ‘supporting documentation’ section of the log.
Placement planning meetings
Trainees must arrange and document a Placement Planning Meeting at the start of each new post. This allows for a record of placement planning meetings which are now mandatory. It links to Working with colleagues and in teams, Fitness to practice, and Organisation, management, and learning.
A placement planning meeting log entry should be completed by the trainee after a meeting has taken place with the named Clinical Supervisor (and where relevant the Educational Supervisor) at the beginning of each placement. During the meeting with the Supervisor, educational objectives for the following attachment should be set in addition to a discussion to identify the specific opportunities that are relevant to primary care within the placement.
Please see the RCGP super condensed curriculum which can be further expanded to help guide discussions.
Learning Event Analysis (LEA) and Significant Event Analysis (SEA)
At least 1 Learning Event Analysis (or Significant Event Analysis) should be complete in each Training Year (ST1, ST2 and ST3) and documented in the learning log.
A Learning Event Analysis is an analysis of an event that did not reach the GMC threshold for harm but presented an opportunity for learning. This might include events which may not have a serious outcome but highlight issues which could have been handled with greater clinical effectiveness and from which lessons can be learnt.
If an event did reach the GMC threshold for harm, it must be documented as a Significant Event Analysis. Significant events must be reflected on.
An entry under a Learning Event Analysis would normally involve sharing information within the team and demonstrating learning. Areas for further learning and development should be included in the Personal Development Plan (PDP).
Leadership, management and professionalism
This log entry enables appropriate documentation of experiences and reflection on Leadership, management and professionalism. Activities such as chairing a meeting, giving a presentation, or a ‘Fresh Pair of Eyes’ exercise can be documented here.
Academic activities
The Academic Activity log is designed to be used by trainees in an academic post.
Reflection on feedback
This log entry should be used to reflect on the following feedback: colleagues (MSF), patients (PSQ) and leadership (leadership MSF). It can also be used to document reflections on the ESR, CSR, educator notes and examination results.
Supporting documentation - continuous professional development (CPD) evidence
This section is for recording and reflecting on evidence gathered from clinical reviews or the Personal Development Plan (PDP). It should include any examples that show skills or capabilities demonstrated outside of clinical cases. It can also be used to log CPD activities, such as reading or learning from events, along with brief reflections.
Basic life support, safeguarding training, and out-of-hours work should be recorded here.
Other learning—like eLearning, tutorials, courses, certificates, lectures, and reading—can be logged in the CPD section. However, it's important to note that simply recording reading or completing an online course does not count as a Workplace-based learning activity.
Keeping this separate from clinical reflections helps maintain a clear distinction between Workplace-Based Assessments (WPBA) and the appraisal parts of the GP trainee Portfolio.
Unscheduled urgent care (UUC) / Out of hours (OOH)
All GP registrars need to get experience in UUC/ OOH and evidence of attendance at these sessions needs to be included in the supporting documentation section.
Some areas of the UK have a contractual requirement for the number of hours/sessions undertaken in the UUC / OOH setting to be documented. In this case a summary table should be completed and uploaded as a separate ‘supporting documentation’ entry before the final ARCP.
Capabilities and clinical experience groups
Most learning logs need to be linked to the 13 GP Capabilities along with justifying why the actions and approach taken link to the capability suggested.
Additionally, Learning Logs should be linked to the Clinical Experience Groups. Up to two Clinical Experience Groups can be linked to each learning log. Supervisors are encouraged to review the links and amend/remove any inappropriate links.
The Clinical experience groups are:
- Infants, children, and young people (under the age of 19 years)
- Gender, reproductive and sexual health (including women’s, men’s, LGBTQ, gynae and breast)
- People with long-term conditions including cancer, multi-morbidity, and disability
- Older adults including frailty and/or people at end of life
- Mental health (including addiction, alcohol, and substance misuse)
- Urgent and unscheduled care (including Out of hours)
- People with health disadvantage and vulnerabilities (including veterans, mental capacity difficulties, safeguarding and those with communication difficulties/disability)
- Population Health and health promotion (including people with non-acute and/or non-chronic health problems)
- Clinical problems not linked to a specific clinical experience group
Reflection
Reflection is an important part of professional practice. By reflecting, doctors assess how well they are performing, as well as identifying their learning needs and enabling improvements to be made to their practice. Reflective learning log entries should demonstrate thoughtful engagement with professional experiences, moving beyond simple description. When reflecting within a learning log entry, it is important to consider the following areas:
1. Depth of information: Entries should not consist solely of lists of events or certificates. Instead, context and meaning should be provided. A range of sources, such as clinical guidelines, feedback, or patient interactions should be used to clarify thoughts and feelings. In high-quality reflections, these sources are integrated to support well-developed analysis and to justify behavioural or cognitive changes.
2. Critical thinking and analysis: Reflection should include analysis, not just a recounting of events. Thought processes, perceptions, and emotions should be examined. Decision-making should be described, and performance should be considered in relation to the expectations of general practice. Insight and a willingness to question and improve practice are hallmarks of excellent reflection.
3. Self-awareness: Openness and honesty about performance should be demonstrated. Strengths and areas for improvement should be acknowledged, along with the emotional impact of the experience. In more advanced reflections, the perspectives and feelings of others, such as patients or colleagues, are also considered.
4. Evidence of learning: Learning outcomes should be clearly articulated. What has been learned, why it is important, and how it will be addressed should be specified. In stronger reflections, learning needs are critically assessed, prioritised, and accompanied by a plan for future development.
5. Professionalism and anonymity: All entries must be anonymised, avoiding any identifiable information about patients, colleagues, or locations. A respectful and professional tone should be maintained throughout.
Two documents have been produced jointly by the Academy of Medical Royal Colleges (AoMRC), Conference of Postgraduate Medical Deans (COPMeD), General Medical Council (GMC) and the Medical Schools Council (MSC).
- The reflective practitioner guidance (external PDF)
- Summary version of the reflective practitioner guidance (external PDF)
The guidance was developed following requests for clearer information on what is meant by reflection, and how those in training and engaging in revalidation should reflect as part of their practice. It has been developed with input across the UK and is intended for use across the UK.
The guidance outlines the importance of reflection for personal development and learning. It highlights how reflection can help doctors and medical students to maintain and improve their professional practice and drive improvements in patient safety.
It emphasises ten key elements of being a reflective practitioner, including:
- how reflection is personal; that there is no one way to reflect.
- reflective notes don’t need to capture the full details of an experience but should focus on learning outcomes and future plans.
This work, which is a joint effort by all four organisations to provide clearer advice in this area, is part of a wider commitment to drive an open and honest learning culture. We will explore what other guidance or information could be developed to provide more practical support.
The documents are available on the COPMeD website, along with the Academy and COPMeD Reflective Practice Toolkit.
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