Appraisal for consultants

Abstract 

Appraisal for consultants in the National Health Service is compulsory and will be a key component of revalidation. It is acknowledged that the major difficulties confronting paediatricians are the lack of meaningful outcome data for peer comparison, and pressure of work making collection and analysis of all relevant data difficult. Collecting material for the portfolio throughout the year should be buttressed by advice from and collaboration with colleagues, your secretary being ever watchful for useful stuff and, importantly, a supportive information technology department. The key questions to be answered with the aid of your portfolio are:

Finding a good appraiser whom you respect and trust is pivotal to the process, which must remain constructive at all times. Objective setting is undervalued but probably crucial. The first few years are likely to be formative, but ultimately consultants should strive to ensure that appraisal benefits both them and, indirectly, their patients.

Keywords:  appraisal, consultant, National Health Service