Continuing Professional Development (CPD)

CPD is an approach to lifelong learning. The Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE) defines CPD as a self-directed, ongoing, systematic and outcomes-focused approach applied into practice. It involves active participation in formal and informal learning activities that assist individuals in developing and maintaining continuing competence, enhancing their professional practice, and supporting their career goals.

Learners are encouraged and supported to develop and implement their own self-directed CPD Cycle, including

• Reflecting on one's practice and identifying learning gaps,
• Planning their approach to fill those gaps,
• Learning what they planned, then
• Applying and Evaluating what they learn while maintaining a
• Record and Review process documenting a completed CPD Cycle. 

A complete CPD Cycle provides up to 10 CPD/CPE credits and can help pharmacists meet the Board of Pharmacy Specialties (BPS) recertification CPD requirement. UT Austin's CPD Retreat format provides a structure for completing the cycle.

Continuing Pharmacy Education (CPE) traditionally focuses on passive learning with pre-approved content. Completing CPE usually involves attending lectures, webinars or reading pre-determined materials.

Continuing Professional Development (CPD) emphasizes a learner-driven approach. With CPD, pharmacists engage in learning activities relevant to their practice needs and professional goals. CPD includes a broader range of activities, such as:

• Self-directed learning: Reading articles, conducting research, attending conferences and engaging in online courses.
• Mentorship and coaching: Learning from experienced colleagues, seeking guidance from mentors and participating in peer-to-peer learning activities.
• Quality improvement projects: Implementing and evaluating practice changes within their workplace.
• Research and scholarly activity: Conducting research projects, publishing articles and presenting at professional meetings.

Our approach to CPD is to provide pharmacists with structured "retreats" to facilitate their success in self-directed learning.

CPD Retreats aim to bring together pharmacy leaders and rising stars to exercise strategic planning techniques, share experiences in executing visions, and discover strategies for leading teams in the ever-changing health care landscape.

The retreats offer up to 10 hours of CPE and CPD credit, which meet the new BPS CPD requirements for recertification.

Our CPD Retreats are formatted to align with ACPE's CPD components through a coaching facilitation process. This framework empowers pharmacists to develop a foundation for their self-directed learning plans for the upcoming year and allows for the proper documentation to earn credit. 

• Retreats start with online reflections, which are completed before a live event.
• Pharmacists will participate in planning and learning sessions during the live program to lay out their continuing professional development approach.
• After the event, pharmacists can implement their plans and return to our Learning Management System (LMS) to complete six-month and one-year apply and evaluate sessions.
• Learners complete online surveys to record their CPD work, and the survey documents serve to meet the record and review requirements.
• The retreats can offer up to 10 hours of CPE and CPD credit, which can also meet the new BPS CPD requirements for recertification.

*Credit for CPD retreats and programs is awarded only upon the individual participant's completion and documentation of each phase of the CPD cycle. To receive CE credits, learners must complete all surveys and reflections and execute their individualized learning plans and activities within the specified timeframe.

Our CPD Retreats help board-certified pharmacists fulfill the BPS recertification requirement of an annual reflection and plan and offer activities that can be self-reported to satisfy the two-unit per year minimum. These retreats help pharmacists establish an infrastructure that supports continuous self-directed learning and provides a documentation process that pharmacists can use to meet BPS recertification requirements.*

*To receive CE credits, learners must complete all surveys and reflections and execute their individualized learning plans and activities within the specified timeframe.

While we host our own CPD Retreats, we also work with organizations to create custom retreats! The programs can be customized to focus on specific topics or to help facilitate organizational needs. Our objective is to provide professional development and to help implement the applicable and measurable outcomes that match your group's goals.

Contact Glen Baumgart, Ph.D., at gbaumgart@austin.utexas.edu, to discuss how we can create a custom CPD Retreat for your team. 

We're excited that you're interested in a CPD Retreat! We are still planning retreats for 2025, but when they open, you will be able to find an upcoming retreat that matches your professional development goals and learn more information on this page. 

Looking for a customized retreat for your organization? Contact Glen Baumgart, Ph.D., at gbaumgart@austin.utexas.edu to get started.