New From CPD Online

The e-learning resource for mental health professionals

CPD Online offers a range of learning modules and podcasts that provide a flexible, interactive way of keeping up to date with progress in mental health. During the pandemic, there will be no limit on eLearning that can be counted for CPD; it will be possible for ALL 50 CREDITS to be obtained in this way. Access to the modules and podcasts is through annual subscription, but we also offer a series of free publications for you to trial first.

For more information, visit the CPD Online website: https://elearning.rcpsych.ac.uk

Recent modules and podcasts

Module Station writing for the MRCPsych CASC exam

The RCPsych's Examinations team is always looking for volunteers to author stations for the MRCPsych Clinical Assessment of Skills and Competencies (CASC) exam, which is part of RCPsych's entrance exam, an internationally respected qualification. Although the exam is generally considered to be a reliable test of skills and competencies, there remains controversy as to its validity for testing the more complex understanding of psychiatric practice at a senior level. With this in mind, the RCPsych needs more of its members to write high-quality CASC stations that maintain the reliability of the exam, while increasing its validity. We hope that this module will help you understand the principles (and pitfalls) of writing CASC stations in order to enable you to confidently submit a station of your own. CPD credits: 1

Module Prevent strategy: safeguarding freedom of expression and preventing stigma

When carrying out their Prevent duty, psychiatrists may find themselves in situations where their ethical commitment to freedom of expression and wish to avoid perpetuating social stigma are challenged by, or appear in conflict with, this duty. The RCPsych's Professional Practice and Ethics Committee offers guidance on ethical considerations arising from the Government's counter-terrorism strategy in Position Statement PS04/16S. This includes specific guidance on the risk of perpetuating stigma for people with ‘mental illness’, ‘certain communities’, and those who ‘dissent against authority’. This module should enable participants to learn and practise how to critically evaluate the risk of reducing freedom of expression and perpetuating stigma, whilst upholding this statutory duty. CPD credits: 1

Podcast What is life? Bridging the disciplines to solve unanswered questions

For generations, scientists have struggled to make sense of the fundamental question: ‘what is life?’. Can life be explained by known physics and chemistry, or do we need something fundamentally new? In this podcast, Dr Raj Persaud discusses these thought-provoking questions with renowned physicist Professor Paul Davies – author of the 2019 book ‘The Demon in the Machine’. CPD credits: 0.5

Module Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS): a cutting-edge neuropsychiatric therapy

Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) is an innovative, non-invasive and well-tolerated therapy that may be used as a treatment option for a variety of neuropsychiatric disorders. A large number of studies spanning more than 30 years have shown it to be a powerful neuroscience tool for diagnostic and therapeutic purposes. This module aims to provide a brief introduction of rTMS therapy and its use in neuropsychiatry. CPD credits: 1.5 Other recently published CPD Online podcasts (each worth 0.5 CPD credits and freely accessible) include: • Are you ignorant about the pandemic? • Lost in thought: can intellect save you in a pandemic? • The psychology behind mathematical modelling of epidemics • Managing alcohol withdrawal in acute in-patient psychiatry • Coping with the ‘pointless suffering’ of COVID-19 • Re-reading Camus's ‘The Plague’ in pandemic times • Obedience to authority – lessons from Milgram applied to COVID-19 • Mental Health Tribunals: response to the COVID-19 emergency • How do we lead effectively through the COVID-19 pandemic? • Working with patients remotely • Ethical considerations arising from COVID-19 • COVID-19: Isolation and loneliness – is there a ‘social cure’? • Psychosocial response to epidemics – lessons from Ebola applied to COVID-19 • Surviving the trauma: post-traumatic stress disorder in relation to COVID-19 • The psychology of the virus ‘super-spreader’ • The psychology of coping with quarantine • The psychology and psychiatry of pandemics.