A Complete RCOT & HCPC Ready Occupational Therapy CPD Portfolio Examples From Start to Finish

What does a truly great CPD portfolio look like in practice? Creating an RCOT & HCPC-ready CPD portfolio is a crucial step for occupational therapists seeking to maintain their professional standing and demonstrate compliance. But it’s more than just a folder of certificates; it’s the story of your professional journey, your challenges, and your growth.

This comprehensive guide demonstrates a real-world OT CPD portfolio example, from start to finish, portraying one example of each variety of CPD activity that there’s a structured worksheet for in the HandyCPD Portfolio and that created using the AI CPD Builder.

We’ll follow an OT at working in Hand Therapy showing a full CPD portfolio example.

✍️ My Professional CPD Profile 📖

Main Responsibilities

• Conduct specialist upper limb assessments, including detailed analysis of functional deficits, sensory changes, oedema, scar tissue, and range of motion limitations.
• Design and implement bespoke rehabilitation programmes for individuals recovering from trauma, surgery, or chronic conditions affecting hand and upper limb function.
• Fabricate, adapt, and monitor custom thermoplastic splints for post-operative support, functional positioning, and contracture management.
• Liaise closely with consultants, GPs, and multidisciplinary teams to ensure timely intervention and continuity of care in both inpatient and outpatient pathways.
• Maintain accurate, contemporaneous records, contribute to discharge planning, and support timely referrals for community follow-up.
• Supervise and support junior therapists and students, fostering evidence-based practice and reflective learning in hand therapy.

Specialist Areas

• Post-operative rehabilitation following tendon repairs, nerve decompression, and fracture fixation.
• Complex splinting techniques for trauma, neurological, and rheumatological conditions.
• Management of chronic pain conditions such as CRPS (Complex Regional Pain Syndrome).
• Upper limb sensory re-education and desensitisation strategies.
• Collaborative service development for elective orthopaedic and plastics hand clinics.

Key Collaborators

• Hand surgeons, plastic and orthopaedic consultants involved in trauma and elective care.
• Physiotherapists specialising in musculoskeletal and neurorehabilitation.
• Occupational therapy assistants providing continuity in splint checks and rehab sessions.
• Nursing staff on trauma, plastics, and orthopaedic wards for post-operative care and discharge planning.
• Administrative teams managing hand clinic appointments, follow-ups, and patient pathways.

Learning Activity Reflection – 📝 “Advances in Scar Management for Hand Therapy” 📖

Date: 2025-09-18
Source/Provider/Producer: BAHT (British Association of Hand Therapists) Webinar
Time spent: 2 hours

📌 Key Learning Points

• Updated scar assessment protocols: Introduction of modified Vancouver Scar Scale for OT practice.
• Evidence for silicone gel use: Review of current RCTs showing effectiveness for hypertrophic scarring.
• Massage techniques: Guidance on timing and pressure gradients post-injury and surgery.
• Desensitisation strategies: Integrating graded exposure tools with tactile re-education.
• Patient adherence: Exploring communication techniques that improve compliance with home regimens.

🤔 Reflective Summary

What?

This was a live online seminar delivered by a senior BAHT educator, covering the latest research and practical strategies for managing problematic scarring in hand therapy. It included case studies and visual demonstrations of techniques.

So What?

This was highly relevant as I regularly see patients post-surgery or following hand trauma with challenging scar presentations that affect mobility and sensation. I realised I was underutilising evidence-based silicone gel options and my current desensitisation strategies were limited. The content helped me identify gaps in my current toolkit and gave me clearer clinical reasoning for choosing certain approaches.

Now What?

I plan to review my current hand therapy protocols to ensure we’re using silicone gel and massage techniques in line with evidence. I’ve already created a new laminated home advice sheet based on what I learned, and plan to run a short CPD huddle next week to share findings with the rest of the team.

---

🧠 Learning Outcomes Achieved

• Updated knowledge of scar evaluation and management tools.
• Practical understanding of desensitisation methods post-trauma.
• Increased confidence in clinical reasoning when selecting scar interventions.
• Improved ability to educate patients for better treatment adherence.

📈 Relevance to Practice

Scar management is a routine part of my caseload, especially for patients with crush injuries or tendon repairs. Applying updated, evidence-based techniques will directly improve outcomes by reducing functional restriction, pain, and cosmetic concerns.

🧩 Type of Learning Activity

• Work-based Learning
• Professional Activity
• Formal / Educational
• Self-directed Learning
• Other (Please specify):

🏛️ Professional Standards Mapping

• Standard 1: Practise safely and effectively within their scope of practice
  This is met through updating my clinical skills and applying best practice in scar management to improve patient safety and outcomes.
• Standard 8: Communicate effectively
  I demonstrated this by translating complex techniques into a new patient information leaflet and planning to deliver a mini CPD session for colleagues.
• Standard 14: Draw on knowledge and skills to inform practice
  This activity supports my commitment to applying new evidence to enhance my routine clinical decision-making in scar rehabilitation.

📝 Reflective Practice on an Event 📖

Date: 2025-09-18
Reflective practice title / summary: Managing Patient Anxiety During Scar Massage Post-Hand Surgery

🤔 Description (What happened?)

I worked with a patient recovering from flexor tendon repair who exhibited significant anxiety and pain anticipation during early-stage scar massage. The patient clenched their fist involuntarily whenever I approached the area, leading to poor engagement and limited progress. Although I paused frequently and offered reassurance, the session remained tense and clinically ineffective.

💭 Feelings (What were you thinking and feeling?)

Initially, I felt confident in my approach, but as the patient tensed up, I became unsure. I felt frustrated and slightly embarrassed, especially as this was a technique I typically deliver well. I also felt concern for the patient’s emotional experience and questioned whether I was inadvertently reinforcing their fear.

🔍 Evaluation (What was good and bad?)

On the positive side, I identified early that traditional methods weren’t working and attempted to adapt. I paused the session and offered the patient more control, asking them to guide the touch. However, I realise I should have taken a more trauma-informed approach from the outset. The lack of rapport building beforehand was a key issue, and I underestimated the psychological impact of scarring and touch.

🔬 Analysis (What sense can you make of it?)

The session reinforced that successful rehab in hand therapy isn’t just biomechanical — it’s psychological. Patients may carry pain memories and trauma that inhibit engagement. I need to build emotional safety before introducing any touch-based technique. My clinical reasoning should have included an assessment of fear-avoidance and anxiety indicators during the subjective interview.

📖 Conclusion (What else could you have done?)

I could have begun the session with more education about the massage process, normalised fear responses, and offered the option to observe first. I also learned that involving the patient in pacing the session and asking explicit consent for each stage could improve trust.

🏃 Action Plan (What will you do differently next time?)

In similar future cases, I will integrate a mini pain education session before physical contact, including use of visual aids and self-administered desensitisation. I will document emotional readiness more explicitly and consider referring for psychological support where anxiety impacts rehab. I’ve also requested attendance at a team in-service on trauma-informed care in musculoskeletal rehab.

🏛️ Professional Standards Mapping

• Standard 2: Practise within the legal and ethical boundaries of their profession
  This was demonstrated through my adjustment of technique and my prioritisation of the patient’s emotional safety and consent.
• Standard 8: Communicate effectively
  I recognised the need to adapt my communication to reduce distress, involve the patient in the process, and use plain language to educate and reassure.
• Standard 11: Reflect on and review practice
  This reflection shows my ability to evaluate a challenging session, identify gaps in approach, and commit to practice improvement.

👥 Peer Working & Collaboration Reflection 📖

Date: 2025-09-18
Context / Focus of Interaction: Complex CRPS Case Discussion – Joint Session with Pain Team and Psychology

Participants & Your Role

• Myself (Band 6 Hand Therapist – OT)
• Consultant in Pain Medicine
• Clinical Psychologist specialising in persistent pain
• Senior Physiotherapist (Hand Therapy)
• Patient representative (invited for joint care planning)

I represented the hand therapy team and presented the patient’s clinical history, progress, and barriers to engagement in therapy.

Key Discussion Points

• Shared concerns about the patient’s deteriorating functional use and high pain avoidance behaviours.
• Explored the psychosocial impact of CRPS and the need for more consistent pain education messaging across teams.
• Debated the pros and cons of continuing desensitisation versus focusing purely on functional tasks.
• Agreed on an integrated treatment plan with clearer boundaries on treatment expectations and escalation.

Learning Gained

• Gained deeper understanding of psychological frameworks used to assess pain beliefs and behaviours, which I can integrate into my own language and patient education.
• Realised that my current approach to pain education was overly focused on physical reconditioning and lacked cognitive validation techniques.
• Observed how the pain team and psychology colleagues set firm boundaries compassionately — something I’ve found difficult to do when a patient’s distress is high.

Impact on Practice & Future Actions

• I have since revised our initial treatment goals to prioritise function over pain resolution.
• I’ve also updated my template for initial appointments with persistent pain cases to include more narrative-based history-taking.
• I’ve requested shadowing sessions with the psychology team to enhance my skills in motivational interviewing and boundary setting.

🏛️ Professional Standards Mapping

• Standard 1: Practise safely and effectively within their scope of practice
  This discussion helped refine my approach in managing complex CRPS presentations and highlighted the limits of my clinical remit when psychological factors dominate.
• Standard 8: Communicate effectively
  The reflection shows how interprofessional communication shaped a more cohesive and patient-centred plan, with clearer messaging and boundaries.
• Standard 9: Work appropriately with others
  The joint session demonstrated collaborative, cross-disciplinary practice aimed at improving continuity of care and reducing fragmented messaging for the patient.

📈 My Career Development Coaching Summary 📖

Date: 2025-09-18
This document summarises the key points from your professional development coaching session.

🎯 The Goal

To progress from a Band 6 to a Band 7 clinical specialist role in Hand Therapy within the next 6–12 months, with a focus on complex trauma management and service development.

📍 Current Reality

• Currently working as a Band 6 OT in a rotational hand therapy post, with consistent exposure to elective and trauma cases.
• Confident in splinting and post-operative rehab, but limited experience with service leadership or data-led service improvement.
• No recent formal qualifications beyond CPD webinars; appraisal noted strong clinical skills but limited evidence of strategic leadership.
• No direct involvement yet in service development projects or supervising Band 5s.

🧭 Options Explored

• Join the departmental audit or service improvement group to gain experience in service delivery projects.
• Request shadowing opportunities with the Band 7 lead therapist to understand expectations and role modelling.
• Enrol in a Level 7 postgraduate hand therapy module (e.g., at Derby or Brunel University).
• Lead a teaching session for junior staff on complex splinting techniques, which could feed into portfolio evidence.
• Volunteer to represent the team in MDT discharge planning meetings to build visibility and leadership presence.

✅ The Way Forward (Will Do)

• Next Step 1: Propose a service improvement idea related to reducing re-referral rates in tendon rehab (by 2025-10-15).
• Next Step 2: Enquire about internal leadership training modules via Trust learning portal (by 2025-09-30).
• Next Step 3: Approach clinical educator to discuss opportunities for supervising a Band 5 or student (by 2025-10-01).

Images of a differnet CPD Portfolio example using the structured worksheets in a physical HandyCPD portfolio.