How to complete appraisal forms on SOAR

1. How to complete appraisal forms on SOAR for Appraisees (Primary and Secondary Care)

2. Overview • The appraisal forms on SOAR are standard online forms • This guide covers a general overview of how to use the forms • For information on what content to input, please refer to the Toolkits on the Medical Appraisal Scotland website • www.appraisal.nes.scot.nhs.uk

3. Appraisal Forms • There are three Appraisal Forms to be completed • Form 1: Background Information • Form 2: Job You Do • Form 3: Appraisal Supporting Information • Details entered on Forms 1 and 2 are retained for future appraisals (saves you from re-typing same/similar info every year) • Form 3 is wiped after successful completion of Form 4 (Summary), to allow you to start preparing for next appraisal

4. Functions on Appraisal Forms • There are different functions on the Appraisal Forms, as well as different types of questions: • Formatting toolbar • Documents upload • Yes/No questions, and prompts for further info • Verification on declarations (missed questions) • PDP / Learning Needs

5. Formatting Toolbar: • Similar to MS Word • Select/highlight the text you have entered and click on the appropriate button • If you are unsure what each button is for, move mouse over them – a short description will appear • Bold, Italic, Underline and Strikethrough • Align left, centre, right, and full • Different formatting types (Paragraph, Heading etc) • Bullet points, Numbered lists • Decrease, Increase indent • Undo, Redo • Restore Auto-save: The lifebelt icon spins round every 60 seconds and saves the content of the box to your computer (rather than on SOAR). If you click Save and got timed out instead, some of the text may disappear – if this happens, click the restore icon to bring back the missing text

6. Self Declarations • For ALL doctors using SOAR, annual self declarations on Health, Probity, and Complaints/Critical Incidents MUST be completed • Any questions where additional information was required will be flagged as “Issue” to bring to the Appraiser’s attention, and to ensure discussion is had around this at the appraisal meeting • There is a validation check on each of the forms – if questions are missed when saving, a message will alert the user accordingly • Incomplete declarations will stop you from submitting your appraisal forms

7. Self Declarations: • Complete the series of Yes/No questions on screen (provide additional info as prompted) • Click Save when finished • Your form will save, even if you have not answered all questions • But you will be notified accordingly when saving • Check the form for missed questions • If you try to submit appraisal forms with incomplete declarations, you will be greeted with an error message

8. Adding Learning Needs for PDP • As part of your appraisal preparation, you are asked to consider what learning you wish to undertake in the year ahead • The PDP section is different for Primary and Secondary Care users, but approach is the same • For Secondary Care users, it’s the old style 3-box PDP format • For GPs, each learning item is broken up and the questioning is more structured and reflective • For help on how the PDP section works or what content to enter, please refer to guidance on website • This section highlights how the PDP section is completed

9. For Secondary Care users: • PDP section is at bottom of Form 3 (expand) • If using SOAR / PDP for first time, you will NOT see a top table “Summary PDP for previous period” • This table will only appear after a first appraisal is completed on SOAR • Add your proposed learning in the lower table titled “New PDP for the current period” • Click on the “Add New Development Need” button to add blank line for completion • When Form 4 has been signed off, the agreed learning items from there will be populated into your Form 3 “Summary PDP for previous period”, acting as your PDP • You can mark completed items as “Achieved” • Any additional learning undertaken that was not on the PDP should be noted in Domain 1

10. For GP users: • Click “PDP Year Ahead” • Answer questions on top • To add new learning, expand “Add New Learning Need” and complete the questions • When you reached the end of the learning item, click Save Learning Need (important!) • You can review/edit each learning by clicking on “show” • When Form 4 has been signed off, the agreed learning items from there will be populated into your “PDP Review” • You can mark completed items as “Achieved” • Any additional learning undertaken that was not on the PDP should be noted in PDP Review

11. How Appraisal Forms work Appraisee Appraiser Process completed: automated email confirmations sent Complete Appraisal Docs (Forms 1 - 3) Reviews submitted Appraisal Docs Agrees and Signs Agree Confidentiality Statement (MUST) APPRAISAL INTERVIEW Disagrees Signs and Forwards Submit Appraisal Forms (MUST) Drafts Form 4 summary Requests changes

12. Further support • Medical Appraisal Scotland website: • www.appraisal.nes.scot.nhs.uk • Resources, FAQ and other useful sections • Local Administration teams: • Contact details on Medical Appraisal Scotland • SOAR Helpdesk • Black “Help” box on right when logged into SOAR; • or SOAR@nes.scot.nhs.uk • Due to capacity issues we are unable to offer telephone support • You can request a call back via the Helpdesk – but we need detailed descriptions of the issue(s)