School of Health Professions

PgCert First Contact Practitioner in Primary Care (Occupational Therapy)

This programme prepares occupational therapists, who have already gained clinical experience in practice, to work in the challenging and developing area of general practice. Specifically, this is designed for the first contact practitioner (FCP) role, as set out by the Health Education England (HEE) roadmap; occupational therapists working in this role will be expected to a assess and manage the undifferentiated, undiagnosed patient within the speciality of general practice.

PgCert First Contact Practitioner in Primary Care (Occupational Therapy) prepares occupational therapists, who have already gained clinical experience in practice, to work in the challenging and developing area of general practice.

Key features

  • Delivery aligned to the Health Education England (HEE) Roadmap to Practice for First Contact Practitioners (FCP).
  • Commissioned places(limited) available through HEE.
  • Programme designed and delivered by clinicians with experience working within primary care.
  • Practice placement module enabling demonstration of key competencies.
  • Inter-professional approach to delivery, reflecting the FCP role.
  • Distance led delivery, providing a flexible learning experience.
  • Successful completion of the programme leads to recognition as an FCP – Occupational Therapist by HEE.

Course details

  • Overview

  • Students registered on the Post Graduate Certificate: First Contact Practitioner in Primary Care (Occupational Therapy) must undertake the following three level 7 modules.

    Students registered on the Post Graduate Certificate: First Contact Practitioner in Primary Care (Occupational Therapy) must undertake the following three level 7 modules. Each of these module is level 7, 20 credits, leading to a PgCert of 60 credits. All three modules must be successfully achieved to obtain a PgCert First Contact Practitioner in Primary Care

    (Occupational Therapy).

    ADV782 Enhanced professional reasoning
    ADV773 The role of the First Contact Practitioner within primary care
    ADV777 First Contact Practitioner (FCP) in primary care practice placement  

    Core modules

    • Enhanced Professional Reasoning (ADV782DL)

      This module will provide students with opportunities to consolidate and further develop their professional reasoning. A range of clinical and professional reasoning models will be critiqued. These models will be applied to scenarios from practice in order to provide a deeper level of interpretation.

    • The role of the First Contact Practitioner (FCP) within Primary Care (PC) (ADV773DL)

      This module is aimed at registered physiotherapists and other health care professionals currently working in or towards the role of First Contact Practitioner (FCP) within primary care. It will equip students to demonstrate an understanding of the knowledge, competencies and professional and leadership skills required for this role using critical thinking, complex clinical reasoning and critical reflection skills.

    • First Contact Practitioner (FCP) in Primary Care (PC) Practice Placement (ADV777DL)

      This module is aimed at health care professionals currently working in or towards the role of First Contact Practitioner (FCP) within primary care. It will provide the work-based experience required to develop and demonstrate capability in practice, aligned with the relevant national frameworks. Teaching and learning support alongside 75 hours of supervised practice in an MSK first contact practitioner environment.

Every postgraduate taught course has a detailed programme specification document describing the programme aims, the programme structure, the teaching and learning methods, the learning outcomes and the rules of assessment.

The following programme specification represents the latest programme structure and may be subject to change:

PgCert First Contact Practitioner in Primary Care (Occupational Therapy) programme specification_7524

The modules shown for this course or programme are those being studied by current students, or expected new modules. Modules are subject to change depending on year of entry.
Entry requirements

Applicants will normally have a first degree, BSc (Hons) at 2:2 or above in a related subject, HCPC registration as an Occupational Therapist and minimum of three years post registration practice.

Applicants whose first language is not English must also provide evidence of competence in written and spoken English in accordance with the University’s Admissions Code of Practice i.e. IELTS average of 6.5, with a minimum of 5.5 in each category.

In addition to the entry requirements above, there are a number of specific admission criteria for this programme that will ensure applicants access this programme at the right time within their professional practice. These align with national frameworks and will be clearly outlined to the student.

Specific admissions criteria are:

  • Applicants are able to evidence that they have the relevant Occupational Therapy experience, normally this is a minimum of 3 years post registration experience.
  • Applicants are able to provide evidence of HCPC registration
  • Applicants must have support of workplace to enrol on the PgCert First Contact Practitioner in Primary Care (Occupational Therapy). For the HEE tender, applicants must be working in Primary Care at the equivalent of Band 7 Agenda for Change.
The final module, ADV777 First Contact Practitioner in Primary Care Practice placement module maps to stage 2 of the HEE verification process for First Contact Practitioner (Occupational Therapy). The placement module involves a number of hours of clinical practice and support of a clinical mentor. The First Contact Practitioners (Occupational Therapy) HEE Roadmap requires students to be employed in a First Contact Practitioner (Occupational Therapy) Primary Care setting in order to commence Stage 2, this is to ensure they are able to demonstrate their capability in practice. Workplace support and identification of a suitable clinical mentor will be part of the admissions criteria for enrolment on the First Contact practitioner in Primary Care (Occupational Therapy) PgCert (as outlined above).
Fees, costs and funding

The UK is no longer part of the European Union. EU applicants should refer to our Brexit information to understand the implications.

New student 2022
Part time (Home and International) £1,000 per 20 credits

Full time fees shown are per annum. Part time fees shown are per a number of credits. Please note that fees are reviewed on an annual basis. Fees and the conditions that apply to them shown in the prospectus are correct at the time of going to print. Fees shown on the web are the most up to date but are still subject to change in exceptional circumstances. More information about fees and funding.

In addition to self-funded routes this course has successfully tendered to Higher Education England and can offer a limited number of funded places.

How to apply

Applying for this programme

Applicants to this programme will need to complete:  
These forms need to be returned to pduadmissions@plymouth.ac.uk


Additional information will also be required prior to starting the following modules:

ADV773– The Role of the First Contact Practitioner (FCP) within Primary Care
ADV777– First Contact Practitioner Placement

Return your completed forms to:

Email: pduadmissions@plymouth.ac.uk

Professional Development Unit
4th floor, Rolle Building
University of Plymouth
Drake Circus
Plymouth, PL4 8AA

Tel: +44 (0)1752 586951


What happens after I apply?

After your application is received by the PDU Admissions team, it will be processed and sent to the Programme Lead for a decision to be made on your suitability to study. You may be asked to provide additional information or to take part in an interview (for overseas students this may be by telephone or video conference). Once this decision has been made, you will be sent an email either confirming your place on the programme, or rejecting your application and giving the reasons for this decision (you may request further feedback in order to improve your chances of selection at a later date).

Applying for this programme

Please return your completed forms to:

Email: pduadmissions@plymouth.ac.uk

Professional Development Unit
4th floor, Rolle Building
University of Plymouth
Drake Circus
Plymouth, PL4 8AA

Tel: +44 (0)1752 586951

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