Professional Skills Courses

NHS England Yorkshire and Humber has developed a range of professional skills courses for postgraduate doctors in training. Professional skills courses are offered to support the development of non-clinical professional competencies which support and enhance good medical practice. Professional skills courses are open to postgraduate doctors in training and SAS doctors. The Train the Trainers courses are also open to recognised trainers

GMC Professional Capabilities Course Mapping

To open a full screen version, please click the following link: Professional Skills - GMC Mapping

Course booking

All courses are bookable via the Learner Support and Faculty Development Maxcourse site. If you do not have an account, you can create a user account online. Before you can book onto any Professional Skills courses, you will need to update the Personal Details and Profession in your Account Details.

For help, please see:

You can find further guidance about using Maxcourse, including instructions on how to search for and book onto courses, on the LSFD Maxcourse Help page.

Cancellations: Please check your availability before booking. If you book onto a course and later find that you are no longer able to attend, please cancel your booking via Maxcourse as soon as possible, to release the place. If the course is imminent and you cannot cancel your place via Maxcourse, please contact the LSFD Courses Team to cancel your booking.

For help, please see: How to cancel a course booking - LSFD Maxcourse Help

Available courses

Communication in the Real World

Eligibility: | Duration: Two days from 9.30am - 4.00pm | Delivered by: Career Skills Training Ltd | Format: Virtual via Zoom | Frequency: Three times per year

This participative course covers a wide range of topics to help you improve your communication skills and feel more confident at work. You will have the opportunity to practice and will receive constructive feedback on your communication skills in a friendly and supportive learning environment.

Topics covered include: Understanding how communication difficulties arise and how to handle them when they do; Communication models and strategies; Becoming more assertive at work; Communicating effectively with colleagues, patients and relatives; Breaking bad news; Giving constructive feedback and responding positively to critical feedback; Identifying your preferred team role; Understanding conflict resolution styles and how to respond effectively to conflict at work. The course is highly participative and practical.

Compassionate Leadership and Emotional Intelligence

Eligibility: | Duration: One day from 9.00am - 4.00pm | Delivered by: Seventeen Seconds | Format: Virtual via Zoom | Frequency: Twice per year

This one-day online workshop explores compassionate, emotionally intelligent leadership for healthcare. Through interactive activities, you will gain practical strategies to enhance team culture, resilience, and patient care in demanding environments.

Compassionate Leadership and Cultural Competence

Eligibility: | Duration: One day from 9.30am - 3.30pm | Delivered by: Doctors Training Ltd | Format: Virtual via Zoom | Frequency: Twice per year

This immersive workshop explores Cultural Safety within NHS teams, focusing on Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, and Belonging. You will gain crucial insights into addressing workplace challenges and fostering a supportive environment, enhancing both patient care and team cohesion. You will acquire practical skills in raising cultural awareness, active bystander training, and empowering team members. You will learn to implement compassionate and inclusive leadership strategies, addressing both overt and subtle issues like discrimination and microaggressions in a culturally sensitive manner.

The Consultant Fellowship Interview

Eligibility: ST6-8 & GPST3 | Duration: Half-day from 9.00am - 1.00pm | Delivered by: Dr John P Wilson | Format: Virtual | Frequency: Five times per year

This half-day course is designed for Specialist Registrars who are, or will be, applying for posts as consultants / fellows and who wish to enhance their interview skills at this level. It addresses all the main stages of the interview process from job search and preparing applications to practical strategies within the interview and subsequent engagement with HR.

CVs, Applications & Interviews

Eligibility: | Duration: One day from 9.30am - 4.00pm | Delivered by: Career Skills Training Ltd | Format: Virtual via Zoom | Frequency: Six times per year

This participative course covers a wide range of topics to help you improve your CV, application form answers and to perform positively and confidently at interview. You will have the opportunity to practice if you wish and will receive constructive feedback in a friendly and supportive learning environment.

Topics covered include building an excellent CV - content, layout and presentation, common application form questions and strategies for answering them effectively, models to help structure answers to common types of interview questions, self-presentation tips, body language and non-verbal communication, handling difficult questions and “interview blocks” – all helping you to build the confidence and skills to deliver positive and effective interview answers!

Developing Effective Leadership Behaviours for Medical Professionals

Eligibility: ST1-4 & GPST1 | Duration: One day from 9.30am - 3.30pm | Delivered by: Doctors Training | Format: Virtual via Zoom | Frequency: Twice per year

This immersive one-day course will transform your understanding of leadership, providing actionable insights and practical skills to enhance patient care and team dynamics.

Designed for medical professionals, the workshop focuses on developing effective leadership behaviours and personal leadership strategies, with a particular emphasis on emotional intelligence. You will gain a comprehensive understanding of leadership principles, develop self-awareness through emotional intelligence, and improve team collaboration. The course includes practical exercises and interactive sessions to help you apply leadership skills in your daily practice, fostering a positive impact on patient care and team effectiveness.

Effective Leadership Behaviours

Eligibility: ST1-4 & GPST1 | Duration: One day from 9.00am - 4.00pm | Delivered by: Seventeen Seconds | Format: Virtual via Zoom | Frequency: Twice per year

This workshop examines the behaviours that underpin effective clinical leadership, using evidence-based models and interactive exercises—including simulation—to help you explore your strengths and develop confidence as emerging leaders. The session includes knowledge transfer, group discussion, practical exercises, and low-stakes simulation to explore leadership behaviours in context. This workshop suits those starting or developing their leadership journey.

Enhancing Your Confidence as a Medical Professional

Eligibility: | Duration: One day from 9.30am - 4.30pm | Delivered by: Tall Spaghetti | Format: Virtual via Zoom | Frequency: Twice per year

Discover what confidence looks, feels, sounds and acts like. This course will give you access to a practical toolkit which can significantly increase your inner comfort and assurance. Elevating your personal confidence will impact your effectiveness and fulfilment in your role. This training is liberating, and empowering, enabling you to feel more confident, comfortable and empowered as you engage with your work as a medical professional, and for your life more broadly.

Finance Essentials

Eligibility: ST6-8 & GPST3 | Duration: One day from 9.00am - 4.00pm | Delivered by: Seventeen Seconds| Format: Virtual via Zoom | Frequency: Twice per year

This workshop introduces doctors in training to the fundamentals of NHS finance, from interpreting budgets to building business cases. It demystifies financial principles to empower clinical leaders to make informed decisions. Through interactive discussion, group work, and practical exercises, you will learn to navigate NHS finance and business case development. No prior financial knowledge or preparation is required. Ideal for future clinical leaders.

Focus | Plan | Do It: Improve Productivity and Reduce Stress

Eligibility: ST4-5 & GPST2 | Duration: One day from 9.30am - 4.30pm | Delivered by: Positive People | Format: Virtual via MS Teams | Frequency: Three times per year

How can we manage an ever-increasing, complex workload, during unprecedented change and still have time for personal life?

Positive People created this hands-on programme to support busy staff at all levels, providing an approach which puts you in control, improves productivity and reduces stress. This programme will provide both a methodology to stay on top of work and also hands-on, live help to optimise a range of corporate productivity tools (eg. Microsoft Outlook, To Do, Planner and Onenote. There will also be optional support for Google-based users).

Human Factors and Non-Technical Skills

Eligibility: ST1-4 & GPST1 | Duration: One day from 9.30am - 3.30pm | Delivered by: Doctors Training | Format: Virtual via Zoom | Frequency: Twice per year

Unlock the power of human factors and non-technical skills to transform patient care and safety. This interactive workshop dives into the vital role these elements play in delivering exceptional healthcare.

You will gain hands-on strategies to prevent errors, enhance teamwork, and improve decision-making in high-pressure clinical settings.

The course provides insights into how to leverage human factors principles to create safer and more effective healthcare environments. Through dynamic activities and expert guidance, attendees will develop essential skills to enhance communication, manage stress, and implement best practices for continuous quality improvement.

Influence and Negotiation Skills

Eligibility: ST6-8 & GPST3 | Duration: One day from 9.30am - 3.30pm | Delivered by: Doctors Training | Format: Virtual via Zoom | Frequency: Once per year

Master the art of influence and negotiation to elevate your effectiveness in healthcare settings. This interactive workshop equips healthcare professionals with essential skills to foster teamwork, enhance collaboration, and deliver high-quality care. You will learn to navigate complex interactions with colleagues, patients, and stakeholders confidently. Explore proven techniques and strategies for influencing others and negotiating effectively. Through engaging activities and expert guidance, you’ll develop the skills needed to manage conflicts, build strong relationships, and achieve creative outcomes in challenging situations.

Interpersonal Communication Skills

Eligibility: | Duration: Two days from 9.30am - 4.00pm | Delivered by: 4D Therapy | Format: Virtual via Zoom | Frequency: Three times per year

A 2 day course aimed at developing communication skills and expanding confidence in dealing with a range of communication challenges with patients, relatives and colleagues. There will be opportunities to practice, in a safe environment, a variety of approaches to tackle these issues. The learning will be problem based and experiential.

Leading and Managing Change

Eligibility: ST4-5 & GPST2 | Duration: One day from 9.00am - 4.00pm | Delivered by: Seventeen Seconds | Format: Virtual via Zoom | Frequency: Twice per year

This workshop equips doctors in training with tools to lead and manage change effectively in dynamic clinical environments. Using discussion, simulation, and case-based learning, you will gain confidence in creating and sustaining positive change. You will explore real-world NHS examples, change models, and leadership practices using collaborative exercises and simulation scenarios. The course is suitable for trainees involved in or planning service improvement work.

Leading in Teams

Eligibility: ST4-5 & GPST2 | Duration: One day from 9.00am - 4.00pm | Delivered by: Seventeen Seconds | Format: Virtual via Zoom | Frequency: Twice per year

This workshop will help you develop the skills needed to lead and work effectively in multidisciplinary teams. Through collaborative and reflective activities, trainees explore inclusive leadership, team dynamics, and shared responsibility. The course includes interactive discussion, practical exercises, and group collaboration to examine leadership in clinical teams. It is suitable for doctors in training at all levels.

Leadership & Management (Final Year Trainees)

Eligibility: ST3-8 | Duration: Three days from 9.00am - 4.30pm | Delivered by: Edmund Cross | Format: Virtual via Zoom | Frequency: Three times per year

A three day course designed for senior trainees in their final year to develop knowledge, skills and insights into the leadership and management roles of the consultant. The learning outcomes include: Understanding the structures in health systems; Awareness of how power affects communication; Awareness and practice of communication tools; Experience in developing a business plan; The challenges in the transition from trainee to consultant. You will have the opportunity to reflect on your previous experience and development as preparation for your leadership and management role.

Making the Transition to Consultant

Eligibility: ST6-8 & GPST3 | Duration: Half-day | Delivered by: Dr Reshad Khodabocus (DME- MYTT) | Format: Face to face | Frequency: Five times per year

This course will interactively explore starting as a consultant, developing special interests, leadership, innovation and maintaining creativity and sustainability over a consultant career spanning decades. The course will be rooted in positive work cultures that positively impact on clinical and non-clinical teams, focusing on maximising patient experience and staff wellbeing.

This will be highly interactive with participants requested to be open, honest and share experiences, apprehensions and form networks to promote collaborative working. You will identify your style of leadership, work approach and develop and appreciate the need for different styles within a capable supportive team.

Managing Imposter Syndrome

Eligibility: | Duration: One day from 10.00am - 3.00pm | Delivered by: Dr Susy Stirling | Format: Virtual via Zoom | Frequency: Twice per year

Imposter Syndrome or Phenomenon is defined as ‘a collection of feelings of inadequacy that persist despite evidence of success’. This interactive workshop looks at what Imposter Syndrome is, how it gets in the way of our work, and then more importantly what tools are available to manage it. ‘Imposters’ suffer chronic self-doubt and are unable to internalise their accomplishments however successful they are in their field. This phenomenon is surprisingly common. It can get in the way of professional progress and job satisfaction. The day will include evidence-based solutions using ACT (Acceptance and Commitment Therapy) techniques. ACT has a huge body of evidence behind it and an impressive pedigree in providing practical tools that are easy to grasp and use.

Medical Ethics

Eligibility: | Duration: Half-day from 9.00am - 1.00pm | Delivered by: Dr Andrew Stanners | Format: Virtual via Blackboard | Frequency: Three times per year

A practical, case-based reminder of how to identify, analyse and resolve ethical dilemmas in clinical practice.

The session is discussion-based and seeks to emphasise the formulation, articulation and exchange of ethical ideas and theory.

Nurturing Pyschological Safety

Eligibility: ST6-8 & GPST3 | Duration: One day from 9.00am - 4.00pm | Delivered by: Seventeen Seconds | Format: Virtual via Zoom | Frequency: Twice per year

This workshop focuses on how clinical leaders can create psychologically safe environments where team members feel able to speak up, contribute, and learn. You will explore practical ways to foster trust and openness. The course blends knowledge acquisition with case discussion, collaboration, and experiential exercises. Based on the work of Amy Edmondson and others, it is highly relevant for doctors in training in leadership or supervisory roles.

Overcoming Unhealthy Perfectionism

Eligibility: | Duration: One day | Delivered by: Dr Martin Billington | Format: Virtual | Frequency: Twice per year

This course will examine and increase your understanding of healthy and unhealthy perfectionism traits within healthcare, including approaches to identify your perfectionist traits to understand when they can be beneficial and address less helpful ones.

Patient Safety - Investigating and Learning from Incidents

Eligibility: | Duration: One day from 9.30am - 3.30pm | Delivered by: Doctors Training | Format: Virtual via Zoom | Frequency: Three times per year

A safe space to discuss, reflect on, and learn from patient safety incidents. Facilitated by experts, this workshop delves into the complexities of patient safety investigations from individual, team, and system perspectives, focusing on effective strategies to prevent future incidents. You will gain insights into best practices for incident investigation through System-based Patient Safety Incident Investigations, understand the importance of fostering a ‘Just Culture,’ and review human factors and ergonomics. The workshop covers psychological safety, the Duty of Candour, and support for ‘Second Victims,’ enhancing a supportive, no-blame culture in the workplace.

Peer Coaching

Eligibility: All doctors and dentists in training | Duration: 1 hour with follow-up session | Delivered by: Dr Susy Stirling | Format: Virtual via Zoom | Frequency:

As we move through our careers we need to be proficient at all sorts of complex decision making. Peer coaching is one way of building safety and professionalism around that and is therefore a discipline which can serve well throughout your whole career. Coaching seeks to improve performance by offering challenge and support. It creates an opportunity to consider what you can do to support your personal professional development. Peer coaching means this time to think is offered by a peer in your professional environment who has also received this training and the support you offer is mutual.

Power and Influence

Eligibility: ST6-8 & GPST3 | Duration: One day from 9.00am - 4.00pm | Delivered by: Seventeen Seconds | Format: Virtual via Zoom | Frequency: Once per year

This workshop demystifies the concepts of power and influence in healthcare leadership. You will explore how to use influence effectively and ethically, navigating complex hierarchies and advocating for positive change. The session involves debate, case discussion, and practical role-play activities. You will analyse power dynamics and practise persuasive communication. It is ideal for those seeking to develop leadership influence across systems.

Research Skills

Eligibility: | Duration: Two days from 9.30am - 4.00pm | Delivered by: Professor Wendy Baird | Format: Virtual via Zoom | Frequency: Three times per year

This interactive course will provide you with an insight into the practicalities of designing and delivering a clinical research project that is relevant to the NHS. This will include what reviewers and funders will be looking for, alongside how decisions are made about the cost effectiveness of treatments and ultimately how to ensure research makes a difference.

Each stage of the process will include examples from a range of research projects which will be used to demonstrate the principles. Throughout there will be a focus on how to interpret and apply the evidence in the clinical setting.

Structure and Power Dynamics in Healthcare Systems

Eligibility: ST4-5 & GPST2 | Duration: One day from 9.30am - 4.30pm | Delivered by: Edmund Cross | Format: Virtual via Zoom | Frequency: Once per year

This course outlines the current structure of the NHS and explores tensions and dilemmas for clinicians as leaders in it.

The course then uses a model of rank dynamics to develop understanding of and competence in communication when power dynamics are present.

Training the Trainers (Doctors Training)

Eligibility: ST6-8 & GPST3 and recognised trainers | Duration: Two days from 9.30am - 3.30pm | Delivered by: Doctors Training | Format: Virtual via Zoom | Frequency: Five times per year

The Train the Trainer two-day programme is designed for healthcare professionals aiming to enhance their teaching skills and step into supervisory roles within medical education.

Day one focuses on education theory, learning needs analysis, and various teaching modalities, with hands-on micro-teaching practice. Day two transitions to supervision skills, feedback, and assessment, preparing participants to effectively mentor trainees and explore leadership opportunities in medical education.

Training the Trainers (Seventeen Seconds)

Eligibility: ST6-8 & GPST3 and recognised trainers | Duration: Two days from 9.00am - 4.00pm| Delivered by: Seventeen Seconds | Format: Virtual via Zoom | Frequency: Four times per year

This course empowers postgraduate doctors to excel in medical education. Through interactive workshops and collaboration, you will gain knowledge, skills, and confidence in educational theory and practice. The course focuses on preparing you to teach effectively and inclusively. This blended course combines two live sessions with structured online materials completed during sessions. It is suitable for doctors at any stage of training with an interest in teaching or education.

Understanding Finance and Developing Business Cases

Eligibility: ST6-8 & GPST3 | Duration: One day from 9.30am - 3.30pm | Delivered by: Doctors Training | Format: Virtual via Zoom | Frequency: Three times per year

Designed to enhance financial literacy and business case development skills for medical professionals. You will gain foundational knowledge of financial principles, practical techniques for budgeting, cost management, and revenue generation, crucial for effective decision-making. The workshop provides hands-on experience in creating and assessing business cases through case studies and practical exercises. You will learn to develop compelling business cases, manage budgets effectively, and employ strategies to maximize revenue. Tools and techniques for presenting business cases to stakeholders will also be covered to secure approval and funding.

Writing for Publication

Eligibility: | Duration: One day from 9.30am - 4.00pm | Delivered by: Jamie Hayes | Format: Virtual via Zoom | Frequency: Twice per year

The skill of writing an article – and getting it published in a peer-reviewed journal – is highly prized, but rarely taught. This one-day course concentrates on this skill, and in particular on the process of writing. The course will show you how to prepare, write and submit an original journal article that has a good chance of being accepted for publication. It will also set you well on the way to doing so.

Upcoming course dates

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