ACCEND Capabilities in Practice on Compassly

What ACCEND is

ACCEND, the Aspirant Cancer Career and Education Development programme, sets out a career pathway and core capabilities for everyone who cares for people affected by cancer: the supportive, assistive and registered nursing and allied health professions workforce. Its framework was developed by Health Education England, now part of NHS England, with Skills for Health and Macmillan Cancer Support.

At its heart are the Core Cancer Capabilities in Practice: 24 capabilities and 318 criteria across seven domains, from person-centred collaborative working to educating and developing self and others. They span seven levels of practice: supportive, assistive, pre-registration, registration, enhanced, advanced and consultant. The Capabilities in Practice are where Compassly starts.

From workbook to passport

The Capabilities in Practice are rich, detailed and written by experts across cancer care. On Compassly they will become a passport in your pocket: each capability on its own clear screen, self-assessment in a few taps, evidence captured as you go, and nothing to print or photocopy. Your record will stay with you as you move from one level of practice to the next, and from one organisation to another.

How Compassly will support ACCEND

Compassly's Capabilities module is being built for frameworks like ACCEND, so cancer teams will be able to:

• Show each person only the capabilities that apply to their role, with organisations setting up their common roles once
• Self-assess each capability against the expected range for their level of practice, with notes, an action plan and a review date
• Capture evidence in digital versions of the ACCEND templates, such as Clinical Examination Procedures, Case Based Discussions and Multi-Source Feedback, or attach evidence already in My Files, which is already live
• Map a local course or study day to every capability it evidences once, so nobody repeats the same evidence capability by capability
• Have supervisors review evidence, sign capabilities off or agree actions to support growth
• See progress for individuals, teams, organisations and Cancer Alliances

In future we'll bring AI support to capabilities too, as we have with the SACT passport: helping match evidence to the right capabilities, and supporting assessors as they review it.

The same module isn't limited to ACCEND, so Trusts will also be able to run the other capability frameworks their staff use, across their whole workforce, in the same app.

Alongside the SACT passport

More than 9,000 nurses already use the UKONS SACT Competency Passport on Compassly. With ACCEND in the same app, SACT competencies and ACCEND capabilities will sit side by side in each clinician's passport, so their whole cancer career is recorded in one place and moves with them between organisations.

Priced for cancer teams

ACCEND on Compassly will be a paid option, separate from the free SACT passport. We'll keep it very competitively priced, with special introductory pricing for pre-orders and early adopters, and for Cancer Alliances. Register your interest and we'll share the details as soon as they're confirmed.

Help shape it

Demand for ACCEND on Compassly came from cancer nurses using the SACT passport, and we've worked with them to co-design features and test ideas. Register your interest and we'll keep you updated, and involve you in shaping it if you'd like to be.