There is growing interest internationally in the role of 360°feedback (or multi-source feedback) for the purpose of helping clinicians gain a better understanding of their professionalism as part of their continuing professional development.

360°feedback is the process by which multiple individuals, representing discrete informant groups, provide anonymous feedback to recipients. In medicine, the informant groups may include peer, referring physician, referral physicians, patients, co-workers (e.g., nurses, pharmacists, physical therapists) and self.

The Colleague Feedback Evaluation Tool (CFET) is a validated instrument for 360° feedback across a range of doctors in primary and secondary care settings. It consists of 18 items and takes about 3-5 minutes to complete.

It is administered to 15 colleagues nominated by the doctor. Guidelines are supplied as to the selection of these colleagues, and cover a broad spectrum of medical, clinical and managerial/administrative staff. The mode of administration is either through a paper-based mechanism or an electronic version which is conducted through a secure website with PIN codes attached.

The validation of this feedback tool can be found in: