ANZCA OLD MOPS, NEW CPD
Professor Teik E. Oh – November 2006
Introduction
ANZCA introduced Maintenance of Standards (MOS) in 1995 and Maintenance of Professional Standards (MOPS) in 1998 for impending Recertification by AMC. Thus the concept of practice assessment could not be divorced from continuing education, and MOPS required Fellows to meet minimum target goals of Continuing Medical Education (CME) participation.
Today, the landscape has changed considerably. Much more is now known about learning with evidence of effective learning activities. The term Continuing Professional Development (CPD) is now universally used replacing CME and Quality Assurance (QA). CPD embodies both professional learning and personal growth, and extends past maintenance of knowledge and skills, to include improving personal and professional qualities throughout a Fellow’s working life, such as in ethics, management, and communication skills1. CPD may be defined as
“Any activity to maintain and improve knowledge, skills, and attitudes, and to develop professional and personal attributes required throughout a career as a Specialist Anaesthetist.”
DOES CPD WORK?
There is recent evidence that doctors who have been in practice longer may provide lower quality care. The literature reports many publications on the benefits of CPD. Effectiveness varies with CPD interventions, but there is good Level 1 evidence that CPD improves doctor performance and the patient outcome.
However, CPD does not assess competence or fitness to practice. Professional performance will deteriorate without CPD, but there is no direct link with measurement of professional competence. Learning can occur inside and outside the conference room. As we link learning with routine practice, CPD is a strategy to upgrade professional capabilities and skills..
OLD MOPS
As a creation of the education and political climate of the 1990s, with what is known about CPD today, MOPS has a number of elements inappropriate to learning. It does not separate learning and personal development from practice assessment. It is target-based, requiring attainment of points to meet common denominator thresholds. Meeting target points was a major principle expected of MOPS programs. Participants are more concerned about gaining points than the quality of their learning and what they needed to learn. It pivots around the two pillars of continuing education and practice assessment of the 1990s, CME and QA.
NEW CPD
The new program features:
- Individual planning of activities based on the Fellow’s needs.
- Selecting activities most appropriate to their plan, learning style, and practice.
- A Framework where selected activities and the quality of activities are more important than gaining points.
- Emphasis on activities that are more effective in learning.
- Self-reflection and evaluation are important activities.
- A CPD Portfolio to record participation, reflection, and professional commitments.
- Support to Fellows, given as help or toolkits.
The new CPD Program is about learning, not performance assessment. Its Principles focus on the individual Fellow, application to practice and the Attributes of a Specialist, effective learning strategies, and life-long learning.
FRAMEWORK
The new ANZCA CPD is a triennium Program. Participants develop their own CPD Plan and undertake activities. The Framework of activities consists of four Categories that are readily recognized and understood:
Category 1. Group Learning
Category 2. Self-Learning
Category 3. Practice Assessment
Category 4. Education Development
Each Category has two Levels of activities. Level 1 is generally passive learning. Level 2 activities are more effective in transferring knowledge to practice. Activities earn time-based Credits that are weighted towards Level 2.
Fellows need to obtain 40 Credits per year, with at least 10 Credits each from Categories 1, 2, and 3. A shortfall of Credits can be made up with surplus Credits the following year. In Year 1, Fellows must develop a CPD Plan at the start of the Program and should tailor their Plan to meet the requirements of their Medical Boards and the MCNZ. Fellows are encouraged to practise Reflection. In the final year of their triennium, Fellows must evaluate their CPD participation to decide the effectiveness of their learning.
Annual returns that record CPD participation are required to gain a Certificate of Participation. A Certificate of Completion is issued at the end of the triennium.
SUPPORT FOR FELLOWS
The College will provide support for Fellows to effectively participate in the CPD Program. Guides are available as:
- Toolkit to Develop Your Individual CPD Plan
- Toolkit on the CPD Portfolio
- Toolkit on Reflection
- Toolkit on Practice Assessment Activities
- Toolkit to Conduct an Evaluation of Your CPD
- Toolkit on Preparing for CPD Audit.
Time of Presentation
1030
