Continuing professional development

Introduction

The purpose of continuing professional development (CPD) is to maintain and improve knowledge, skills and attitudes and to develop professional and personal attributes required throughout a career as a medical specialist. These include to:

• Promote and facilitate the participation of Fellows in effective CPD within the scope of their practice.
• Encourage a culture of self-directed learning, planning, review and reflection on individual CPD requirements and individual learning style preferences.
• Monitor and encourage participation.
• Promote continuous improvement through reviewing other national and international CPD programs, and evaluating the effectiveness of the program.

Online participants

Fellows participate in the CPD Program via an online portfolio, which enables them to write a CPD plan, enter activities, write reflections on learning experiences, write an evaluation and produce statements and certificates that may be used for registration and re-credentialing.

Please click here for more online information.

Offline participants

A hard copy of the CPD portfolio is available for Fellows who wish to participate offline. Offline users can submit annual summary forms to the CPD Unit who will then send out their relevant statement or certificate.

Please click here for more offline information.

Retired or non-clinical participants

Fellows who have retired or are only engaged in non-clinical activities (for example, teaching or administration) may participate in a year-by-year CPD program with fewer credit requirements.

Special consideration can be given to those Fellows who are unable to comply with any aspect of the CPD Program due to circumstances such as illness, parental leave, pregnancy, leave of absence or personal circumstances. To apply for special consideration, please contact the CPD Unit.

The CPD handbook has been created as a guide to the purpose, structure and requirements of the ANZCA CPD Program. This handbook is available here.

CPD plan

At the beginning of a triennium, Fellows are required to write a CPD plan. This individual CPD plan will be the main focus and reference point for a Fellow's continuing professional development and Fellows may modify the plan during the triennium if required.

Recording activities

Fellows should select activities that are most appropriate to their CPD plan, learning style and practice. Learning activities are classified under four categories, each with two levels of interactivity. Credits claimed for participation in activities are time based. Over the triennium a Fellow will need to achieve 120 credits – 40 credits per year with a minimum of 10 credits for categories 1, 2 and 3.  For examples of CPD activities and the associated number of credits, please view the Classification of CPD activities table.

Please note: It is important to keep records of attending any activities for which you are claiming CPD credits. Fellows must keep this evidence for the duration of each triennium, as up to 5 per cent of Fellows will be audited by ANZCA in the year following the completion of their triennium.

Reflection

Reflection is an important process for personal and professional learning. Fellows are encouraged to practise reflection to analyse learning experiences, encourage critical thinking and recognition of slips, lapses and incidents and to reinforce actions that have resulted in good outcomes.

Evaluation

Fellows are required to evaluate their program at the end of each triennium.  Evaluation helps a Fellow to assess their achievements and whether they met the objectives in their CPD plan. It can provide information on the strengths and weaknesses of CPD participation and areas to address to improve future learning.

Annual statement of CPD participation

An annual statement of CPD participation will become available for each year of the triennium when a Fellow has entered their CPD plan, and entered at least 10 credits for the relevant year.  This statement is available through the online portfolio, or for offline users, by submitting an annual summary form to the CPD Unit.

Certificate of completion of a CPD triennium

The certificate of completion of a CPD triennium will only be available once all of the requirements of a Fellow's triennium have been met.  Fellows must:

• Submit a CPD plan.
• Achieve a minimum of 120 credits (40 credits per year with a minimum of 10 credits for each of categories 1, 2 and 3).
• Submit their evaluation.

This certificate is available through the online portfolio, or for offline users, by submitting a copy of their plan, annual summary forms and evaluation to the CPD Unit.

Toolkits

Several toolkits have been developed to assist Fellows with aspects of their CPD Program.

If you require assistance with any aspect of the CPD Program, please contact the CPD Unit at cpd@anzca.edu.au or on +61 3 9510 6299.