CPD under the National Registration Scheme

Many members have expressed concern about the changes to the Continuing Professional Development arrangements laid down by the new Dental Board of Australia (DBA). Numerous representations have been made to the authorities by the Branch and ADA Inc. during the drafting of the national registration and accreditation legislation and the framing of the scheme.

When the issue of the crossover of CPD compliance requirements was identified by the Branch late last year, ADAVB wrote to the new Board’s Chairman, Dr John Lockwood, highlighting CPD accountability and compliance for Victorian dental practitioners. The Branch and the Melbourne Dental School (MDS) then made a joint submission on the CPD requirements. For the record, ADAVB’s submissions on national registration, all posted at on this website in the News/Submissions section, are:
• 27 February 2009 ADAVB response to Discussion Paper: National Standards in Dentistry Project
• 29 April 2009 ADAVB response to the Senate Community Affairs Committee inquiry into the National Registration and Accreditation Scheme
• 17 July 2009 Health Practitioner Regulation National Law 2009 – Bill B
• 24 November 2009 National Registration and other matters
• 9 April 2010 Draft CPD Guidelines – joint submission with MDS

There are a number of differences between States and Territories which undermine the national scheme and it will take some time before all instances of discrepancies are identified for attention. I expect further submissions will be required.

Branch Council has invited Dr Lockwood or his nominee to attend the September Council meeting to discuss the implementation of the scheme. This will provide the Branch with a further opportunity to seek sensible changes.

To assist members to understand the key requirements that will apply under the new National Registration Standard and Guidelines for CPD, the following summary is presented.
 
Key aspects of the CPD guidelines
The DBA Guidelines* state:

“1. Practitioners must:
a) complete a minimum of 60 hours of CPD activities over three years.   80% of the minimum 60 CPD hours must be clinically or scientifically based
b) make a declaration of their compliance with CPD requirements at the time of annual renewal
c) maintain their own records detailing their CPD activities for audit purposes
d) produce evidence of their CPD activities when requested to do so by the Board.
(Evidence will take the form of an electronic or paper-based logbook with details of the activities and the number of hours spent. The Board may ask for additional supporting information, such as certificates of attendance.)
2. When a person registers for the first time or has his or her registration restored after it has lapsed, the number of CPD hours to be completed will be calculated on a pro rata basis according to a formula published by the Board.”

*http://www.dentalboard.gov.au/documents/Continuing%20professional%20development.pdf

ADAVB action - Recognition of reputable CPD program providers
As the President notes in her column, ADAVB, other Branches and ADA Inc, along with the Australian dental schools, are actively working towards developing a system to identify, badge and deliver CPD activities that meet the nine standards for programs required by the DBA.  This will take the guesswork out of the process for members of trying to determine whether courses are acceptable to the DBA.  Members will therefore be able to select courses and activities with confidence.  As this proposed recognition system develops, further information will be provided to members.

Changes to requirements
While there are some similarities to the arrangements that applied under the Dental Practice Board of Victoria (DPBV) Code, there are some major differences:
• the cycle spans three years – not two
• Infection Control and CPR courses are not mandated
• there is no formal recognition of providers by the DBA.  The onus will be on practitioners to use their professional judgment as to which providers are offering CPD courses that meet the nine standards required by the DBA. 

CPD credits reset to zero
The first three-year CPD cycle will commence on 1 July.  Credit accumulated under the DPBV Code is not transferrable into the new DBA cycle - from 1 July, all practitioners in Victoria will have zero CPD credits. 

Need to average 20 hours per year
Members will need to take care to ensure that they maintain an average of 20 hours of CPD credit each year. By doing this, they can avoid the problem of getting close to the end of the cycle and finding there are insufficient programs available, or insufficient time to attend the programs offered.

What qualifies as CPD?

Types of activities that can be completed
• Completing courses, seminars, lectures and webinars
• Writing journal articles and book reviews
• Preparing and presenting lectures and courses
• Reading the Clinical Update article in the ADAVB Newsletter and correctly answering the quiz

Content that qualifies as CPD
For any of the above activities to qualify as CPD, dentists must contribute to the maintenance and enhancement of an oral health practitioner’s knowledge and skills in providing oral health care.

1. Clinical or scientific CPD must be scientifically independent, evidence based and not commercially biased.
2. Non-scientific CPD must be supportive of dental care.

Further information
Further details of the Guidelines on CPD can be found at the DBA website – www.dentalboard.gov.au