Federal and state governments, through the National code of conduct for unregistered health care practitioners (refer to ‘What is an unregistered health care practitioner‘), require that practitioners maintain their professional competence and that they practise in accordance with accepted professional standards. The simplest way to ensure that practitioners keep engaged with this process, all complementary associations and registers have made continuous professional development or education (CPD/CPE) an obligation for their professional membership.
To renew you professional membership, 20 CPD points need to be reported, which need to have been obtained during the previous 12 months (1 July to 30 June).
Points can be obtained through many learning activities:
- attendance at conferences and in-person seminars
- participation in webinars or watching webinar recordings
- participation in study groups
- post-graduate study within the context of homeopathic practice
- reading of articles in journals or online sources
- study of specific subjects through books and articles
- involvement in homeopathic research projects
Evidence of your CPD activities may be through:
- attendance certificate at face-to-face events
- signed attendance register by leader of a study group
- CPD/CPE certificate following the successful completion of an online quiz (when you pass the quiz the certificate will automatically be stamped with the current date rather than the date that the live webinar was presented)
- learning summary, where no certificate is obtainable
One hour of activity earns 1 CPD point.
At least 10 CPD points have to relate directly to the practice of homeopathy, maximum 10 points can cover accessory content including nutrition, psychology, counselling, medical sciences and a recommended (but not obligatory) minimum of 2 hours on medico-legal topics.
First aid or CPR training do not attract CPD points.