Mandatory continuing education for psychologists: Practitioners’ views

Abstract

ResearchContinuing education has long been recognised as a critical feature of upskilling and keeping health practitioners abreast of the latest developments in their field. The value of such post-qualification education for improved patient care forms the main thrust that drives continuing education initiatives. Historically, however, this was regarded as a voluntary form of self-development.While compulsory continuing education regulations for health professionals, including psychologists, have been in place in some countries for many years, regulatory developments in the South African (SA) context have occurred mainly in the past two decades, with some professions, e.g. nursing, yet to implement such regulations. A study of nurses showed that 39.4% were against such regulation. [1] The term continuing professional development (CPD) has been coined to refer to the regulated continuing education system in the country, and the current article uses the terms CPD and continuing education interchangeably.For psychologists to maintain their licence and registration with the Health Professions Council of South Africa (HPCSA), they need to accumulate 30 CPD points each year, with at least 5 points in the area of ethics, human rights or medical law. [2] One CPD point is earned for each hour of an accredited learning activity, and CPD activities can include workshops, conferences, symposia, journal clubs and other similar professional activities. The rationale for mandatory continuing education lies in the necessity for healthcare practitioners to keep abreast of developments in their field to provide optimal, evidence-informed, patient care. [3] In addition to traditional formats of continuing education, online learning systems provide a further option for practitioners. While most young people are adept at (and even prefer) digital technology, this does not translate straightforwardly to online learning. A recent Irish study of diagnostic radiographers revealed that about half of their participants were not very confident using online learning systems. [4] Mulvey [5] identified three key role-players in the CPD system, i.e. the individual practitioner, the employer and the professional body. Such a conceptualisation is useful because it acknowledges the critical role of each in ensuring the ultimate goal of best practice and optimal patient care. The practitioner and the employer have direct responsibility towards patient care, while the professional body has the task of safeguarding the public by regulating health professionals' behaviour, ethical practice and adherence to appropriate standards of healthcare. However, CPD compliance can be costly in terms of time and money, with implications for the practitioner and in some cases for the employer. Grehan et al. [4] found that funding, time and location were significant barriers to CPD compliance. Notwithstanding the cost-bearers of continuing education, there has been concern about costeffectiveness issues relating to CPD activities. [6] While there has been concern a...