CONTINUING PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT POLICY

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Leslie Higgins
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1 CONTINUING PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT POLICY Version 2.2 August 2016

2 Environmental Health Australia Environmental Health Australia (EHA) is the premier environmental health professional organisation in Australia which advocates regarding environmental health issues and represents the interests of all environmental health practitioners. EHA is committed to the professional development and status of its members and the enhancement of environmental health standards and services to the community through advocacy, promotion, education and leadership. The professional organisation has been in existence since 1936 and has undergone several names changes over time to reflect the changing nature of the organisation and its membership. EHA is a member of the International Federation of Environmental Health (IFEH). Our Values Professionalism Integrity and Ethics Transparency Accountability Responsiveness Sustainability and Stewardship Living the Values EHA is committed to ensuring that all our activities are undertaken consistent with the objectives of the Constitution and with our values: Professionalism: we perform our tasks and derive outcomes to the best of our ability, with optimum use of resources and with a focus on continuous improvement, productivity and professional development; Integrity and Ethics: we deal with each other, our members and stakeholders on the basis of trust, understanding and respect for differing views and interests. We find solutions that best reconcile diverse interests and provide optimum value to our members and stakeholders in the interests of enhancing environmental health; Transparency: we are open and honest in our dealings with each other, members and stakeholders; Accountability: we serve the needs of our members in a professional, responsible and accountable manner; Page 1 of 7

3 Responsiveness: we engage with our members and stakeholders to enable members and stakeholders to play a participative role in policy development and decision making process; and Sustainability and Stewardship: we acknowledge our responsibility for resources, the environment and ensuring our natural resources are sustainably managed for our own quality of life and for future generations. Our Vision Environmental Health Australia aspires to enhance the practice of environmental health to provide a healthy, safe and attractive natural, built and social environment for all the communities of Australia. Continuing Professional Development (CPD) Continuing Professional Development (CPD) is defined as A systematic and planned approach to the maintenance, enhancement and development of knowledge, skills and expertise that continues throughout a professional s career and is to the mutual benefit of the individual, the employer, the professional body and society as a whole 1. CPD focuses on planned ongoing development related to a person s occupational role and the development or enhancement of personal qualities which are beneficial to their career. Due to the dynamic nature of the profession, environmental health professionals (EHPs) cannot rely purely on their initial qualifications or training. EHPs need to continually build on the foundations developed during their university study (or equivalent) so they maintain the skills, knowledge and expertise needed to tackle current and emerging environmental health challenges, including those posed by environmental changes, technological and social change, community expectations and government policy directions. Continuing professional development is valued as an essential part of professional life and a critical investment in oneself. EHPs are responsible for committing to lifelong learning and managing their continuing development and career progression. CPD is an acknowledgement of, and commitment to, professionalism. 1 CIPFA in Hawkins, P. and Smith, N Coaching, mentoring and organisational consultancy: supervision and development. Page 2 of 7

4 CPD Policy EHA is committed to the professional development of its members to ensure they maintain the skills, knowledge and expertise needed to enhance environmental health standards and services to the community and continually improve environmental health professional practice. EHA will maintain a CPD scheme to support its members to: maintain professional competence in their chosen environmental health field or practice; update existing knowledge and skills; and attain additional knowledge and skills. Eligibility To be eligible to participate in the EHA CPD scheme a person must be a member, parttime member, associate member, part-time associate member, fellow or life fellow of an EHA State Association and must have maintained their membership for the 2 year period that their CPD log relates to. CPD Scheme The CPD scheme operates over a two year period 2 beginning on 1 July of any year. Participants are required to earn a total of 90 CPD points as shown in table 1. Table 1: CPD requirements Requirement Points Number of points required to be earned over a two (2) year period 90 Minimum number of points per year 40 Each participant should develop a plan to guide their professional development. A professional development plan is a mechanism by which needs for enhanced skills and knowledge can be identified and then pursued over the short, medium and longer term, thereby creating a framework for meeting professional development needs and advancing professional skills. The enhealth Environmental Health Officer Skills and Knowledge Matrix 3 can be used to identify the skills and knowledge needed in an 2 3 Temporary inactive members may apply to EHA to have their CPD period extended. Available from: D23C/$File/ohp-enhealth-skills.pdf. Page 3 of 7

5 environmental health role and when designing the professional development plan. The professional development plan should prioritise activities which enhance competency in critical aspects of the participant s role. The goals in a professional development plan should be clear and serve the needs of the EHP and their employer. CPD points can be earned by undertaking a range of CPD activities including attendance at conferences, seminars and training courses, involvement in the management activities of EHA or other professional bodies, post-graduate studies, publication or presentation of papers or other activities agreed to in writing by EHA. The CPD point allocation shown in table 2 aims to encourage active involvement in a range of on-going professional development activities, peer-review (through publication and presentation of research/ practice initiatives) and participation in professional activities. It also recognises that professional development/training can be undertaken in a wide range of areas including technical and management topics, and personal development activities. The policy is also designed to allow for successful participation by those persons who may have limited access to conferences/training courses due to geographical or employer restrictions. Table 2: Points Allocation for Specific CPD Activities CPD Activity CPD Points A. Conferences/Seminars/Training 1. EHA Conferences (National, State, Regional) Max 40 p.a. 2. EHA Seminars/Courses/Technical Meetings Max 40 p.a. 3. EHA webinars, online training and other online professional development programs 4. Conferences conducted by other professional organisations (e.g. PHAA, AHPA, LGMA, AIM, EMA) 5. Seminars/Courses/Technical Meetings conducted by other professional organisations 6. Webinars, online training and other online professional development programs by other professional organisations 7. Environmental health training/short courses conducted in-house by employer or other organisation (e.g. environmental monitoring procedures) 8. Other training/short courses conducted in-house by employer or other organisation (e.g. report writing, budgeting, stress management, business management) 0.5 per hour Page 4 of 7

6 CPD Activity CPD Points B. Academic Courses (non full-time students) 1. Postgraduate or undergraduate studies in a field relevant to environmental health 15 per unit/subject Max 60 p.a. 2. Associate Diploma, Diploma, Advanced Diploma 25 per qualification Max 50 p.a. 3. Certificate III or IV 15 per qualification C. Research 1. Research not included in B. (to be verified by supervisor) 1 per hr D. Professional and Technical Committees 1. National and State EHA Professional Committees 2. Standards Australia, Government Committees and other professional committee representation/involvement 3. EHA National Board/State Board/State Association AGM/Regional Group/Special Interest Group (SIG)/Committee Meetings E. Professional and Technical Activities 1. Presentation of an environmental health lecture/paper at a conference 20 per paper (no additional points for repeated presentations) Max 40 p.a. 2. Presentation of a paper/lecture in a non-conference forum, e.g. regional group meeting, SIG meeting, school, university, community event 3. Publishing of an environmental health paper in an approved peerreviewed journal 4. Publishing of an environmental health paper (e.g. case study, paper regarding an environmental health project, etc.) in a non peerreviewed journal/newsletter (e.g. QEH, Environmental Health Western Australia) 5. Active participation in an approved EHA Project team in a role where professional development will occur 10 per paper/lecture (no additional points for repeated presentations) 30 per paper 10 per paper (no additional points for repeated papers) 1 per hr Page 5 of 7

7 Participants are required to maintain a record of CPD activities and submit it to the relevant EHA State office at the completion of the two year cycle. Participants may log their CPD activities online in the member area of the EHA website or in a manual log (attached as appendix 1). The details and CPD points of all EHA conferences and workshops will automatically be credited to member s online CPD tracker within 4 weeks of the event. CPD activity certification is not required for EHA activities (e.g. EHA conferences and workshops) which can be verified by EHA staff. Certification of other CPD activities may be achieved through the signature of a course organiser, documentation demonstrating completion of a course, university transcripts or other evidence that demonstrates completion of the relevant CPD activity. A minimum of 20% of CPD logs will be audited by EHA annually. Participants must be prepared to provide their CPD log and any documentation/evidence required by EHA to verify CPD activities during the auditing process. EHA will award a CPD certificate to those who attain at least 90 CPD points within the relevant two year period. The CPD certificate demonstrates the participant s commitment to lifelong learning and professional development, and the enhancement of skills and knowledge. At the participant s request, a letter will also be sent to their employer acknowledging the participant s commitment to ongoing professional development and the benefits of such a commitment to their employer and the community. Page 6 of 7

8 Appendix 1 Environmental Health Australia CONTINUING PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT LOGBOOK Time Period: to Name: EHA membership no.: Date CPD category Details of activity Certification method CPD points claimed Days/hours Points per day/hour Points claimed Total points claimed Page # / Page 7 of 7

ONEZONE ON-LINE CAPTURE OF CPD POINTS/CREDITS. GUIDE FOR MEMBERS WHEN UPLOADING INFORMATION (this is based on the revised CPD Policy)

ONEZONE ON-LINE CAPTURE OF CPD POINTS/CREDITS GUIDE FOR MEMBERS WHEN UPLOADING INFORMATION (this is based on the revised CPD Policy) Index 1. Background Page 2 2. Changes to CPD Points and Annual Cycle