We wish to advise you that Professional Competence "Statement of Participation" for those enrolled in the 2012 - 2013 term is now available to download from your PCS Portfolio (http://pcs.rcsi.ie).

Doctors are not required to submit their Statements routinely to the Medical Council. However a random sample (5%) will be asked by the Medical Council to produce their Statement. Everyone will be required to tick a box to confirm that they are participating in the scheme on the Annual Declaration.

Please note that the Medical Council has recently begun to request any doctor who is the subject of a complaint to submit their most recent Statement of Participation as a first step in their investigation.

Log on to your PCS dashboard to view/download your official Statement of Participation

Professional Competence Schemes are subject to an annual fee which has been determined by the Medical Council.  Many of you will already have renewed your enrolment for 2013 – 2014.   For those of you who have still to renew please note you must pay this fee to be enrolled in the scheme, to enter credits for the current year 2013-2014 and to be able to produce a Statement of Participation when required.

Re-enrol by paying your fee online using your credit card click https://pcs.rcsi.ie

Fellows and members of RCSI who wish to pay their Fellowship/Membership fee at the same time are entitled to a €150 discount on the PCS fee, when paying the PCS fee and Fellows and Members fee together on the dedicated Fellowship & Membership Portal (FAMP) https://famp.rcsi.ie

Following feedback received from our online Survey of enrolled doctors on the Professional Competence Scheme, and extensive consultation with key users, RCSI delivered an upgrade to our existing online PCS portal which we launched on 7^th May 2013.  Highlights of the upgrade include:

• A visual colour coded traffic light system on the dashboard screen which allows you to immediately identify any areas that require attention.

• An online Events Calendar. You will now be able to view all events that RCSI have accredited for CPD and view information and contact details for each event when you are logged into your portfolio and on the RCSI website    
• Event Organisers now apply for CPD accreditation using an online system. Events will only be published to the Events Calendar if the organiser requests that we do so.
• You can upload activities (including certificates) using a smartphone. Please view our online video to show you how to do this.

During the coming months we will be updating our guides on how to use the portal and we will notfiy you when these are published on our wesbite.

There are on-going discussions in relation to the problems being experienced by retired registered medical practitioners in gaining the required 50 CPD credits and one clinical / practice audit.  It is recognised that changes to the requirements for retired practitioners can only be effected through the Medical Council and we do not see these changes taking place in the immediate future.

There are two scenarios for retired doctors:

(i)    Fully retired in that the retired practitioner no longer sees patients and are not engaged in any activity that requires registration with the Medical Council

(ii)   Occasionally see patients or are engaged in activities that require the practitioner to be registered with the Medical Council e.g.  Teaching, tutoring, medico-legal work, professional advisor etc.

If the first scenario applies and a practitioner has completely retired from practice and does not intend to do any medically related work in the foreseeable future, then it will be difficult to meet the Professional Competence requirements as set out by the Medical Council.   For practitioners who this scenario applies to may wish to consider voluntary withdrawal from the Register.   The current guidance furnished by the Medical Council can be found on the Medical Council website and it might be useful to contact the Medical Council Professional Competence Scheme section to discuss this.  http://www.medicalcouncil.ie/Information-for-Doctors/Professional-Competence/

If the second scenario applies and a practitioner is involved in academic or medico-legal work, then the Medical Council state that retired practitioners will be obliged to fulfill their statutory duty to maintain professional competence.     Therefore practitioners need to work within the current system to accumulate sufficient credits.  The categories that cause the most difficulty for retired doctors are the internal category and Audit.   The following are some suggestions as to how practitioners can legitimately accumulate CPD credits:-

In relation to the Clinical / Practice Audit, the following suggestions may be adaptable to an individual’s requirements:

• Measurement of individual compliance with guidelines / protocols
• Medico-legal practice audit
• Skills analysis
• Self-assessment
• Teaching role :  An evaluation of teaching role

Example:  Medico-Legal practice Audit:  (i) Record the number of different types of Medico legal cases.  (ii) Number of those who required review of imaging and the time they took.  (iii) Record the length of time carrying out literature searches to support your report

In relation to the Internal Category, the following suggestions could be adapted:-

• If you are teaching or acting in a professional advisory capacity, then the meetings, presentations or reviews that relate to that role can be recorded in the internal category. 
• Preparation of teaching lectures
• Preparation time for examining
• Peer review groups
• Meetings to discuss medico legal cases
• Chart reviews which commonly occur in medical legal practice
• Attending case presentations
• Attending meetings that relate to practitioners current role

In relation to the External Category, the following are suggestions:

• Online courses e.g. Medscape
• Courses approved by Training Bodies
• Attendance at meetings both National & International

In relation to the External Category, the following are suggestions:

• Journal Clubs
• E-Learning
• Self-directed education e.g. journal reading

In relation to the Research & Teaching Category, the following are suggestions:

• Lectures
• Teaching
• Examiner for Postgraduate Training Body
• Publishing articles
• Question Setting

Over the next few months we intend to have further discussions with other Training bodies and we hope to have more expansion on the above and guidelines will be issued.

As part of the arrangements agreed with the Medical Council, it is a requirement that each Postgraduate Training body undertake an annual verification of activities recorded by 3-5% of doctors enrolled on the professional competence scheme. This is a separate process to the Medical Council’s maintenance of professional competence audit processes.

We intend to commence the Verification Process in September 2013.  We will randomly select doctors to participate in this process for the year 1^st May 2012 – 30^th April 2013. This process will involve checking the activities that have been uploaded to you Professional Competence Scheme (PCS) portfolio and the CPD credits assigned to each activity.

Prior to the commencement of this Verification Process, we will issue guidelines on the type of supporting documentation required.

This is a supportive exercise aimed to promote confidence in what you are recording, identify shortfalls and provide support to assist you in meeting the Professional Competence Scheme requirements.

At the request of the Health Service Executive, RCSI have developed a Professional Development Programme (PDP) to facilitate NCHDs in Surgery and Emergency Medicine who are not engaged in specialist training to maintain their professional competence requirements. The RCSI Professional Development Programme will enable NCHD’s enrolled in the programme to achieve a minimum of 20 External Credits per annum. These credits can be used to help meet the requirements outlined by the Irish Medical Council regarding the maintenance of Professional Competence. Classes for the third cycle of PDP are due to commence in September 2013.

The Professional Development Programme Curriculum

The PDP programme has three major components:

• 1. Knowledge (Online/Classroom Learning Activities, and Scientific Conferences/Meetings)
• 2. Technical Skills
• 3. Personal Skills/Human Factors

Eligibility Criteria

• must be enrolled in the relevant Professional Competence Scheme applicable to their specialty and area of practice as required by law
• must hold a current NCHD Contract
• must work within the Public Health Service
• must not be enrolled in an intern training programme under the auspices of an Intern Training Network or a specialist training programme under the auspices of the one of the Irish postgraduate training bodies; and
• must be registered on the General Division orSupervised Division of the Register of Medical Practitioners maintained by the Medical Council

Contact

Our new timetable of courses will commence in September 2013, please contact  us to register your interest in enrolling on the programme or for guidance re eligibility or other aspects of the programme.

Department of Surgical Affairs

Tel: 353 (0) 1 402 2166/2524
email: pdp@rcsi.ie 
web: Professional Development Programme

New masterclasses to help reduce your risk of complaints and claims

Specialists in Ireland will be only too aware of the rising risk of complaints and litigation. International research indicates that doctors can reduce their exposure to these risks, improve health outcomes and increase patient satisfaction, by improving communication skills and better management of patient expectations.

To assist consultants in Ireland in reducing their exposure to these risks, the Medical Protection Society (MPS) have developed a one-day Risk Management Masterclass. Each interactive and practical session is tailored to the needs of a specific specialty. The programme aims to enhance delegates’ skills in achieving more effective consultations (pre-operative or pre-treatment) and handling of adverse outcomes (post-treatment).

New masterclasses to help reduce your risk of complaints and claims

Specialists in Ireland will be only too aware of the rising risk of complaints and litigation. International research indicates that doctors can reduce their exposure to these risks, improve health outcomes and increase patient satisfaction, by improving communication skills and better management of patient expectations.

To assist consultants in Ireland in reducing their exposure to these risks, the Medical Protection Society (MPS) have developed a one-day Risk Management Masterclass. Each interactive and practical session is tailored to the needs of a specific specialty. The programme aims to enhance delegates’ skills in achieving more effective consultations (pre-operative or pre-treatment) and handling of adverse outcomes (post-treatment)