Transcript Health Professions Council SA

ADHERING TO HPCSA
REGULATIONS FOR
CONTINUED REGISTRATION
Presentation by:
Mrs. Barbara van Stade
July 2013
HPCSA FOUNDED FOR PUBLIC
PROTECTION AND PROFESSIONAL
GUIDANCE
• Statutory body established under the Health Professions Act
56 of 1974 and is mandated to regulate the health professions
in the Republic of South Africa.
• HPCSA has 12 Professional Boards operating under its
auspices
• The Professional Boards control the professions within their
ambit under the overarching coordination and guidance of the
HPCSA
• Registration is pre-requisite for practising of profession
Public Protection
Uncompromised standards of professional behaviour
•
Receive guidance on best practices in healthcare delivery from Board
•
Contribute to high quality standards that promote the health
of all South Africans
•
Know that unethical practitioners will be brought to justice
A practitioner shall at all times:
–
Act in the best interests of the patients
–
Respect patient confidentiality, privacy, choices and dignity
–
Maintain the highest standards of personal conduct and integrity
–
Keep professional knowledge and skills up to date
–
Practise professionally according to the ethical guidelines
Guiding the Professions
Personal Professional Protection
•
Receive professional status, inclusive of right to practice the
profession that they are qualified for
•
Be assured that no “unqualified” person may practice your profession
•
Be recognised as a competent practitioner who may command a
reward for services rendered
Continuing professional development
•
In terms of Section 26 of Act, all health professionals should on
continuous basis adhere to continuing professional development.
Registration with the HPCSA
•
Registration with HPCSA pre-requisite for professional practice (Section 17)
•
Registration to be up-to-date at all times (annual fee payable – failure to do so may result
in suspension from the register in terms of Section 19A (1) (b) of the Act.
•
Any health professional may apply for voluntary erasure from the register in writing
before 31 March.
•
Legal requirement to keep personal details current (Section 18 (3))
•
Compliance with CPD requirements pre-requisite for continued registration otherwise
may be suspended and have to pay restoration fee to be restored to the register.
•
Practicing without current registration – constitutes criminal offence (Section 36 & 39 of
the Health Professions Act, 1974). HPCSA empowered to enforce professional ethics by
means of formal disciplinary process.
•
Regulations promulgated in terms of the Act detailing registration, restoration, additional
qualifications registerable, CPD compliance and specifically prescribing scopes of
professions
Registration & Restoration
RESTORATION: Non payment of annual fee
To be restored, a practitioner is required to apply for restoration & pay penalty and
outstanding fees, which are calculated as follows:
1. Restoration within a period of six months after the erasure date is equivalent to 2X
the current annual fee + the outstanding fee(s).
2. Restoration after a period of more than six months since the erasure date but within a
year is equivalent to 4X the current annual fee + the outstanding fee(s);
3. Restoration after a period of 12 months since the erasure date is equivalent to 5X the
current annual fee + the outstanding fee(s).
•
Please note that when a practitioner is off the register for longer than two years and
have not been practising his/her profession, certain conditions will apply as per the
resolutions from the Professional Board concerned
Adhering to Professional Ethics thereby
ensuring continued registration with HPCSA
• Ethics in the Health Care Profession does not find
expression in ethical rules but through the heart, mind
and hands of the practitioner
• Generic Ethical Rules for all health care practitioners
• Annexures to the Generic Ethical Rules contain Board
specific Ethical Rules
• HPCSA is empowered by Act to enforce professional
ethics by means of formal Disciplinary Process
• Suspension pending formal disciplinary inquiry
enforceable in cases where continued practising of a
profession by a practitioner poses a serious risk of harm
to patients.
• Possibility of appeal to High Court
Advertising, Canvassing & Touting
•Advertising permissible: Provided that the advert is not unprofessional,
untruthful, deceptive or misleading or causes consumers unwarranted anxiety
that they may be suffering from any health condition.
•Price advertising must be explicit in such a way that the consumer must know
what the expected price is for the advertised professional item or services.
Phrases like “CONDITIONS APPLY” in an advert are misleading and deceptive
and must be avoided at all times or otherwise such conditions must be explicitly
stated in the advert.
•Canvassing relates to instances where a practitioner advertises his/her services
to be of a superior quality, when in actual fact the same quality of services can
be rendered by any registered practitioner in the same profession. These are
adverts which have the effect of casting a reflection on the probity and
professional skills of colleagues
•Touting relates to making offers in relation to items which are not considered to
be professional items or services in return for unnecessary professional services.
These are adverts which offers material things like garden umbrella, cameras and
all other items or services which do not fall within the scope of a registered
profession.
Ethical Rules continue
Perverse Incentives
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Over-servicing or under-servicing not allowed
Ownership of high-tech equipment only allowed if an integral part of
scope of practice of that health care professional: on condition
appropriate training on the use thereof has been obtained
Equipment on lease or loan arrangement should not influence overservicing
Shareholding may not come free of charge or at less than market value
No shareholding in an undertaking not listed at Stock Exchange is
permissible unless an application is made to the relevant Professional
Board motivating and detailing all influencing factors
Rentals should be at market related rates and not preferential rates
Rentals of establishments should not be conditioned on the
achievement of a certain turnover reached or other conditions that may
affect independent judgment of practitioners
Ethical Rules continue
Partnerships & Juristic Persons
•
•
Not lawful to practice with person who is not registered in terms of Health
Professions Act
Professional Practice model limited to solo practice, partnerships,
associations, incorporated practice & outsourced administration
Supersession
• Taking over of a patient under treatment by another practitioner without
informing that practitioner is regarded as unprofessional conduct
Impeding a Patient
•
Obstructing a patient or patient’s representative from obtaining opinion or
treatment elsewhere is regarded as unprofessional conduct
Performance of Professional acts by Medical
Technologists
A Medical Technologist –
• (a) shall confine himself or herself to practising in the specific
discipline of medical technology in which he or she was educated,
trained and registered;
• (b) shall not conduct a private practice without obtaining – (i) postgraduate experience of at least two years; and
– (ii) prior written approval from the board; and
• (c) shall, if he or she does not comply with the provisions of
paragraph (b), perform professional acts only under the direction of
a medical practitioner or medical scientist who is registered in the
relevant discipline: Provided that this prohibition shall apply only to
acts excluded, as determined by the board.
Performance of Professional acts by Medical
Technician
A Medical Technician –
• (a) shall confine himself or herself to practising in the
specific discipline of medical technology in which he or
she was educated, trained and registered;
• (b) shall perform professional acts only under the
supervision of a medical practitioner or medical
technologist who is registered in the relevant
• discipline; and
• (c) shall not conduct a private practice.
Performance of Professional acts by Intern
Medical Technologist
An intern medical technologist –
• (a) shall perform professional acts only under the supervision
of a practitioner who is registered in the relevant discipline;
• (b) shall limit the acts referred to in paragraph (a) to acts
directly related to his or her education and training as part of
the formal internship in his or her discipline of study;
• (c) shall not conduct a private practice; and
• (d) if he or she has completed his or her internship, shall not
perform any professional acts until he or she has satisfied all
the academic requirements for registration as a medical
technologist and has been registered as such.
Performance of Professional acts by student in medical
technology
A student in medical technology –
• (a) shall perform professional acts only under the supervision of a
practitioner who is registered in the relevant discipline; and
• (b) shall limit the acts referred to in paragraph (a) to acts directly related to
his or her education and training in his or her discipline of study.
Performance of Professional acts by laboratory assistant
A laboratory assistant –
• (a) shall confine himself or herself to performing acts in the specific discipline
of medical technology in which he or she is educated, trained and registered;
• (b) shall perform professional acts only under the supervision of a medical
• practitioner or medical technologist who is registered in the relevant
discipline; and
• (c) shall not conduct a private practice.
Continuing Professional
Development (CPD)
• Healthcare practitioners have a responsibility to continually update
their professional knowledge
• Directed at self-learning with clear identification of individualised
needs
• Designed to improve overall patient/client care skills
• Earn Continuing Educational Units (CEUs) by attending HPCSAapproved education initiatives
• Targets are realistically achievable
• Hierarchy of learning activities in three levels
Continuing Professional
Development (CPD)
• CPD Committee consisting of 12 representatives, one of each
Board and a chair appointed by Council.
• Boards approve accreditors and providers on application
• Accumulate 30 CEUs for a 12 month period of which at least 5
should be on ethics, human rights and medical law. CEUs accrued
for CPD activities will be valid for a period of 24 months. Thus after
2 years - 60 CEUs with at least 10 CEUs on ethics, human rights
and medical law
• Possibility of deferment in deserving circumstances as per the CPD
Guidelines – usually granted to practitioners not practising abroad
Continuing Professional
Development (CPD)
• CPD Department perform random audit of practitioners to check
compliance
• Letters to practitioners after audit and follow up audits for noncompliance
• Non-compliant practitioners to be included in audit after 6 months
• Different options for continued registration and practising of profession
• Suspension in terms of Section 19A(1)(d)
• New strategy License to practice, licensing practices to be
implemented upon amendment of the Act and Regulations
Continuing Professional
Development (CPD)
• Performance Assessment System
 to identify weaknesses & formulate interventions to
remedy or strengthen possible weak areas of practice
 If not compliant with requirements for CPD
 As part of the disciplinary process of Council to correct
certain transgressions
 Not used as a punitive measure but as a developing
measure to enhance performance by practitioner
Thank You
553 Madiba Street
Arcadia,Pretoria
PO Box 205
0001 PRETORIA
Tel: +27 (12) 338 9300
Fax: +27 (12) 328 5120
Email: [email protected]
Website: www.hpcsa.co.za
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