But college members who use a different CPD home do not get the 25 extra points.
As a pandemic consolation prize, GPs who log their CPD with the RACGP get a free 25 points, which translates to 12.5 hours and about 20% of the total CPD points needed for the triennium.
But those who took advantage of laws that came into effect last year to ditch the RACGP for a different CPD home will miss out.
The college said that the distinction was partly because it was only able to access the myCPD dashboards of those people who subscribe to its CPD program.
“Whilst we appreciate that GPs who’ve opted to self-manage their CPD will also be undertaking vital pandemic-related work, the college cannot automatically upload CPD points for these GPs because we don’t have a relationship with them – they don’t have a myCPD dashboard that we can upload them to,” a RACGP spokesperson told The Medical Republic.
The extra points are recognition of the tacit learning GPs have had to do throughout the past year of the pandemic and were automatically added to the CPD accounts of all GPs enrolled in the college’s program last month.
Bonus points were also given out for covid-related learning in mid-2020 and late 2021, making this the second time the college has awarded additional points since GPs have been allowed to take their CPD elsewhere.
“This [situation] highlights some of the many benefits of being an RACGP member – we are already an effective CPD home and can support our members, including by providing additional CPD points for work done as part of everyday practice,” the college spokesperson said.
“We encourage all GPs to consider the many advantages that membership can bring when making their own decision on managing their CPD.”
Meanwhile, ACRRM gave 15 additional hours to members in 2020, but does not appear to have provided any more handouts of additional hours to its members since then.
“The college is currently auditing members to ascertain where they may need support to meet their CPD requirements before the end of this triennium,” ACRRM Quality and Safety General Manager Sean Mutchmor said. “Covid impacts are being considered in the review.”
This CPD triennium ends on December 31, after which a new system will come in. The current requirement for 130 points per triennium changes to 50 hours per year, with one hour roughly equivalent to two points.
This story has been updated to correct an error around the total amount of CPD required from 2023 onward. The CPD requirement will not be lower under the new system.
