Question: If I have recently successfully completed the knowledge assessment or practice portfolio under the former competence program or if I was granted additional prescribing authorization, do I still need to complete and submit a professional portfolio to ACP as a requirement to renew my practice permit?
Answer: Yes! All pharmacists on the clinical register are required to meet the requirements of the Continuing Competence Program (CCP) by May 31, 2015, to be eligible to renew their 2015/2016 practice permit online.
One exemption
The only pharmacists who are exempt from the program are those who register for the first time on the clinical register between January 1, 2015 and June 30, 2015.
What about the audit?
If, within the last five years, you have:
- successfully completed a competence assessment through the former RxCEL program (e.g., knowledge assessment or portfolio), and/or
- been granted additional prescribing authorization,
your CCP portfolio will not be randomly selected for audit. Your portfolio will only be selected for an audit if there is another reason such as a late or incomplete submission or a request from the registrar. You are still required to complete and record at least 15 hours of professional development and document how you have implemented one hour of this learning.
Program information
The revised program was designed to be a simple, relevant, and meaningful process that helps you to keep up with (or ahead of) practice changes and to continually improve your knowledge and skills.
One of the first steps you should take is to review the mandatory Continuing Competence Program (CCP) tutorial. This tutorial provides an in-depth look at the revised competence program; and, through examples, will help you understand requirements to successfully complete the program. The CCP tutorial is available in the Self-Assessment/Prescribed Activities section of the CCP web portal. The portal will track when you have completed this requirement.
In addition to completing the mandatory CCP tutorial, you must:
- Complete at least 15 CEUs during the CE cycle (June 1-May 31) and document each activity on a Learning Record.
- Implement at least one hour (equivalent to 1 CEU) of learning into your practice and document this on an Implementation Record. While you must record 15 hours of learning; only 1 hour of that learning must be recorded on the Implementation Record.
More information about the Continuing Competence Program is available in the CCP web portal, in the Competence section of the ACP website, and in our recent issues of acpnews. If you have any questions about the competence program, please submit your questions through the CCP web portal or contact Debbie Lee, Competence Director.
