In Focus Health Professions Council Newsletter Issue 15 February 2008 Renewal reminder! Inside this issue Page Profession Radiographers Physiotherapists Renewal cut-off date 29 February 30 April Radiographers and physiotherapists are due to renew their registration with us at the start of 2008. It has been encouraging to see the number of health professionals lapsing decrease since the fi rst round of registration renewals in 2003. We are committed to working towards further reducing the number of registrants who fi nd their registration has lapsed, but we need health professionals to work with us to ensure that this happens. All registered radiographers were sent their renewal forms in December 2007 and have until 29 February 2008 to send us their completed form and pay their fee. Physiotherapists will be sent a registration renewal form at the beginning of February 2008. This document must be signed and returned to us by 30 April 2008 with a payment (unless a direct debit instruction is in place). There are several ways in which you can make sure your name stays on the HPC Register. Call the HPC Registration Department now if you have changed your home address. Send your renewal form (and payment) to us well before the deadline. Sign up to this newsletter by emailing newsletter@hpc-uk.org After you have sent us your renewal form, check the Register online via our website (www.hpc-uk.org) to ensure that you are showing as registered for the next two-year registration cycle. Help your colleagues stay registered too by reminding them when to renew. If you would like any renewal posters to display in your department, please email publications@hpc-uk.org The UK Registration team can be contacted Monday to Friday, 8am 6pm on our lo-call number 0845 3004 472 (if calling from within the UK) or +44 (0)20 7840 9802. This newsletter and previous issues can be downloaded from the website at www.hpc-uk.org/publications/newsletter To have it sent straight to your inbox, please email newsletter@hpc-uk.org Note from the Editor 1 Renewal reminder! 1 Listening Events registrants have their say! 2 Health, Disability and Registration 2 Employer Events 3 Health Professions Council appointments and elections 3 Presentation programme for education providers 3 Consultations 4 FTP case study 4 Fitness to practise hearings 5 Dates for your diary 6 Public information leafl ets and posters 6 Contact us 7 The new year has seen things off to a positive start, as we welcome draft legislation which would lead to the regulation of practitioner psychologists by the HPC (page 3). Our Education and Communications teams have been out and about delivering presentations (page 3) and running a range of events for registrants (page 2) and employers (page 3). See page 4 for our latest consultation deadlines, and check page 6 for dates to fi ll your new year diary. Finally, calling all radiographers your registration renewal deadline is the end of this month, so if you haven t already, please send us your signed renewal form (and payment) as soon as possible! I hope you fi nd this issue of HPC In Focus useful and interesting. As ever, we welcome your feedback, so please keep sending us your comments. Happy new year and happy reading! Philippa Richardson, Editor HPC In Focus 1
Listening Events registrants have their say! January s Listening Events in Lowestoft and Cambridge proved very popular with over 200 people in attendance. A new format was introduced for the fi rst time at these events, which intended to generate more involved and open discussion. Judging from feedback the new structure was well liked and will continue to be developed at future events. Sessions started with informal discussion allowing local registrants and HPC Council members and staff to meet. This was followed by a short presentation from the Director of Policy and Standards (in Lowestoft) and the President (in Cambridge). Small group discussions then took place, generating questions for the panel to address during an open Q&A session. Subjects of debate included the standards and audit process for CPD, the benefi ts of the HPC, regulation of new professions, and revalidation. Summaries of the discussions will be posted on the HPC website as soon as they are available. We would like to thank everyone who attended the events and helped to make them such a success. The next set of Listening Events are planned for Tuesday 6 May in Glasgow and Thursday 8 May in Edinburgh. Full details will be made available on the HPC website and letters of invitation posted to local registrants before the events. If you would like to attend please see the website for details of how to register. Alternatively, please call us on 020 7840 9709. Listening Events provide an ideal opportunity to meet with other registrants and members of the HPC Council, fi nd out about current and future developments in regulation, and to give feedback on the HPC. We hope to see you there. Health, Disability and Registration In November last year, we held an event in Birmingham to discuss issues around health, disability and registration. The event was attended by staff from education and training providers, as well as representatives from professional bodies. A disabled person s guide to becoming a health professional In 2007, we published this document to provide information and advice to disabled people who are thinking about applying to train to be a health professional. It is also aimed at admissions staff making decisions about disabled applicants. We also published Information about the health reference which provides guidance for both applicants and doctors. The event provided an opportunity to discuss and explore education providers experience of working with disabled applicants and students and meeting the requirements of the legislation. The event opened with a presentation from Rachel Tripp, Director of Policy and Standards, who outlined the process of putting together our guidance documents. Claire White, Senior Lecturer and Disability Advisor at King s College London, explained 2 HPC In Focus how one education provider had worked to meet the requirements of the legislation. Dianne Keetch, a disability trainer and consultant, then talked about the requirements of the Disability Rights Act. In the afternoon, attendees were invited to discuss their views on the recent Disability Rights Commission report on fi tness standards in education, social work and nursing. The report recommended that regulators and education providers should work to remove health requirements which might act as a barrier to disabled people. The day was very successful and there was lots of helpful discussion and debate. More information A disabled person s guide to becoming a health professional and Information about the health reference are available to download from our website. If you would like to be sent a copy in any other format (including Braille, audio disc or large print), please email publications@hpc-uk.org
Employer Events The HPC is committed to supporting registrants and so during November 2007 we ran our fi rst of a series of specifi c Employer Events in Manchester and Glasgow. The events provided an overview of the HPC and focused on subjects of specifi c relevance to employers, including CPD standards and audit requirements, the renewals process, and when to refer fi tness to practise issues. Attendees were also able to put questions and feedback to a panel of HPC employees, including the Director of Fitness to Practise, Director of Policy and Standards, Registrations Manager and CPD Communications Manager. The two events attracted over 80 attendees and proved to be a real success. Upcoming Employer Events (2008) Location Belfast Cardiff London Date 18 February 20 February 21 February If you are involved in the employment or management of registrants and would like to attend please email employers@hpc-uk.org or call 020 7840 9806 giving your name and the location of the session you would like to attend. Places are limited, so please respond as soon as possible to secure your place. Full details are also available on the employers section of the HPC website: http://www.hpc-uk.org/aboutregistration/employers/ Health Professions Council appointments and elections On 21 December 2007 the Department of Health published a consultation on the draft legislation Health Care and Associated Professions (Miscellaneous Amendments) No 2 Order 2008 which would lead to the regulation of practitioner psychologists by the HPC. It also contains proposals relating to the size and make-up of our Council. If the changes proposed in the consultation are implemented, all members of the Council would be appointed instead of elected. The appointments process would be undertaken by the Appointments Commission, following advertising campaigns in the national media of the four home countries, England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales. Further information will be published on the HPC website when it becomes available. In line with current legislation the HPC appointed the returning offi cer for the 2008 elections to the Council for dietitians, speech and language therapists and operating department practitioners. The timetable for the elections will be published on the HPC website in late February 2008. The date of enactment of the amended legislation, which would bring about a fully appointed Council, will determine whether the election ballot will take place. The HPC is currently recruiting for practitioner psychologists to carry out a number of roles as HPC partners. Details are available on the HPC website at: http://www.hpc-uk.org/aboutus/partners/ Presentation programme for education providers During the autumn of last year our Education Approvals and Monitoring Department were out and about delivering presentations to education providers around the UK. Events took place in London, Sheffi eld, Edinburgh, Cardiff and Belfast. Whilst the majority of attendees were from education providers who run approved programmes, there were also representatives from those that do not currently offer HPC approved courses. Members of professional bodies and registrants also attended. continued... HPC In Focus 3
continued... The presentations provided an update on the work of the HPC, focussing on areas of particular interest to education providers. Attendees therefore received information about developments in policy and standards, communications, registration and partner work. The second part of the presentation focussed on the Education Department s three key processes: approval; annual monitoring; and major/minor change. During this section, the team shared fi ndings recently gathered from education provider feedback, a review of processes and an analysis of conditions. Attendees were given the opportunity to put forward comments/questions at the end of the presentations. All points raised were discussed on the day as well as reviewed back at the HPC. Follow-up information was then sent to all registered parties after each event. It is our intention to run similar presentations during the 2008/2009 academic year. More information, including dates and locations, will be made available in future editions of the newsletter. Consultations We are currently running four consultations. Amendments to the standards of proficiency for chiropodists / podiatrists We are currently seeking views on proposals that the standards of profi ciency for chiropodists / podiatrists which relate to local anaesthetics and prescription-only medicines should become compulsory. Standards of proficiency for operating department practitioners We recently reviewed the profession-specifi c standards for operating department practitioners and are seeking views on revised standards. Both of the above consultations run until Friday 7 March 2008. We are also consulting on standards of profi ciency for applied psychologists and on the threshold level of qualifi cation for entry to the applied psychologists part of the Register. These consultations will close on Friday 8 February 2008. We would very much welcome your response to any of these consultations. You can download copies of the consultation documents from the consultations section of our website: http://www.hpc-uk.org/aboutus/consultations/ Alternatively, you can contact us to request hard copies by emailing consultation@hpc-uk.org FTP case study: Convicted ODP struck off Register An operating department practitioner (ODP) has been removed from the HPC Register for his convictions for theft, assault and failing to provide a breath specimen. In a hearing held in London, a panel of the HPC Conduct and Competence Committee heard that the former registrant admitted to stealing prescription-only pain killers from the hospital where he worked. He was convicted of this offence and received a conditional discharge for two years. The panel found that the ODP s convictions impaired his fi tness to practise and that it was necessary to remove his name from the HPC Register. Chair of the HPC panel, Collin Allies commented on the case: The panel is satisfi ed that the fact of the theft constitutes misconduct and that the registrant s fi tness to practise is impaired. He did not behave with integrity and honesty and allowed his behaviour to damage his profession s reputation. In light of registrant feedback we feature an FTP case study in each edition of the newsletter. These case studies are intended to provide some insight into the kind of fi tness to practise issues that we deal with and the action that we can take. As our fi tness to practise proceedings continue to grow in number and complexity, it must be recognised that they still involve only a tiny proportion of the health professionals on our Register. Most remain fi t to practise, and pride themselves on high standards of care. For more information on our FTP processes, see our website at http://www.hpc-uk.org/complaints/ ftp/process/ 4 HPC In Focus
Fitness to practise hearings: November December 2007 Our Fitness to Practise Department is responsible for handling complaints, known as allegations, about the fi tness to practise of professionals we register. When we say that a health professional is fi t to practise we mean that he or she has the health and character, as well as the necessary skills and knowledge to do their job safely and effectively. Our main responsibility is to protect the public, maintaining public confi dence in the professions and professionals we regulate. We will consider every complaint we receive about a health professional on a case-by-case basis and take action in light of the individual circumstances. The table below provides basic details of hearings since the production of our December edition of HPC In Focus. For further information on these and all other fi tness to practise hearings, please click on the following link: www.hpc-uk.org/complaints/hearings/ Date of Name Registration Profession Details Outcome hearing number 23 Nov Babatunde BS51672 Biomedical scientist Fraudulently procured a Struck off Akinbode reference 27 Nov Sharon Cooke PA12786 Paramedic Failure to provide adequate Caution basic medical assessment 27 Nov Rene Revillas PH68058 Physiotherapist Failure to meet the requirements Suspended of managing a neurological case load 27 Nov Paul Jones SL06717 Speech and language Inadequate patient records, Struck off therapist failure to ensure patient records securely kept, taking photographs of patients in a state of undress 3 Dec Avril Zurawek OT41904 Occupational therapist Failure to complete adequate Suspended patient assessments, poor risk management 4 Dec Rachel Winnard PH62581 Physiotherapist Review hearing Suspended 4 Dec Mark Campbell ODP20206 Operating department Review hearing Caution practitioner 6 Dec Nigel Harrison PA130 Paramedic Review hearing Suspended 6 Dec Zanele Nxumalo DT12152 Dietitan Review hearing Suspended 6 Dec Pamela Willson SL01878 Speech and language Review hearing Suspended therapist 6 Dec Bridget Burke AS105 Arts therapist Misconduct Caution 7 Dec John Jarvis ODP09171 Operating department Conviction for making indecent Struck off practitioner photographs and making indecent photographs of children 10 Dec Christopher PA07932 Paramedic Conviction for possessing Struck off Payne indecent photographs of children 11 Dec Brajraj Kumar RA47644 Radiographer Lack of competence Suspended 14 Dec Ian G Blakey PA01964 Paramedic Review hearing Suspended 17 Dec Yobesh OT37786 Occupational therapist Clinical practice below standard Suspended Nyakweba 19 Dec David Wright PA03383 Paramedic Convictions for theft from a Struck off patient and from a dead patient 21 Dec Simon Small PA07560 Paramedic Failure to meet standards of Conditions of profi ciency practice All hearings will now begin at 10am (other than those previously fi xed at 10.30am). They are open to the press and public, unless otherwise stated. If you wish to attend a hearing held by the HPC, please contact Victoria Smyth on 020 7840 9784 or email victoria.smyth@hpc-uk.org HPC In Focus 5
Dates for your diary: February April 2008 Council and committee meetings HPC Council and committee meetings are held in public; more information, including minutes and agendas can be found on our website at www.hpc-uk.org/aboutus/council/ Dates for your diary: February April 2008 Monday 4 February Tuesday 5 February Wednesday 6 February Tuesday 12 February Monday 18 February Tuesday 19 February Tuesday 25 February Thursday 27 February Tuesday 11 March Wednesday 19 March Wednesday 26 March Wednesday 26 March Thursday 27 March Thursday 24 April Education and Training panel Health Committee Finance and Resources Committee Investigating Committee PLG Standards of Education and Training Review Conduct and Competence Committee Communications Committee Audit Committee PLG Continuing Fitness to Practise Finance and Resources Committee Education and Training Committee Education and Training panel Council Conduct and Competence Committee Investigating Committee Health Committee Joint Fitness to Practise Forum Finance and Resources Committee Public information leafl ets and posters If you would like any public information leafl ets, window stickers or posters, please email us at campaigns@hpc-uk.org Contact us What do you think of this newsletter? Is there anything you would like to see in future issues? We would like to hear your views, so please email newsletter@hpc-uk.org To subscribe or unsubscribe please email newsletter@hpc-uk.org Health Professions Council Park House 184 Kennington Park Road London SE11 4BU tel +44 (0)20 7582 0866 www.hpc-uk.org 6 HPC In Focus