The Continuing Competence (CC) program can be an area of confusion for many members. It is always beneficial to cover some common areas of confusion for members.
Previous articles:
- The CC program basics
- CE vs. SD activities
- Supporting documentation
- What is considered ‘relevant to your practice’?
Today, we will be going over the Continuing Competence Audits. A key component to the Continuing Competence program is the mandatory CC audit. However, unless selected for the audit most members do not understand the process or what is required of them.
At the beginning of every CC cycle, the College conducts an annual Audit of the previous CC cycle. A group of members are randomly selected in the member portal and are notified by email of their mandatory participation in the audit. These members are given detailed instructions and a deadline to submit all supporting documentation for the activities they claimed in the previous CC cycle. Everything is completed through the member portal. If a regulated member has utilized the optional upload when entering their activities, it makes the process even easier as they simply can review what is uploaded and submit the form.
Once a form is submitted, College administration reviews the documentation and either approves the form if all criteria is met or directs the form to be reviewed by the Competence Committee. Members who have been approved have met all the audit requirements and have successfully completed the audit. The Competence Committee reviews all supporting documentation for anyone not approved by College administration. Those members are notified if they have met or not met the requirements of the audit. In the event they have not met the requirements, the Committee provides directions on additional requirements. Generally, this includes additional activities for the current CC cycle and mandatory participation in another audit.
Main areas of concern from previous audits include:
- Inadequate proof of completion/improper documentation
- The CC program manual outlines what constitutes supporting documentation. This was also covered in a previous article which can be found here.
- Activities recorded must be relevant to your paramedic practice
- The goal of the program is to foster individual improvement and growth of professional practice, enhancing the level of service and care provided to Albertans. This means the courses/activities taken to complete CC requirements must be relevant to your practice. This was covered in detail in the previous article and can be found here.
- Completing the CC form
- The Continuing Competence program is a legislative requirement and a part of that is reporting how CC activities have enhanced your practice. This is done in the CC form in your member portal. When an activity is added, a box appears that prompts members to explain how the activity has enhanced their practice. This is not an area that can be skipped. The Competence Committee flagged many members during previous audits who either did not fill out this portion or said the activity did not enhance their practice.
- Accuracy in the number of hours claimed
- Members are required to provide an accurate account of the number of hours self-directed activities have taken them to complete. During the audit, if the Competence Committee has concerns about the number of hours claimed for an activity, the regulated member will be required to submit proof of the hours completed.
Overall, the CC audit is a smooth process and easy to navigate for members. If you have any questions about the CC program or audit, please contact CC@ABparamedics.com.