For Fellows and Trainees

College needs to know when a Fellow retires, exactly what change they are making and how they intend handling their registration.

Why?

College must be clear on any CPD exemptions or requirements; Subscription exemptions or requirements; plus whether it is appropriate that we remove their listing on the College Website, and we are clear where best to send College communications.

It is not uncommon for Fellows to declare they are retiring. Often Fellows mean they have completely ceased clinical work and discontinued their registration.
This is classed as “retired”.

Fellows who are ‘Retired’ are fully exempt from any CPD requirement; need not hold Professional Indemnity Insurance, nor need meet Recency of Practice requirements. Such a Fellow must not see patients, prescribe, give advice about patients to other practitioners or represent to the public or individuals that they are available to treat patients or give advice. No College Subscription is payable.

If you are “retired” as defined above, please fill in the DECLARATION OF RETIREMENT FORM

In some instances however, Fellows may mean they are ceasing clinical work but wishing to maintain their registration.

This situation is not classed as retirement by College. To “retire” you must be intending to forgo registration.  Even if you are aiming to be relatively inactive, maintaining your registration means you remain accountable to meet the requirements of registration as set by the Medical Board. Because of these requirements, College continues to define your status as  ‘Active’. In the past Fellows maintained registration so they could write scripts. But in February 2016 the ‘recency of practice standard’ changed. It is unlikely you will be able to meet this standard if occasionally writing scripts:

If you hold Specialist, General, or, Specialist and General Registration, to comply with the Registration Standards of AHPRA you must:

• hold Professional Indemnity Insurance;
• meet the Recency of practice requirements – to meet the standards you must do 4 weeks or a total of 152 hrs in a registration period OR 12 weeks or 456 hours over 3 registration periods;
• must meet College CPD requirements – which are now that you must do 100% CPD. You must pay the full College Subscription (Overseas fellows = 50%).

If this describes your circumstance, College requires you to fill the  DECLARATION OF CHANGE OF PRACTICE FORM

When considering retiring or changing practice, the category non-practising registration, introduced in 2012, is an option. It enables a Fellow to use a protected title “medical practitioner”, “medical specialist” or “dermatologist” where this is needed or wanted by the Fellow (e.g. may be you are on a Board) but for all intents and purposes you are otherwise retired:

Fellows who are ‘Non-practising’ are fully exempt from any CPD requirement; need not hold Professional Indemnity Insurance, nor need meet Recency of Practice requirement, and they pay no College Subs. Such a Fellow must not see patients, prescribe, give advice about patients to other practitioners or represent to the public or individuals that they are available to treat patients or give advice. To do so would be a breach of the National Law.

If this describes your circumstance, College requires you to fill the  DECLARATION OF CHANGE OF PRACTICE FORM

If you require assistance please contact the College on (02) 8765 0242.