Professional Competence Requirements

From 1st May 2025 onwards, doctors will be required to record 50 CPD hours during a scheme year. The scheme year for maintenance of professional competence begins on 1st May and ends on 30th April. Doctors should record these 50 CPD hours across the following categories:

• Planning CPD (maximum of 5 CPD hours)
• Practice Review (minimum of 10 CPD hours)
• Work-based Learning (minimum of 15 CPD hours)
• Accredited CPD Activity (minimum of 20 CPD hours)

Doctors who are not engaged in the practice of medicine are still required to complete 50 CPD credits, including Planning CPD (5 credits), at least 25 credits from Practice Review and/or Work-Based Learning, and 20 credits from Accredited CPD

• Planning CPD (maximum of 5 CPD hours)
  Your Professional Development Plan (PDP) supports reflective practice and helps you plan learning activities aligned with your scope and stage of practice. Completion of a PDP is now mandatory and attracts 3 CPD credits.
  The Medical Council recommends that doctors review their PDP annually and engage in peer review.
  You can also earn 1 additional CPD credit by having your PDP reviewed by a peer or colleague, and a further 1 CPD credit by reflecting on your plan at the end of the year.
• Practice Review (minimum of 10 CPD hours)
  The Practice Review category includes Clinical or Practice Audits, Quality Improvement projects, and Practice Evaluation.
  Audit Reviewing care against criteria to improve standards
  Quality Improvement focuses on implementing changes to achieve better outcomes.
  Practice Evaluation assessing your professional performance in relation to your specific scope and stage of practice.
• Work-based Learning (minimum of 15 CPD hours)
  Work-based learning is when doctors reflect on their clinical and non-clinical work to better understand their practice, identify areas for improvement, and enhance professional awareness through critical self-evaluation.
• Accredited CPD Activity (minimum of 20 CPD hours)
  Accredited CPD includes clinical and non-clinical educational activities like conferences, courses, and workshops. To count towards annual CPD requirements, the activity must be accredited either in Ireland or in the country where it takes place and must meet international standards accepted by the doctor’s Professional Competence Scheme.

You are still required to maintain compliance with Medical Council standards, regardless of whether you are currently engaged in medical practice. The allocation of CPD credits across the new categories differs slightly for doctors not actively practising. A detailed breakdown of these requirements is available in the FAQ section.

Engagement in the practice of medicine by a registered medical practitioner includes any of the following activities:

• Involvement in the act of diagnosing, treating or managing illnesses and medical conditions, including telemedicine consultations
• Provision of medical advice or education
• Prescription of medications
• Performing medical procedures
• Development of preventative programmes
• Conducting relevant medical research
• Taking any other actions which require medical knowledge and skills

If you do not fall into the category above – please contact professionalcompetence@coa.ie to adjust you e-portfolio.