CPD PART 7 – CET JOANNE ABBOTT
Keeping on target with CET he end of the year is normally a time when optical practices see a seasonal drop in footfall, and eyecare practitioners are afforded a little extra time to catch-up on tasks they have been meaning to do throughout the year. At the time of writing, the optical sector is navigating the challenges and changes brought about by the Covid-19 pandemic – far beyond anything we could have comprehended at this stage last year. Everyday practises are vastly changed from the pre-pandemic norm. As we prioritise urgent and essential care, the expected lull in full clinical diaries and subsequent drop in patientorientated work time will not materialise. At the end of 2020 we will be two-thirds through the current CET cycle, which began in January 2019 and ends in December 2021. The statutory requirement for fully-qualified practitioners remains unchanged: registrants are required to obtain a minimum of 36 CET points over the three-year cycle and meet a minimum set of requirements, with additional requirements for contact lens opticians (CLOs) and independent prescribing optometrist speciality registrants1.
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ARE YOU ON TRACK? The General Optical Council (GOC) expects registrants to obtain a minimum of six CET points per year in order to spread their learning over the full CET cycle. In response to the constraints of the pandemic, this annual point expectance has been relaxed for the current year2, although registrants are still advised to keep on target by undertaking learning with a time-staged approach. Of the CET points to be undertaken during the cycle, the requirement remains that a minimum of 18 CET points obtained must be interactive in nature. Interactive CET is designed to prevent risk associated with professional isolation and inability to interact with peers, and is defined by the GOC as involving either a lecture, workshop or peer review event with physical attendance, or distance learning which includes an interactive element1. You can find out exactly what your individual CET requirements are, and what you have left to obtain, by either contacting the GOC or by logging in to the MyGOC platform, via the GOC website at www.optical.org. Your individual MyCET dashboard will show the CET points have already obtained and the requirements you have met. This portal also displays your personal development plan (PDP), and provides a facility to search for relevant CET opportunities by competency and type. A detailed CET guide for registrants can be downloaded from the GOC website at MyCET Downloads.
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DISPENSING OPTICS DECEMBER 2020
Figure 1: CET is readily accessible online
PLANNING AHEAD: INTERACTIVE CET Although the GOC reports that the majority of dispensing opticians (DOs), CLOs and optometrists are currently on target to obtain the minimum CET requirement for the cycle, it is imperative that you plan ahead accordingly to stay on target. Government constraints on in-person meetings and social distancing measures have meant that all planned face-to-face ABDO regional events that would have delivered interactive CET have been cancelled, and will remain so for the foreseeable future. Interactive CET opportunities have been heavily reduced nationwide with the postponement or cancellation of trade shows and industry conferences, although some have moved to online delivery platforms. Alex Webster, ABDO head of CPD, previously stated in a Dispensing Online interview at the start of the first national lockdown in April, that it was hard to imagine a return to in-person discussion workshops with registrants discussing cases in close proximity around a table – and this is still very much the case. As such, when planning your CET for the remainder of the cycle, be prepared that interactive CET obtained through in-person events may be very limited if it becomes available.
ONLINE CET WITH ABDO There are a number of avenues to complete CET: the ABDO CPD Department now provides regular opportunities to partake in interactive online peer discussions and discussion workshops covering a number of competencies and practice-based topics and scenarios. These sessions are delivered via Zoom and require a good internet connection with video and audio capabilities on your device (Figure 1). They are a great way to maintain interaction with peers and keep up-to-date. If you are yet to undertake learning via this modality and wish to find out how to engage, then please do get in touch with the ABDO
