Continuing Professional Development
Continuing Professional Development, or CPD, is the process by which members of a profession remain up to date with developments in their area of professional interest, and accumulate experience and learning to build on their existing knowledge.
AFAC EMPS requires registered and certified practitioners to undertake CPD every year. It is not intended to impose a burden on practitioners: emergency managers who are active in their role should have no difficulty in meeting the set requirements.
By completing your AFAC EMPS CPD requirements every year, you maintain your eligibility to be a member in the scheme and you demonstrate to your agency and your colleagues that your skills are current. A good starting point is here for AFAC EMPS CPD requirements.
The importance of CPD
Continuing Professional Development (CPD) is an important part of AFAC EMPS. Nationally Recognised Training (NRT) using the Public Safety Training Package has been in place in Australia for a number of years. Training qualifications, however, can only evidence an individual’s competence at a given time taken against specified performance criteria. AFAC EMPS combines the requirement for applicants to demonstrate actual experience in the role, together with an ongoing commitment by practitioners to spend time every year ensuring that their skills remain current. AFAC EMPS registered and certified practitioners are therefore able to demonstrate not only that they are qualified and experienced in the role, but that they have kept up to date.