National registration update

The National Registration and Accreditation Implementation Project has released an update on the progress of the proposed scheme for health professions.

This agreement will for the first time create a single national registration and accreditation system for 10 health professions: chiropractors; dentists (including dental hygienists, dental prosthetists and dental therapists); medical practitioners; nurses and midwives; optometrists; osteopaths; pharmacists; physiotherapists; podiatrists; and psychologists.

The new arrangement will help health professionals move around the country more easily, reduce red tape, provide greater safeguards for the public and promote a more flexible, responsive and sustainable health workforce. For example, the new scheme will maintain a public national register for each health profession that will ensure that a professional who has been banned from practising in one place is unable to practise elsewhere in Australia.

The report indicates the speed with which the scheme is being developed, from forums and a consultation paper (more than 40 submissions received) to enabling legislation (passed by the Queensland Parliament last November) to the appointment of staff.