Maintaining Professional Competence - a key patient safety measure

As the regulator of doctors registered in Ireland, the Medical Council is responsible for protecting the public through ensuring high standards of professional conduct and professional education and competence among doctors.

Maintenance of professional competence (MPC) is a key aspect of driving good professional practice and supporting safe, effective and high-quality patient care. All doctors registered in Ireland are required to maintain their professional competence, to keep knowledge and skills up to date.

Participation in CPD is not simply a regulatory requirement, it is a key patient safety measure that supports good clinical practice, professional development and improved healthcare outcomes. Through engagement in activities such as external CPD, internal practice review, audit, quality improvement and reflective learning, doctors can identify learning needs, enhance their knowledge and skills, and strengthen the quality and safety of the care they provide.

What is professional competence?

All doctors registered in Ireland are legally required to maintain their professional competence (MPC) through engaging in lifelong learning to keep knowledge and skills up to date and remain responsive to the needs of patients and healthcare services.

For the majority of doctors, this entails annual enrolment on a Professional Competence Scheme (PCS) and following annual requirements set by the Medical Council.

Schemes are operated by postgraduate training bodies and have been developed to drive good professional practice which is centred on patient safety and the quality of patient care.

Professional Competence Requirements for Doctors

The annual requirements for doctors are defined in the MPC Framework, which in turn is underpinned by the MPC Rules.

The Professional Competence year runs from 1 May to 30 April. During this 12-month period, doctors must complete the below annual requirements set by the Medical Council.

Professional Competence Guidelines

The Medical Council produced Professional Competence Guidelines to outline the requirements for both doctors and the Postgraduate Training Bodies. Read the Maintenance of Professional Competence Guidelines here.

These Guidelines should be read in conjunction with the Medical Council’s Guide to Professional Conduct and Ethics for Registered Medical Professionals (9th Edition).

Professional Competence FAQ’s

We have prepared a list of Frequently Asked Questions to help doctors understand what is expected of them in relation to Professional Competence. You can view the full list of FAQ's here or choose the option that best suits your query below.

1. Enrolling in a professional competence scheme
2. Professional competence requirements
3. Monitoring and audit
4. Doctors practising outside the State
5. Doctors with flexible and diverse working arrangements
6. Retired doctors who continue the practice of medicine on an ad-hoc basis
7. Doctors without day-to-day contact with patients

Find out more about professional competence in our Professional Competence website section here.