Hpcsa Annual Report 2012 2013

20132012AnnuAl RepoRt

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2013 AnnuAl RepoRt01

Mission Quality healthcare standards for all

Vision The HPCSAs vision is to enhance the quality of health by developing strategic policy frameworks for effective co-ordination and guidance of our Professional Boards in:

Setting healthcare standards for training and discipline in the professionals registered with the HPCSA; Ensuring on-going professional competence; and Fostering compliance with those standards.

The Health Professions Council of South Africa (HPCSA) is a statutory body established under the Health Professions Act 56 of 1974 is mandated to regulate the health professions in the Republic of South Africa in aspects pertaining to registration, education and training (including the setting of healthcare standards for training), ethics and ethical behaviour, ensuring continuing professional development and fostering compliance with healthcare standards.

Contents

SECTion onE: Presidents Report 05

SECTion Two: Registrars Report 11

SECTion THREE: Executive overview 17

Cpd, Registrations And Records 17

Financial Services 23

Human Resources and Labour Relations 24

information Technology 26

Legal Services And ombudsman 28

Public Relations And Service Delivery 30

Professional Boards 32

Support Services 34

SECTion FoUR: Professional Boards overview 38

Professional Board For Dental Therapy And oral Hygiene 39

Professional Board For Dietetics And nutrition 43

Professional Board For Emergency Care 47

Professional Board For Environmental Health Practitioners 49

Medical And Dental Professions Board 52

Professional Board For Medical Technology 55

Professional Board for occupational Therapy, Medical orthotics and Prosthetics And Arts Therapy 59

Professional Board optometry And Dispensing opticians 61

Professional Board of Physiotherapy, Podiatry And Biokinetics 65

Professional Board For Psychology 67

Professional Board For Radiography And Clinical Technology 73

Professional Board For Speech Language And Hearing Professions 77

SECTion FivE: Corporate overview 83

SECTion Six: Management and Administration 87

SECTion SEvEn: Financial overview 90



SECTion onE: PRESiDEnTS REPoRT


PRESiDEnTS REPoRT

seCtion one

South Africa has a dynamic, vibrant health sector which presents constant change and opportunities for its health professionals. The country is moving steadily to overhaul its health system to deliver quality health care to all citizens efficiently and in a caring environment. At the start of the 20th century, William Jennings Bryant wrote that Destiny is no matter of chance, it is a matter of choice. It is not a thing to be waited for, it is a thing to be achieved.

Universal coverage through a National Health Insurance system, which makes provision for quality control, infrastructure upgrading and access to healthcare for all, is part of the destiny we seek to achieve as health professionals.

The mandate of the Health Professions Council of South Africa is to protect the public and to guide the professions. In protecting the public and guiding South Africas health care professions, I recall the quote by Douglas Adams, that to give real service you must add something which cannot be bought or measured with money, and that is sincerity and integrity. At the end of the day, we are accountable to ourselves and those we serve, and our success needs to be measured by what we do, in addition to what we say.

Over this past year, the HPCSA moved decisively in a number of areas, and with integrity acknowledged when such actions proved to be too hasty in our desire to serve.

HuMAn RigHts, etHiCs And pRofessionAl pRACtiCe

The HPCSAs Human Rights, Ethics and Professional Practice Committee provides guidance, and sets policies and rules on appropriate professional and ethical behaviour for practitioners registered with Council. To execute its mandate effectively, this year the Committee represented Council at a number of international and local conferences.

In December 2012, South Africa hosted the second of four World Medical Association (WMA) Expert Conferences on the revision of the Declaration of Helsinki. This document outlines ethical principles for research involving humans, and the meeting in Cape Town aimed to draw an African perspective on this.

Following the conference, the Committee recommended to Council that developments around the revised declaration required vigilant monitoring as they could have implications for research in developing countries, including South Africa.

Developing a national e-health programme can contribute to reaching health and development goals, and be a crucial tool for achieving universal health coverage. Harnessing information and communication technologies for health requires planning at national level, and the Committee represented the HPCSA at the e-Health Strategy Toolkit conference to assist the country to launch electronic health services.

The toolkit was developed by World Health Organisation (WHO) and the International Telecommunication Union (ITU).

In addition to advising the HPCSA and the Minister of Health, the Committee will assist in developing guidelines for practitioners wanting to become involved in eHealth, mHealth and mobile health application. The Committee continues to maintain contact with the various Department of Health structures regarding its e-Health strategy.

Prof. Mochichi Samuel MokgokongPresident, HPCSA

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Stem cell therapy lacks guidelines in South Africa, which makes it difficult to enforce any compliance standards. The Committee has initiated contact with representatives of the Medicines Control Council (MCC) as the authority in this area to request its Task Teams to conduct the necessary inspections, and enable the HPCSA to accompany the team during the inspections in a supportive role.

Work continued on reviewing and updating the Ethical Booklets, and the Committee has revisited the Core Curriculum for Ethics, Human Rights and Medical Law, launched in 2008, to determine progress on the implementation of the curriculum.

pRofessionAl ConduCt

During the current reporting period, the HPCSAs Legal Department received a total of 2 997 complaints, of which it referred 403 to the office of the Ombudsman and opened 117 as police files involving unregistered individuals. Having received 2 687 complaints in the previous financial year, this constituted an increase of 310 cases. The number of finalised matters has risen by over 30% since 2011/12, from 189 cases to 248. The majority of matters settled at disciplinary level were admission of guilt fines, while 51 practitioners were suspended from practicing. Nearly 20% (49) of the complaints related to fraud and theft, followed by insufficient care/treatment and mismanagement of patients (41) and overcharging or charging for services not rendered (30).

iMpAiRed pRACtitioneRs

The HPCSAs Health Committee is a non-punitive, supportive body that focuses on regulating and advising impaired practitioners and students who suffer from mental or physical conditions, abuse or are dependent on chemical substances that affect their competence, attitude, judgement or performance.

It currently manages 311 practitioners, an increase of 25 cases over the 2011/2012 reporting period. This can be attributed to an apparent increased awareness among health sector employers and colleagues of the Health Committees role, resulting in more cases relating to alcohol and substance abuse, physical problems and mental illness being reported.

In the review period, the Health Committee held six meetings in Johannesburg, Pretoria, Durban, Port Elizabeth and Cape Town respectively. During road shows and interviews with practitioners in different provinces it also became apparent that some of those interviewed believed the Health Committees role was punitive towards reported practitioners.

Following the Health Committees recognition in stressing its supportive role towards practitioners experiencing difficulties that could hamper their career progress, its Secretariat met with the Councils Public Relations Department to consider providing more information to the public. The HPCSAs website was subsequently updated with the Health Committees current policy information and upgraded to allow easier access to its information.

CoRpoRAte goVeRnAnCe

Corporate governance embodies processes and systems through which entities such as the HPCSA are held to account. We continue to uphold governance principles as required by the King III report in executing our mandate. During the period under review, Council developed a five-year strategic plan that it submitted to the Minister of Health in accordance with the Health Professions Act.

Other significant actions included implementing a risk management strategy which includes measures to prevent fraud. The Councils Audit Committee, which is chaired by an independent external person, was satisfied at the acceptable manner in which risks have been managed. However, despite our strong financial management, sound internal controls and risk management, Council received a qualified audit opinion.

This was due to insufficient appropriate audit evidence for restatement of reserves; the completeness of revenue could not be verified; account receivable balance could not be verified, and provisions for employee leave pay could not be confirmed.

My personal conviction and the integrity of this noble institution to uphold good governance demands that we rectify this issue by applying interventions to improve our processes and enhance our skills and competencies. I am committed to restoring the

confidence of our health professionals and the public, and to ensuring that we do not again receive a qualified audit.

I am pleased to refer you to the annual financial statements for the period 2012/13 where you can view the Auditors opinion as contained in this annual report.

In concluding my report for the 2012/13 financial year, I wish to extend a special word of thanks to the Honourable Minister of Health, Dr Aaron Motsoaledi, for his continuous support of the HPCSA. In the words of Benjamin Franklin, who noted that well done is better than well said, I am grateful for the professionalism and dedication of the HPCSA Management and the members of Council, and thank them for their commitment in the HPCSA over the year.

CHAllenges

In spite of the achievements stated in this report the Health Professions Council of South Africa continues to experience challenges in the following areas:

The Enterprise Resource Solution

The organisation has been faced with huge IT related problems emanating from the procurement of the Oracle system. The organisation is currently working tirelessly to address all problems associated with the implementation of the Enterprise Resource Solution.

Tariff Determination

Unavailability of Tariff Guidelines continues to pose challenges on adjudication of complaints relating to overcharging. The Medical and Dental Professions Board has currently embarked on a process of determining tariffs for purposes of adjudication in terms of Section 53 (3) (d) of the Health Professions Act of South Africa.

Qualified Audit opinion

As stated in this report, the organisation received a qualified audit opinion and the following have been cited as major contributors and management has been tasked to develop and action plan aimed at addressing these areas of concern:

Incorrect generation of invoices Unidentified revenue Non-compliance with rules and regulations Inaccurate leave provision

_________________________________________

Prof. Mochichi Samuel MokgokongHPCSA President


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SECTion Two: REGiSTRARS REPoRT

It always seems impossible until it is done Nelson Mandela

In the challenging year that we have gone through at the HPCSA this statement can only encourage and motivate staff to strive for excellence. Through their efforts and the direction of our President and the Council we have been able to serve the practitioners and protect the public.

enHAnCing AdMinistRAtiVe systeMs And pRoCesses

Due to the numerous work activities of the 12 Professional Boards and the Council, the administrative systems and processes are sometimes under severe pressure. Despite that, during the year under review the HPCSA held 210 planned and extra-ordinary meetings as well as 32 workshops.

Some of the HPCSA activities for the review period included the following:

Boards evaluated and accredited 83 clinical training and professional practice facilities as well as 56 education and training providers that complied with minimum standards for effective education and training.

2 150 health professionals were examined during 32 examination sessions to determine if they met the

standards required for registration with the Council. Of these, 1 699 were graduates from South African providers, while around 452 candidates were foreign qualified health professionals.

The Councils Registrations Division dealt with applications and requests from 28 971 practitioners. In addition, 12 419 students and 832 foreign qualified practitioners were registered, while 401 extensions on restricted registrations were provided.

One of the innovations of the Council to ensure that newly qualified practitioners are registered timeously was the off-site registration, which was piloted at the Universities of Limpopo and Johannesburg in 2012. Its success has assisted the Administration to spread this to other universities and training facilities for 2013 by working with facility administrators.

To ensure that the Council and Professional Boards are able to carry out their function of guiding the professionals and protect the public, it is important that registered professionals pay their annual fees by March of every year. Failure to comply with this led to the suspension of almost 10 000 individuals from its Register in November 2012.

HPCSA received a spate of complaints relating to the abuse of activities regarding multiple choice questionnaires that need to be completed before accruing Continuing Educational Units (CEUs). After auditing the complaints, a media statement was issued in March 2013 to alert and remind practitioners about the importance of continually updating their professional knowledge and skills. CPD providers were also warned about any type of misleading advertising that could manipulate CPD programmes and compromise their processes.

ethical issues

The Committee on Undesirable Business Practices (UDBP) had to assess and deal with a lot of issues to ensure that practitioners work within the ethical rules of the Council. These included corporate employment of health practitioners, of note also was the increase in applications for mobile radiology units. This Committees mandate is to look at the business model in relation to the Councils ethical rules.

The Councils ethical and regulatory framework does not permit corporates to employ health professionals registered with the Council. A media statement in this regard was issued. Businessess were then advised to enter

Dr Buyiswa Mjamba-MatshobaHPCSA Registrar and Chief Executive Officer

REGiSTRARS REPoRT


seCtion tWo

into service level agreements with health professionals instead of contracts. Three applications submitted to the Committee requesting approval to employ Medical Practitioners in the mining sector were not approved as they failed to comply with the application requirements.

The Committee received applications from medical practitioners requesting approval to hold shares in new business ventures. Those that failed had omitted certain information needed to make a decision such as shareholder details and lease contract information aimed at avoiding Health Practitioners partnering with non-registered individuals, perverse incentives and unlawful sharing of premises.

Participation in national Policy Development

The HPCSA is a member of the statutory body of Healthcare Councils and participates by giving input where requested. Within this reporting period inputs were requested in relation to areas of collaboration with the Office of Health Standards and Compliance, also the Council is represented in the Disease coding of the National Department of Health.

The Education, Training and Quality Assurance (ETQA), which is a Committee of Council, is assisting SAQA in developing standards and a register for this cadre of health professionals as requested by the Department of Health.

The Council also participated in the eTechnology strategy workshop to look at ethical issues.

Highlights from Professional Boards

During the reporting period, the 12 Professional Boards had to review their education and training standards to align with several significant developments in higher education and healthcare delivery platforms. These included: The publication of the Higher Education

Qualification Sub-Framework; Approvalofnewqualifications;

SAQACertificateofAcknowledgement2012-2017.

international Participation

Apart from local policy development, Council representatives also participated in several key

international congresses where they gained valuable insights into significant global trends in the regulatory sphere. These included the 16th Annual Conference of the Association of Medical Councils of Africa (AMCOA), the 10th International Conference of the International Association of Medical Regulatory Authorities (IAMRA), the joint meeting of the Coalition for Physician Enhancement (CPE), the International Physicians Assessment Coalition (IPAC) and the 101st Federal of States Medical Boards (FSMB) Annual Meeting.

Stakeholder Engagement

To effectively communicate, we must realise that we are all different in the way we perceive the world and use this understanding as a guide to our communication with others. Tony Robbins

Communicating and engaging with our stakeholders is vital to foster transparency, respectful leadership and competent governance. One of the ways in which the HPCSA achieved this was through its outreach endeavours in the form of road shows, which started in October 2012.

The events, skilfully organised by staff in the Councils Public Relations Department, continue to be hugely successful, with demand for attendance far exceeding the capacity of all the venues. Targeting 3190 practitioners, the 2012 events were held countrywide in Pretoria, Johannesburg, Potchefstroom, Nelspruit, Cape Town and George.

The road shows focused on improving personal communication with practitioners by educating and updating them on numerous pertinent Council issues. These included the importance of registration with the HPSCA as well as relevant ethical rules and regulations.

All Boards were represented where each Board had its own stands to allow for face-to-face interaction with practitioners and respond to queries. All the events featured exhibition areas where representatives from associations such as the Medical Protection Society (MPS) and the Board of Healthcare Funders (BHF) provided guidance and useful information to the attendees. More than 1 750 delegate survey forms were collected during the road shows, providing insight into how practitioners perceive the HPCSA and

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indicating their preferred methods of communication.Following numerous requests for representation in the other provinces, namely Limpopo, Eastern Cape, Kwa-Zulu Natal, Free State and Northern Cape, the HPCSA committed to holding these in 2013.

In April 2012, the HPCSA sought to provide clarity on a ruling by the Competition Commission regarding its application to seek exemption of certain ethical rules of conduct considered in conflict with the Competition Act. These pertained specifically to issues around advertising and marketing, behaviour as well as corporate ownership and structure.

The Competitions Commission rejected the Councils exemption application reasoning in respect of various issues (Rules 5, 7, 8A,10, 8(4), 3(2), 18, 23 and 23A), but reserved the right to assess the rules on a case-by-case basis should the application of the rules effect anti-competitive behaviour. After consultation with the Competitions Commission, some amendments were applied to Ethical Rules 1 and 4. All the rules are available on the HPCSA website. Following the ruling, the HPCSA stated its intention to continue enforcing its mandate and that it will continue to prosecute complaints where acts contravene the ethical rules.

in Memoriam

We bid a sad farewell to one of the Councils employees, Mr Shadrack Monareng, a Registrations Official who passed away in March. We remember him for his innovative ideas and friendly demeanour.

As I conclude this message, I would like to thank the management and staff of the HPCSA for always striving to do their best in ensuring that we perform as per our vision of an Effective, Efficient and Economical Administration.

As the Council, we remain committed to delivering the highest quality of service to you. It is therefore with pride that we present this 2012/13 annual report to the Honourable Minister of Health, Dr Aaron Motsoaledi, our healthcare practitioners and the South African public.

________________________________Dr Buyiswa Mjamba-MatshobaHPCSA Chief Executive Officer and Registrar

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SECTion THREE: ExECUTivE ovERviEw

Cpd, RegistRAtions And ReCoRds

Strategic objectives

The Department of Continuing Professional Development (CPD), Registrations and Records provides an efficient process of registration, record and document management and enforcing CPD regulations and guidelines.

Continuing Professional Development

The Departments CPD Division communicated the issue of enforcing the non-compliant process to all Professional Boards. The department also published articles in the Bulletin and in Board newsletters to inform practitioners of the impact of non-compliance with continuing professional development. In addition, the division posted details of the CPD process on the HPCSA website.

Practitioners who are still non-compliant after several extensions and re-audits, and who still failed to submit their CPD portfolios will, for the first time, be suspended from the register on instruction of the Professional Boards. The CPD section received confirmation from two Professional Boards (Environmental Health and Physiotherapy, Podiatry and Biokinetics) to suspend the

names of the practitioners who were non-compliant with CPD requirements. The council communicated with the non-compliant practitioners through several platforms in order to minimise the suspension of non-compliant practitioners. Those who submitted portfolios but were still found to be non-compliant with the CPD requirements after extensions were placed under supervision.

Suspended practitioners will have to apply for restoration of their names to the registers, according to the Health Professions Act. Once they have proof of compliance with the CPD requirements, these practitioners will have to follow the same procedure and pay the restoration fee (as prescribed in the Restoration Regulations and Guidelines) if they have been off the register for more than two years.

Practitioners placed in the supervised practice category will have to apply to be placed in independent practice upon receipt of a compliant portfolio.

Registrations

This divisions responsibility is to ensure that it registers all qualifying healthcare professionals that fall under the ambit of the HPCSA. Hence this division has to ensure that all compliant applications are registered within 21 working days of submitting a compliant application. It is also responsible of issuing annual practicing cards to all practitioners that renew their annual registrations.

During the period, the division received a total of 15 797 compliant registrations and registered 12 419 students. Registrations also attended to various applications and requests from 28 971 practitioners through the Client Contact Centre. In addition, it registered a total of 832 foreign qualified practitioners and provided 401 extensions on restricted registrations for the same period.

To improve and make registration an accessible process the registration division embarked on a new registration process. This entailed visits to two universities where compliant applications of qualified students was done and these were taken for finalisation back to the HPCSA offices and registration certificates and letters were delivered to the university during a follow-up visit. A total of 376 qualified students were registered and this resulted in fewer qualified students having to come to the Council to register.

Ms. Barbara van StadeGeneral Manager

exeCutiVe oVeRVieW


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ToTAL no oF ACTivE REGiSTRATionS - EnD DECEMBER 2007 - 2012

Professional Board Register Register Name 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012Dental Therapy And Oral Hygiene

DA Dental Assistant 375 2,185 2,050 2,133 2,431 2,890OH Oral Hygienist 953 935 962 959 992 1,039SDA Supplementary Dental Assistant 1,470 40 43 21 0 0TT Dental Therapist 438 471 461 480 505 546

Dental Therapy And Oral Hygiene Total 3,236 3,631 3,516 3,593 3,928 4,475Dietetics and Nutrition DT Dietician 1,795 1,704 1,865 2,128 2,296 2,484

NT Nutritionist 25 48 62 117 146Dietetics and Nutrition Total 1,795 1,729 1,913 2,190 2,413 2,630Environmental Health Officers

FI Food Inspector 16 16 11 11 11 11HI Environmental Health Officer 2,602 2,461 2,477 2,748 2,985 3,187

HIA Environmental Health Assistants 56 60Environmental Health Officers Total 2,618 2,477 2,488 2,759 3,052 3,258Emergency Care ANA Ambulance Emergency Assistant 5,533 5,844 6,374 6,751 7,335 7,789

ANT Paramedic 1,185 1,205 1,284 1,361 1,438 1,544BAA Basic Ambulance Assistant 34,628 38,700 43,040 47,876 50,394 51,530ECA Emergency Care Assistant 2 0 1 0 0 0ECP Emergency Care Practitioner 11 38 70 109 149 190ECT Emergency Care Technicians 84 293 332 539

OECO Operational Emergency Care Orderly

472 515 541 549 531 546

Emergency Care Total 41,831 46,302 51,394 56,939 60,179 62,138Medical And Dental Professions Board

AN Anaesthetists Assistant 4 4 4 4 3 2BE Biomedical Engineer 2 2 1 1 1 1CA Clinical Associates 5 8 11 56 163DP Dentist 5,047 4,884 5,015 5,296 5,423 5,650

GC / GR

Genetic Counsellor 16 15 22 21 22 22

GCIN / GRIN

Intern Genetic Counsellor 2 3 9 9

HA Health Assistant 7 4 3 3 2 2IN Medical Intern 3,760 3,643 3,006 3,619 3,862 3,338KB Clinical Biochemist 17 17 16 14 13 12MP Medical Practitioner 34,449 33,529 33,800 36,633 37,289 38,742

MS / MW

Medical Scientist 509 525 582 589 592 607

MSIN / MWIN

Intern Medical Scientist 15 66 104 132 153

PH Medical Physicist 86 94 100 109 113 127PHIN Intern Medical Physicist 7 15 15 12SMW Supplementary Medical Scientist 5 4 4 4 4 4

Medical And Dental Professions Board Total 43,902 42,741 42,636 46,426 47,536 48,844Medical Technology CT Cyto-Technician 2 1 1 1 1 1

GT Medical Technician 1,271 1,367 1,576 1,855 2,195 2,611LA Laboratory Assistant 49 133 236MT Medical Technologist 5,048 5,151 5,311 5,383 5,552 5,761

MTIN Medical Technology Intern 1 1 57 146 321SLA Supplementary Laboratory

Assistant177 36 33 273 274

SGT Supplementary Medical Technician

36 35 216 307 32 31

Medical Technology Total 6,357 6,732 7,141 7,685 8,332 9,235

Professional Board Register Register Name 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012Occupational Therapy And Medical Orthotics/Prosthetics

AOS Asst Med Orth Prost & Leatherworker

8 6 8 10 9 10

AT Arts Therapist 51 38 43 56 65OB Orthopaedic Footwear

Technician52 53 49 43 54 54

OS Medical Orthotist And Prosthetist 342 353 371 381 408 420OSA Orthopaedic Technical Assistant 40 38 56 65 87 89OSIN Intern Medical Orthotists And

Prosthetists27 43 69

OT Occupational Therapist 3,159 2,946 3,156 3,490 3,668 3,946OTB Occupational Therapy Assistant 519 452 408 410 351 219OTE Single-Medium Therapist

(Occupational Therapy)45 4 3 5 0 0

OTT Occupational Therapy Technician

37 89 146 197 280 420

SOS Supplementary Medical Orthotist And Prosthetist

2 2 1 1 2 2

SOT Supplementary Occupational Therapist

2 0 0 0 0 0

Occupational Therapy And Medical Orthotics/Prosthetics Total 4,206 3,994 4,236 4,672 4,958 5,294Optometry And Dispensing Opticians

OD Dispensing Optician 127 123 124 132 128 136OP Optometrist 2,733 2,915 3,023 3,083 3,168 3,337OR Orthoptist 17 16 15 15 13 12

SOD Supplementary Optical Dispenser

7 5 5 4 4 4

SOP Supplementary Optometrist 13 14 13 11 11 11Optometry And Dispensing Opticians Total 2,897 3,073 3,180 3,245 3,324 3,500Physiotherapy, Podiatry And Biokinetics

BK Biokineticist 823 844 902 911 1,021 1,137BKIN Intern Biokineticist 34CH Podiatrist 217 216 222 224 231 237MA Masseur 5 3 3 3 3 3PT Physiotherapist 5,240 5,081 5,261 5,773 5,954 6,328PTA Physiotherapy Assistant 249 263 281 265 272 264PTT Physiotherapy Technician 8 1 8 8 11 9RM Remedial Gymnast 2 2 2 2 2 2SCH Supplementary Podiatrist 5 4 4 4 3 3SPT Supplementary Physiotherapist 4 4 4 4 4 4

Physiotherapy, Podiatry And Biokinetics Total 6,553 6,418 6,687 7,194 7,501 8,021Psychology PM Psycho-Technician 70 61 49 42 38 33

PMT Psychometrist 1,902 1,836 1,830 1,829 1,869 1,937PRC Registered Counsellor 345 459 647 849 1,150 1,413PS Psychologist 6,391 6,532 6,684 6,914 7,073 7,437

PSIN Intern Psychologist 981 747 671 804 763 849Psychology Total 9,689 9,635 9,881 10,438 10,893 11,669


seCtion tHRee


Professional Board Register Register Name 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012Radiography And Clinical Technology

DR Radiographer 5,624 5,561 5,800 6,208 6,500 6,868EE Electro-Encephalographic

Technician32 28 27 32 37 40

KT Clinical Technologist 769 809 858 924 968 1,047RLT Radiation Technologist 20 16 1 1 1 1

RSDR Restricted Supp Diag Radiographer

9 9 15 16 15 14

SDR Supplementary Diagnostic Radiographer

285 290 6 6 6 7

SEE Suppl Electro-Enceph Technician 0 0 290 276 278 259SKT Supplementary Clinical

Technologist7 6 6 5 4 4

SRLT Supplementary Radiation Technologist

0 0 0 0 0 0

Radiography And Clinical Technology Total 6,746 6,719 7,003 7,468 7,809 8,240Speech, Language And Hearing Professions

AM Audiometrician 7 6 6 5 5 5AU Audiologist 122 134 165 214 235 273

GAK Hearing Aid Acoustician 106 109 104 105 107 113SAU Supplementary Audiologist 1 1 1 1 1 1

SGAK Supplementary Hearing Aid Acoustician

5 5 5 5 5 4

SGG Community Speech And Hearing Workers

29 21 20 21 22 21

SGK Speech And Hearing Correctionist

6 6 6 6 6 6

SSTA Supplementary Speech Therapist And Audiologist

1 1 1 1 1 1

ST Speech Therapist 244 320 381 465 527 632STA Speech Therapist And

Audiologist1,441 1,222 1,296 1,388 1,426 1,451

STB Speech Therapy Assistant 5 4 4 4 5 3Speech, Language And Hearing Professions Total 1,967 1,829 1,989 2,215 2,340 2,510Grand Total 131,797 135,280 142,064 154,824 162,265 169,814

ToTAL no oF ACTivE STUDEnT REGiSTRATionS - EnD DECEMBER 2007 - 2012

Professional Board Register Register Name 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012Dental Therapy And Oral Hygiene

DA S Student Dental Assistants 683 886 1,073 1,243 1,348 1,634OH S Student Oral Hygienists 273 250 201 265 315 356TT S Student Dental Therapists 153 141 143 149 161 196

Dental Therapy And Oral Hygiene Total 1,109 1,277 1,417 1,657 1,824 2,186Dietetics and Nutrition DT S Student Dietitians 1,068 1,108 1,027 1,230 1,279 1,358

NT S Student Nutritionist 0 0 109 155 186 187Dietetics and Nutrition Total 1,068 1,108 1,136 1,385 1,465 1,545Environmental Health Officers

HI S Student Environmental Health Officers

2,012 2,003 1,799 1,962 2,047 2,178

Environmental Health Officers Total 2,012 2,003 1,799 1,962 2,047 2,178Emergency Care ANTS Student Paramedics 269 362 451 549 557 519

ECPS Student Emergency Care Practitioner

0 39 96 141 240 391

ECTS Student Emergency Care Technician

0 335 252 416 682 648

Emergency Care Total 269 736 799 1,106 1,479 1,558Medical And Dental Professions Board

CA S Student Clinical Associates 0 55 77 207 325 394DP S Student Dentists 1,337 1,323 1,258 1,380 1,298 1,319

GC S/GR S

Student Genetic Counsellors 11 11 10 10 10 11

IN S Student Interns 948 830 612 973 922 1,157MP S Medical Students 7,042 7,026 7,641 8,838 9,408 10,009

MS S/MW S

Student Medical Scientists 311 270 254 365 461 531

PH S Student Medical Physicist 43 38 35 35 37 44VS Visiting Students 2,106 2,654 79 579 1,312 825

Medical And Dental Professions Board Total 11,798 12,207 9,966 12,387 13,773 14,290Medical Technology GT S Student Medical Technicians 1,533 1,655 1,810 2,297 2,449 2,374

LA S Student Laboratory Assistant 0 183 421 538 643 656MT S Student Medical Technologists 2,462 2,556 2,925 3,367 3,624 3,734

Medical Technology Total 3,995 4,394 5,156 6,202 6,716 6,764Occupational Therapy And Medical Orthotics/Prosthetics

AOSS Student Asst Med Orth Prost & Leatherworkers

1 0 0 0 0 0

AT S Art Therapy Student (Deleted) 2 1 1 1 1 7OS S Student Medical Orthotists And

Prosthetists160 143 100 124 133 134

OT S Student Occupational Therapists 1,451 1,525 1,498 1,735 1,829 1,936OTBS Student Occupational Therapy

Assistant62 54 54 85 73 74

OTES Art Therapy Students 8 13 11 21 21 21Occupational Therapy And Medical Orthotics/Prosthetics Total 1,684 1,736 1,664 1,966 2,057 2,172Optometry And Dispensing Opticians

OD S Student Dispensing Opticians 207 245 256 294 318 348OP S Student Optometrists 967 836 721 793 738 853

Optometry And Dispensing Opticians Total 1,174 1,081 977 1,087 1,056 1,201Physiotherapy, Podiatry And Biokinetics

BK S Student Biokineticists 399 364 344 475 481 531CH S Student Podiatrists 119 152 177 205 193 267PT S Student Physiotherapists 1,651 1,651 1,571 1,873 1,980 2,054PTAS Student Physiotherapy Assistants 3 3 2 2 2 2

Physiotherapy, Podiatry And Biokinetics Total 2,172 2,170 2,094 2,555 2,656 2,854Psychology PS S Student Psychologists 790 673 583 867 928 992Psychology Total 790 673 583 867 928 992


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Professional Board Register Register Name 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012Radiography And Clinical Technology

DR S Student Radiographers 1,355 1,506 1,346 1,561 1,695 1,907EE S Student Electro-Encephalograph-

ic Technicians17 24 26 36 40 46

KT S Student Clinical Technologists 465 433 400 467 493 525RLTS Student Radiation Technologists 9 8 6 6 6 6SDRS Student Supplementary Diagnos-

tic Radiographers102 102 93 93 93 93

Radiography And Clinical Technology Total 1,948 2,073 1,871 2,163 2,327 2,577Speech, Language And Hearing Professions

AU S Student Audiologists 78 94 144 224 293 349GAKS Student Hearing Aid Acousti-

cians8 10 10 17 20 26

ST S Student Speech Therapists And Audiologists

248 277 326 386 483 553

STAS Student Speech Therapists And Audiologists

484 480 389 392 360 371

Speech, Language And Hearing Professions Total 818 861 869 1,019 1,156 1,299Grand Total 28,837 30,319 28,331 34,356 37,484 39,616


Growth statistics of other services rendered/ certificates issued during the three years period

1 April 2010 to 31 March 2013

Services rendered April 2010March 2011

April 2011- March 2012

April 2012March 2013

Issued Certificate Of Status 1401 3162 3894

Issued Certified Extract 1101 1605 1667

Issued Intern Duty Certificate 99 679 689

Verification of Credentials 264 526 1389

Grand Total 2874 5972 7639

Non-Compliant applications 2010/2011

2011/2012

2012/2013

8632 9079 9237

Challenges experienced by the registration division emanate from non-compliant applications for registration/restoration that are received from health practitioners who do not respond to correspondence regarding their a non-compliant applications.

All information of scanned and stored files is being sent to the Records Division in DVD format. The offsite storage company has also provided the Records Supervisor with a Datastor system. This is less time-consuming as it enables the supervisor to do a direct search for a file without going through each DVD. Councils space problem makes it impossible to scan documents.

This therefore, places more pressure on the Records Division to keep additional manual records of information it receives. During the review period, officials in the Records Division handled and finalised a total of 14 474 requests for change of addresses and contact details from practitioners.

Records

The Records Division reported that it was progressing well with the back scanning of all practitioners hard copy files. By the end of March 2013, it still needed to do quality assurance on the registers of Diagnostic Radiography and Medical Practitioners.

Should anyone require a file for information, the offsite storage company provides electronic copies of the file provided it has already scanned and stored. In cases where files have not yet been scanned, the hard copy file is retrieved and sent to Council for perusal.


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finAnCiAl seRViCes


The role of the Financial Services Department is to ensure that Council maintains satisfactory accounting records, and that Annual Financial Statements and any other related information are prepared and audited on an annual basis, as well as maintaining a proper system of internal controls, which will provide reasonable assurance regarding the achievements of Council objectives.

overview

The year under review was not easy. The system challenges that plagued the activities of Council in previous years remained an issue. The financial system is configured for cash-based accounting. The accounting policy for revenue recognition was also on a cash basis and not accrual basis as required by accounting standards. The accounting basis was amended to the accrual basis in line with accounting standards. In order to comply with accounting standards, significant adjustments had to be made based on a number of assumptions and an analysis of the general ledger. These adjustments were material and had an impact on the audit opinion. Not making these adjustments would also have had an impact on the audit opinion with regard to compliance with accounting standards.

Audit opinion

The audit opinion expressed is qualified on opening balances, completeness of revenue and related VAT, trade

receivables and the leave provision. All these matters with the exception of the leave provision, relates to the revenue and receipt cycle. Without exception, these matters relate to the setup and configuration of the supporting system.

financial Results

Revenue for the year was R170.4 million (2012: R147.7 million) and the net surplus was R24.6 million (2012: R29.1 million, restated from R38.7 million). The cash position of the Council is sound with R 310.2 million, (2012: R262.1 million) in cash, and cash equivalents on hand at the end of the financial year.

Systems and Controls

The nature of the system issues is of such magnitude that there are only two options and these are:1. Reimplementation of the current system with specifications

that are compliant with accounting standards, and meet managements information requirements.

2. Implementing a less complex system that complies with all Councils needs with a lower total cost ownership.

increase in Annual fees

As a statutory body, the HPCSA is not subsidised by government, and to meet its mandate of protecting the public and guiding the professions, it is reliant on fees and fines paid by practitioners. For the year 2012/2013, the Councils annual fee increases were limited to inflation with a few exceptions, where it was even less. Annual fee increases are based on the strategic objectives of Council for each particular year, of which administration expenses are based on a percentage allocation per Board.

Percentage allocation is based on the income generated per Board, which is informed by the number of practitioners and the amount they are paying per Board. Annual fees are used to cover the costs of administering the professions under the ambit of Council in terms of registration, maintaining standards of education and training, as well as ensuring fair standards of professional practice.

Conclusion

The challenges are serious and will not be easy to overcome due to their nature and complexity. Management is committed to make the difficult and fundamental changes required to enable Council to fulfill its mandate.

Mr. Gert TheronChief Financial Officer


HUMAn RESoURCES AnD LABoUR RELATionS

overview

The Human Resource Departments overall strategic objective is to attract, retain and develop its human resources to continuously improve and contribute to organisational efficiency and effectiveness, thereby supporting the HPCSAs capacity to deliver world-class service.

During the period under review and with the guidance of its Registrar, the HPCSA conducted among others, an assessment of its organisational reconstruction and salary restructuring processes.

staff profile

A profile of the total workforce as at 31 March 2013 is summarised below in terms of race; gender; and job level.

Mr. Mertz AucampSenior Manager

Occupational LevelsMale Female

Foreign Nationals

TotalAfrican Coloured Indian White African Coloured Indian White Male Female

Top management 1 0 1 1 1 0 0 0 4

Senior management 3 0 0 1 0 0 0 2 6

Professionally qualified and experienced specialists and mid-management

9 0 1 2 3 1 0 3 19

Skilled technical and academically qualified workers, junior management, supervisors, foremen and superintendents

21 2 0 0 21 2 3 6 55

Semi-skilled and discretionary decision making

27 4 3 0 61 10 3 9 117

Unskilled and defined decision making

3 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 5

TOTAL PERMANENT 64 6 5 4 88 13 6 20 206

Temporary employees 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

GRAND TOTAL 64 6 5 4 88 13 6 20 206

Two employees are disabled; one male African and one white female.


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Recruitment

nUMBER oF vACAnT PoSiTionS FRoM APRiL 2012 to MARCH 2013

Filled Work in Progress

Total

Vacancies 43 12 55

External Appointments

Internal - Promotions Total

33 10 43

African Indian Coloured White Total

37 2 3 1 43

Male Female Total

22 21 43

Training and Development

In compliance with the mandate of the Skills Development Act 97 of 1998, the Workplace Skills Plan and Implementation Report (WSPIR) was submitted before the due date of 30 June 2012.

80% of the staff received training at the cost of R771 027.26, from the budget totalling R 900 000.00 Bursaries were offered to 28 employees to

the mutual benefit of both the HPCSA and the individual, through self-development and service to the organisation.

Labour Relations

Summary of the Labour Relations matters for the period under review.

MisConduCts

Cou

nsel

ling

Verb

al

War

ning

s

Writ

ten

War

ning

s

Fina

l Writ

ten

War

ning

s

Dism

issal

s

CC

MA

20 2 10 0 1 3 (1 pending)

Grievances

12 Grievances were lodged. Six have been finalised and six are still pending.

Bargaining Forum

The Bargaining Forum was established as a result of the Recognition Agreement signed between organised labour (NEHAWU) and the HPCSA.

The constitution of the Bargaining Forum was approved and implemented.

15 meetings of the Bargaining Forum were held to discuss matters of mutual interest.

Leave and Personnel Records Management

With the introduction and adoption of the Oracle computer business system by the HPCSA, the effectiveness and efficiency of the human resource practices was expected to improve, including the capturing, storing, manipulation and retrieval of data. Challenges relating to the configuration of the system contributed to poor management of leave and employee personal records. As a result of the afore-mentioned challenges relating to the leave and employee records management, we resorted to manual management of leave and employee records. The consequence of this manual approach, with its human errors, was a contribution to the receipt of a qualified audit report for the period under review.

Pension and Provident Fund

As a strategy to reduce costs related to a stand-alone administration of the HPCSA Pension and Provident Fund, the Trustee Board members resolved to move the funds to an umbrella administration so as to share costs with other smaller funds.

Apportionment of surplus pension funds to members is a work-in-progress.

HR pRojeCts

In line with our policy to compensate our employees market related salaries, we embarked on the benchmarking process to compare our employees salaries with other related organisations. This process was in progress at the time of reporting.

The HPCSA also initiated an Organisation Design process to align its organisational structures with its mandate. The process was in progress at the time of reporting.


infoRMAtion teCHnology


The Information Technology (IT) Department is a support arm and business enabler of the HPCSA. It focuses its efforts on improving the Councils IT infrastructure to make sure it is on par with latest technology trends and is always operational to meet its mandate and business needs.

Achievements and Highlights

During the review period, the IT Department noted the following highlights and achievements:

network infrastructure Upgrades and installations:

Upgrading of the core network switch; Installation of network cables in the Mail room and

Road Accident Fund offices to provide new staff with network access in line with the Councils expansion;

Implementation of a wireless network in both Council buildings to improve accessibility to information;

Replacement of the old 7912 Cisco Phones with the 7942 Cisco IP Phones to improve the telephony infrastructure and provide for organisational growth;

Upgrading of all the Councils old PC operating systems to the Windows 7 operating system.

Replacement of older computers that was not compatible with the new software, with new computers.

Server upgrades

The IT Department upgraded the Councils SQL server to a new operating system and software to cater for new telephony data requirements and as part of the Phase 1 Intranet development.

To address the problem of space challenges on the Councils file server, the Department procured a new server with a file storage capacity of seven terabytes (7 TB), and installed it with the latest operating system.

The Department encountered numerous challenges resulting in domain user accounts being locked out. This occurred because the domain server was no longer reliable as it was running on an old operating system. The officials in the IT department solved this by upgrading the operation system and reconfiguring the whole organisations domain user accounts.

In addition, it has upgraded its backup to the latest server operating system to ensure that business systems are kept up to date.

oracle Support

The IT Department enhanced the Oracle ERS and ensured its continuous use within the HPCSA. The following was achieved utilising the system:

Successfully running debit orders; erasures, and receipt write-offs;

Developing and deploying more finance reports on the finance module; and

Adding three new registers on the system.

Developments

During the period under review, the IT Department successfully developed the exam results system.

Mr. Stanford MphahleleActing Senior Manager


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Challenges

Oracle Enterprise Resource System (ERS)

Storage limitations One of Councils requirements with the

implementation of the ERS system was to go green by reducing paper usage across the organisation. With this in mind, the IT Department implemented a document management system to scan all practitioners information-storing electronic files instead of having to keep files and make copies of all its clients. This introduced a new challenge, namely, storing and archiving all practitioners files and profession-related information on the HPCSA server. In the new financial year, IT will be upgrading storage on its servers.

Backup facilities

Support During the review period, the IT department made

sure that the ERS was running without support from Oracle or any consultancy house.

Capacity The HPCSAs IT department needs to be capacitated

in order to meet the Councils growth strategy.

CAlCulAted finAnCiAl VAlue of it ConTRiBUTion (DiRECT AnD inDiRECT ConTRiBUTion)

IT Item Total Saving

Savings for not using Consultants on ERS R1 Million

Sales Registers Generated R101 527.11

Total R1,101,527.11


Adv. Tshepo BoikanyoGeneral Manager

Dr. Abdul BardayOmbudsman

LEGAL SERviCES AnD oMBUDSMAn


The role of the Legal Services Department is to effectively implement a system for investigation and prosecution of complaints, to provide legal services to Council, the Boards and Administration and to enforce compliance with ethical rules and applicable legislation.

overview

A total of 2 997 complaints were received during the period under review. Of these, 403 were referred to the office of the Ombudsman and 117 opened as Police files (unregistered people).

The number of complaints received in the previous financial year was 2 687, which constituted an increase of 310 cases.

2010/2011 2011/2012 2012/2013

2 903 2 687 2 997

Preliminary investigations

The Committees of Preliminary Inquiry held 28 meetings at which 1 827 matters were considered. 734 cases were finalised. There were 201 findings of Guilt in terms of Regulations 4(9), while 199 cases were referred to the Professional Conduct Committee. 693 matters were deferred for further investigations.

The breakdown of matters considered by the Committee of Preliminary Inquiry is as follows:

Board No. of Meetings

No. Cases 2012/2013

No. Cases 2011/2012

Medical and Dental 13 1 548 1 432

Emergency Care 01 17 17

Dietetics and Nutrition 01 06 06

Psychology 03 65 127

Physiotherapy, Podiatry and Biokinetics

03 72 36

Dental Therapy and Oral Hygiene

01 45 -

Speech Language and Hearing

- - -


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Medical Technology - - -

Environmental Health 01 20 -

Radiography and Clinical Technology

02 21 05

Occupational Therapy, Medical Orthotics/Prosthetics and Arts Therapy

01 14 21

Optometry and Dispensing Opticians

02 50 52

professional Conduct

A total of 248 cases were finalised by the Legal Advisors. There are 338 matters outstanding, of which 51 are backlog matters.

MAtteRs finAlised At inQuiRy, AdMission oF GUiLT FinE oR PRELiM PER BoARD : 1 APRiL 2012 to 31 MARCH 2013

Board Totals

Medical and Dental 184

Dental Therapy and Oral Hygiene 04

Dietetics 01

Medical Technology 0

Occupational Therapy, Medical Orthotics and Prosthetics

02

Optometry and Dispensing Opticians 22

Physiotherapy, Podiatry and Biokinetics 07

Psychology 20

Speech, Language and Hearing 1

Emergency Care 1

Radiography and Clinical Technology 6

Environmental Health 0

TOTALS 248

The penalties imposed were as follows:

Verdict No. of Matters 2010/2011

No. of Matters 2011/2012

No. of Matters 2012/2013

Erasures 6 3 2Suspensions 27 18 64Admission of guilt fines and noted at Prelim

28 60 134

Fines 67 81 12Caution and Reprimand 14 9 20Postponed/Defence objections upheld

3 1 1

Acquittals 30 15 15TOTAL 172 189 248

A total amount of R1 001 500.00 was collected in penalties. There were 15 acquittals for the period.

Road Accident fund

A total of 22 Appeal Tribunal meetings were held, 466 matters were dealt with and 377 cases were finalised.

office of the ombudsman

The Ombudsmans Office addresses among others, complaints of miscommunication against Health Practitioners and determines its nature and validity in terms of the Health Professions Act, Act 56 of 1974. We render a service of mediation and endeavour to resolve matters amicably if possible.

This Office has been in force for the last eight years. A total of 496 matters relating to miscommunication and tariff charges were formally referred to the Ombudsmans Office in the last year, which excludes telephonic complaints resolved by the Ombudsman on a daily basis. Matters concerning tariff charges relates to practitioners charging more than the medical aid or reference price list (RPL) rates. More than 90% of complaints lodged are against Medical Practitioners (Doctors and Dentists).

Other complaints dealt with by the Ombudsman include bad attitudes and rudeness displayed in providing medical care, suspicious medical certificates, poor communication, practitioners refusing to provide patients with medical and MMF1 forms, unprofessionalism between colleagues and complaints against Pathologists. Many complaints are sorted out informally on a daily basis, which prevents a formal complaint being laid. These informal cases may amount to more than formal cases referred to the Office.

CoMPLAinTS RECEivED By THE oMBUDSMAn oFFiCE

Category 2010 / 2011

2011 / 2012

2012 / 2013

Fees / Accounts 184 246 233Medical Reports 41 56 44RAF forms 9 5 16Bad Attitude 29 54 59Suspicious Med Certificates 6 12 17Bad Communication 35 50 71Non-response from Practitioners 40 39 36TOTAL 343 462 496


PUBLiC RELATionS AnD SERviCE DELivERy


The Public Relations and Service Delivery Department is committed to enhancing the image of Council through proactive reputation management, a change in mindset driving service delivery excellence, and communication initiatives that support the strategic objectives of the organisation.

overview

The Department enjoyed an eventful year in terms of elevating the profile of the HPCSA externally and in developing structures and mechanisms that will see the HPCSA becoming more customer conscious and service delivery-orientated in future.

Engagement with stakeholders

A second radio awareness campaign to educate the public on their rights and responsibilities as patients, as well as information on how to lodge a complaint against a practitioner, should their rights have been breached, was aired on 11 radio stations around the country, reaching 5 835 000 of SAs adult population.

To further increase stakeholder engagement, the Council launched its first ever practitioner road shows, with six events in four provinces reaching over 3 400 healthcare practitioners.

The road shows sought to guide practitioners on ethics, medical law, undesirable business practices and the role of the HPCSA in guiding practitioners.

These road shows were bolstered by the twelve Professional Boards practitioner engagement events across the country, as well as student road shows reaching 962 healthcare students at eight tertiary training institutions. The new publication of the Guidelines for Good Practice in Healthcare Professions was positively received by practitioners, and a number of reprints were necessary to deal with the overwhelming demand. A new electronic newsletter distributed to over 90 000 Healthcare Practitioners on a monthly basis was added to the Councils stable of communications, which includes Board newsletters and an annual Bulletin magazine. A survey conducted revealed an increase in the perception of the Council as a guiding regulator, improved customer centricity, and improved practitioner communication across multiple platforms, with 90% of audit respondents finding the new monthly newsletter informative.

Focus on Customer Service

In an endeavor to improve the organisations customer centricity and ensure a high standard of service delivery throughout the HPCSA, a number of key projects were undertaken during the year. Customer Service training was attended by 41% of staff.

A peak period annual fee project was implemented, which included earlier annual fee notification to practitioners from December, notification via post, email and sms, as well as the Client Call Centre printing practising cards. This project reduced the last-minute rush to pay annual fees by 1 April and ensured Administration was able to manage customer queries over the months more effectively.

A data cleanup campaign was initiated to verify contact details for the Councils 180 000 practitioners. Notifications were sent in all HPCSA correspondences, a mailer to all associations was undertaken, and the Call Centre contact pattern

Ms. Bertha Peters-ScheepersSenior Manager


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was amended to ensure verification of contact details on all calls to the HPCSA.

A customer service officer continued to deal with escalated service delivery complaints totalling 6176 during the year.

The HPCSA website remained an excellent source of information during 2012/3.

The installation of Google analytics provided valuable information on website user numbers and their browsing preferences. Consequently daily website updates and online newsfeeds as well as Board-specific information contributed to a user-friendly experience.

The Client Call Centre is a critical contact point for HPCSA clients. Our research indicates that clients are increasingly making use of this service, either via telephone or email. Some 142 464 calls were received for the 2012/13 period, while 26 784 Info emails were received.

Daily coaching sessions with agents, weekly knowledge training and assessments, as well as quality assurance on calls have contributed to a knowledgeable service offering.

Proactive reputational management

Positioning the Councils brand and reputational management were the core focus for media initiatives, which utilised print, radio and electronic mediums as well as targeting community media to generate R73,570 069.04 worth of Advertising Value Equivalent (AVE). For the period in review, 18 media releases were issued, 859 radio interviews were conducted, 1847 print articles appeared, 130 community media interviews were conducted and 780 electronic media inserts on HPCSA news were publicised.

Two press briefings were held during the year, including the continuation of the high-profile Dr Wouter Basson inquiry and the Medical and Dental Professions Boards announcement of its intention to determine new guidelines tariffs for medical and dental services.

Media coverage ranged from reminding practitioners about their ethical responsibility to treat patients in an emergency situation, to clarifying the facts after some controversial comments regarding the high-protein low-carbohydrates debate. It also included the Council clarifying a ruling by the Competition Commission on various aspects, including advertising, marketing and touting that directly impacts on practitioners and the daily running of their practices.

In addition, the final call for registration of Family Medicine Physicians under the Grandfather clause and the registration of Student Dental Assistants were also published widely, so too, the celebration of World Oral Health and the importance thereof. The impact of Designated Service Provider and Preferred Provider Network contracts was also publicised, including the Councils concern over the potential exploitation Healthcare Practitioners could face by entering into these agreements.

In addition, the media release on the required unbundling of corporate structures have non-registered practitioners involved in the ownership of healthcare practices was a talking point in the trade media. Some healthcare practices had to unbundle their corporate structures to ensure compliance with legislation.


PRoFESSionAL BoARDS


The main function of the HPCSAs Professional Boards Department is to provide administrative support to the 12 Professional Boards under the auspices of the HPCSA that regulate the professions which fall within the ambit of the specific Boards.

The overall strategic objectives of Professional Boards for the review period were to:

Educate all members, committees and staff of Professional Boards on their roles, responsibilities and expectations;

Raise awareness of the roles and responsibilities of the HPCSA with the public and professionals;

Promote dialogue and align strategies with national imperatives, the public and professionals;

Formulate HPCSA submissions on all new health-related initiatives;

Enhance effective internal/external mechanisms of communication;

Ensure up-to-date policies, guidelines and regulations in line with applicable legislative mandates and national health initiatives;

Ensure minimum educational standards of the professions under the ambit of the Professional Boards;

Ensure ongoing professional competence.

Boards primarily use meetings including stakeholder engagements, for the execution of their functions and in compliance with their mandate to protect the public and guide the professions.

A total of 191 planned and extra-ordinary meetings and 32 workshops were held during the reporting year. This was to ensure that the education and training standards of the professions under the ambit of the Professional Boards were aligned with the changing education environment and legislation and international best practices to safeguard the registration of safe and competent health practitioners.

In the past year, Boards were faced with a need to respond to some major developments that took place in higher education and healthcare delivery platforms. In this regard, it is noteworthy to mention the publication of the Higher Education Qualification Sub-Framework and the needs of South Africa for the increased production of health professionals.

The Boards evaluate and accredit education and training institutions to ensure that they meet the minimum education and training standards, as determined by the Boards for the registration of competent, safe and ethical Health Practitioners.

During the review period, the Boards were responsible for the evaluation and accreditation of 56 education and training providers as well as 83 clinical training and professional practice facilities.

Over 2 150 applicants sat for the examination during the reporting period, of which the Boards organised a total of 32 examination sessions.

Approximately 452 candidates were foreign qualified health professionals, while around 1 699 were graduates from South African providers.

Dr. Bheki MbeleGeneral Manager


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Scopes of Practices

The scopes of practice outline professional acts that health practitioners are permitted to perform, based on the competencies they acquired through education and training.

The following Boards reviewed their scopes of practice:

Professional Board for Dental Therapy and Oral Hygiene; Professional Board for Occupational Therapy, Orthotics

and Prosthetics and Arts Therapy; Professional Board for Psychology; and; Professional Board for Physiotherapy, Podiatry

and Biokinetics.

Processes to develop new scopes of practice for Clinical Associates and Environmental Health Assistants are also underway.

Raise awareness of the roles and responsibilities of the HPCSA with the public and professionals

The Professional Boards Department was part of the team that took part in road shows to raise awareness of the roles and responsibilities of the HPCSA with professionals. A total of 3 400 professionals attended the road shows and 1 737 visited the professional stalls to learn more about the roles of their Boards.


suppoRt seRViCes


During 2012/2013, the Departments efforts were guided by the following key strategic objectives:

To provide a facilities management system by way of maintaining Councils assets and ensuring the upkeep of buildings;

To efficiently manage the internal and external mail service; and

To reproduce the bulk of Councils documents, including agendas and minutes for all committees and subcommittees, as well as for the Professional Boards.

overview

Apart from managing its key objectives, the Department continued its supportive role to other services. These included co-ordinating the venue and tea services, rendering stationery supplies and providing administrative support to the Tender Committee.

During this period, Council resolved to increase membership of the Tender Committee from three to

five members, with one member having to be an external person with expertise in the field.

The Committee subsequently appointed two new members, namely one HPCSA member and one external member.

Appointment of new Service Providers

During the period under review, the HPCSA Tender Committee held three meetings relating to services required for the Finance, Legal and Support Services Departments. The Tender Committee published and adjudicated invitations for the following services:

External audit services Internal audit services Professional legal services Upgrade of surveillance systems Transcription services Venues Security services

The contracts of several service providers are due to end during the year and Council will exercise its option to either terminate or extend their contract periods for an additional year.

Upgrading

During the period under review, the Support Services Department managed to complete several maintenance projects. Some of the areas requiring revamp during this period were the:

Much-needed installation of recording and audio systems in the Council chamber as well as the replacement and upgrade of the system in the Metroden board room, where the HPCSA holds most of its disciplinary hearings. (The Metroden equipment had not been upgraded since the building was purchased in April 2003);

Installation of an automated sliding door at the main entrance;

Revamping of the CEOs office, which was last renovated in 2005.

The Metrodenpark flat (vacated by tenant) was renovated to accommodate additional staff members;

Mrs. Olivia FisherSupport Services Officer

Revamp of one of the floors in the main building, which included painting and re-carpeting;

Upgrading of the Mail office to streamline functions and make provision for additional staff by fitting it with smaller work stations.

other Key activities and achievements

Since the HPCSA could face the challenge of a space needs shortage as a growing organization, the Department made a proposal to Council to secure the erf adjoining Metroden by purchasing the property. The proposal was made with a view to Councils future expansion and to plan such development at a pace acceptable to its financial capability. When the property was placed on auction in 2009, the Council approved its purchase to facilitate further growth.

One of the major highlights of the year was when Council approved the recommendation by the HPCSA Property Committee (established in December 2012), to proceed with the development of the purchased property.This entailed consolidating it with the existing HPCSA building as well as revamping the present buildingS to accommodate the need for more office space. Council agreed that since the existing HPCSA buildings were well built with an attractive design, it would be beneficial to connect the buildings by an overhead pedestrian link bridge.

This would establish the HPCSA complex as a Pretoria landmark and with its proximity to the Union Buildings, enhance its status as a prestigious location.

focus for the next financial year

Due to the HPCSAs continually growing staff complement and the increase in practitioner registers, it currently remains challenged by a shortage of office space for staff and clients, especially during peak periods. It maintains the buildings in good condition as an interim measure and converts offices into open office plan areas where possible.

To date, provisional approval has been given to Councils application to rezone and consolidate the two properties.

In the coming year, the department will focus on the following important issues:

Applying for rights for the overhead link bridge; Calling for proposals for a project manager to

define spatial planning requirements for the new building.


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SECTion FoUR: PRoFESSionAL BoARDS ovERviEw

STRATEGiC oBJECTivES

At its strategic planning session the Board reviewed its strategic objectives for alignment with those of the HPCSA. The Board did this while mindful of its primary mandate to protect the public and guide the profession.

After a highly successful meeting, the Board, assisted by a facilitator, was able to measure the extent to which it had achieved its set goals over the past year.

The Board expressed its pleasure at being able to meet many of its goals while still working within the framework of the strategic objectives.

The Board reviewed its strategic plan, aligning it with national imperatives and new developments within the education environment. Stakeholder participation in policy issues as well as matters of education and training, was a key focus area of the Boards strategic planning session.

This was particularly relevant to encourage the implementation of the revised qualification for Dental Therapy, Oral Hygiene and Dental Assisting at all Universities and Universities of Technology.

The aim of the revised qualification is to address the human resource shortfall in the dental fraternity in order to relieve South Africas disease burden, as reported in the National Health Insurance (NHI) policy and the National Human Resources Strategy for Health (HRH). The Board also compiled a risk management plan in order to identify and manage risks.

oVeRVieW

With the Board experiencing a busy and eventful past year, it was pleasing to note that the energy of its newly appointed members was definitely beneficial in dealing with its work overload. The Board focused primarily on orientating and aligning activities with its strategic objectives. Since matters around education, training and policy development are pivotal to the Boards functioning, it was the Boards key focus area during the past year.

Stakeholder Meetings

The Board held meetings regarding education, training and policy development with the following stakeholders:

South African Committee of Health Sciences Deans (SACOHSD): 5 March 2013

The Board met with SACOHSD to discuss the implementation of the revised Dental Therapy programme, increase of student intakes in the Dental Therapy, Oral Hygiene and Dental Assisting Programmes as well as the implementation of education and training programmes for Dental Therapists by Universities not currently offering the programme.

SACOHSD stated that it acknowledged the role of Dental Therapists and Oral Hygienists in the oral healthcare teams. It strongly recommended frank collaboration and consultation with all stakeholders to develop a National Strategy on oral and dental health provision and the associated education, training and research.

SACOHSD undertook to request universities to consider increasing the numbers of students trained, and to encourage all universities to set up training programmes.

The Board determined that the teach-out date for the old Dental Therapy programme would be the end of 2019.

PRoFESSionAL BoARD FoR DEnTAL THERAPy AnD oRAL HyGiEnE


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Ms. Vidyah AmritChairperson

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South African Technology Network (SATN): 12 February 2013 The Board met with representatives of the South

African Technology Network (SATN) to discuss the increase of student intakes in the Dental Assisting programmes.

The parties also discussed the possible implementation of education and training programmes for Dental Therapists and Oral Hygienists by the Universities of Technology.

The aim of this initiative is to address the oral health needs of the South African public and to comply with the National Human Resources Strategy for Health regarding the number of professionals required in the oral health fraternity and in relation to the NHI.

office of the Minister of Health

The Board tabled the following issues for discussion in a position paper: Human resources requirements for South Africa

relating to Dental Therapy, Oral Hygiene and Dental Assisting;

The limited number of students trained in Dental Therapy, Oral Hygiene and Dental Assisting programmes at universities;

Provision of funds to fill vacant provincial posts and inadequate allocation of posts in some provinces.

presentations

During the review period, the Board participated in a Stakeholder meeting for Dental Assistants in Gauteng; a Stakeholder meeting for Registered Practitioners in Port Elizabeth and the Cape Dental Show (May 2012), attended by Dentists, Dental Therapists, Oral Hygienists and Dental Assistants where the Chairperson of the Board presented.

Regulations

The Minister of Health published regulations relating to the registration of independent practice by Oral Hygienists in the Government Gazette on 30 March 2012 for public comment for a three-month period. The Board will consider comments received from the National Department of Health prior to submitting the regulations to the Minister for promulgation.

oral Hygienist vacancy Filled

The Board is pleased to report that it has appointed Ms. Natasha Swart to fill the Oral Hygienist vacancy on the Board.

finAnCiAl MAtteRs

The Board approved its 2013/14 budget and resolved to increase annual fees by 3% and the registration fee by 6% for all the professional categories under its ambit. The annual fees are payable each year in April. Practitioners are responsible to ensure they pay their fees timeously to avoid suspension from the register.

The current annual fees are: Oral Hygienists and Dental Therapists: R1 532, 00Dental Assistants: R 638, 00

deteRMining And MAintAining stAndARds of pRofessionAl pRACtiCe And ConduCt

The Board views the issues around professional conduct in a very serious light. It places a great deal of emphasis on professional integrity and ethics, particularly around the issues of scope of practice.

It is important for members to be aware that a large number of cases that the Boards Committee of Preliminary Inquiry centre deals with relates to fraudulent practice in terms of medical aid claims as well as some issues of practising outside the scopes of practice.

During the year, the Boards Committee of Preliminary Inquiry had two meetings, which resulted in a decreased case backlog that had accumulated since the Boards inception. A total of four cases for this Board were finalised at Inquiry level.

deteRMining And upHolding tHe stAndARds of eduCAtion And tRAining

Setting Minimum Standards

The Board has established a Task Team to: Review the education and training programmes

of the professions under its ambit to align this with the Higher Education Qualifications Sub-Framework (HEQSF) and to also provide for articulation between programmes;

Develop post-qualification programmes; Review and align the scopes of practice with

the revised qualifications and also review the Boards ethical rules in line with the revised scopes of practice;

Develop draft criteria for the accreditation of clinical sites and guidelines for clinical practice;

Develop a draft education and training programme to address the requirement for a mid-level Health Worker.

ACCReditAtion of eduCAtionAl institution

In line with its legislative mandate of setting minimum standards in education and training, and through its strategic objective of upholding and maintaining the standard of education and training, the Board conducts an evaluation of the teaching programmes offered at the Universities and Universities of Technology for all three programmes.

It recently completed a cycle of evaluations for Dental Assisting Programmes at the Cape Peninsula University of Technology, Central University of Technology, Free State, Durban University of Technology and Tshwane University of Technology.

Keeping ACCuRAte RegisteRs

Registration and Board Examination

The Grandfather Clause for registration of Dental Assistants (i.e. persons with five years or more experience as Dental Assistants) closed on 31 August 2012 and that for Student Dental Assistants, (i.e. persons with less than 5 years experience) on 30 September 2012.

The Dental Assisting profession has been regulated since 2005 and HPCSA registration is a prerequisite to work as a Dental Assistant.

Practitioners who work as Dental Assistants without being registered as either a Student Dental Assistant or Dental Assistant are contravening the Health Professions Act, 1974 (Act 56 of 1974).

Practitioners are therefore, not permitted to work as Dental Assistants without being registered as such, unless they have proof of being registered as students for the formal Dental Assisting programme at an accredited education institution, or hold a valid qualification from such an institution.


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The Board urges Dental Assistants in possession of the formal Dental Assisting qualification from an accredited education institution, but not yet registered with the HPCSA, to register immediately as they are working illegally as Dental Assistants.

The Board also urges those currently registered as Student Dental Assistants under the Grandfather Clause to write the Board examination so they can register as Dental Assistants.

The Board points out that while it still has to determine a phase-out date of the examination, it is not an ongoing process and individuals cannot remain on a student register infinitely. Those that have not availed themselves of this opportunity will have to enrol for the formal Dental Assisting programme at an accredited education institution when the Board examination is phased out.

The Board is pleased with the examination process of its third Board examination in August 2012, reporting good exam results and positive feedback from candidates about the examination. Of the 77 candidates that wrote the exam, 67 passed, while there were 10 failures.

QuAlity ContRol

The Board has to ensure and monitor quality assurance processes of institutions that train the professionals which fall under the ambit of the Board. The Board has successfully revised the templates that institutions use to submit their annual reports.

These reports include information on the number of students at intake and exit, attrition rates, pass/failure rates, demographics, movement into other programmes and even the changes that occur within accredited programmes.

This information is then presented at the Board meeting. If necessary, templates are restructured to maximise their value to the Board as a monitoring tool of the accredited programme in between evaluation visits.

The Board requires that institutions provide explanations or answers if there are major changes in trends, or if it detects any discrepancies from one report to another in any area reported on.


STRATEGiC oBJECTivES AnD BoARD stRuCtuRes

overview and Status on Strategic objectives 2010 2015

During the period under review, the Professional Board aligned its strategic objectives to incorporate the strategic plans of the HPCSA and the National Department of Health. The Board has summarised this integration as follows:

Vision

A trustworthy, credible, transparent and accountable Board that serves the interests of the profession and of the public.

Mission

To protect and serve the public and guide the profession. The above is given practical effect through ensuring excellence of dietetics and nutrition service delivery and thereby protecting the South African public by: Maintaining and enhancing quality of practice; Safeguarding the integrity of Dietetics and

Nutrition professionals registered with the Board;

Promoting the nutritional health of all South Africans;

Being a Board that is willing and able to be efficient in its support and service delivery;

Communicating effectively to all stakeholders.

The Boards revised strategic plan was in line with the following:

1. The Boards mandate in terms of the Amendment Act;

2. The Strategic Plan of Council (2010 2015);3. The Department of Healths (DOH) current

10-point Plan;4. The Delivery agreement for outcome 2: A long

and healthy life for all South Africans (DOH);5. The draft National Plan for human resources for

the health for South Africa.

Boards Strategic objectives

1. To optimise the Boards efficiency in ensuring it fulfils its regulatory role and responsibilities;

2. To ensure standards of education, training and professional practice of Nutritionists;

2.1. To implement the register for Nutritionists;2.2. To develop the register for Assistant Nutritionists.

3. To ensure standards of education, training and professional practice of Dieticians;

3.1. To perform functions of the Standards Generating Body (SGB);

3.2. To revise the scope of the profession of Dietetics;3.3. To investigate specialisation in Dietetics;3.4. To enforce regulatory/ethical requirements;3.5. To address requests for registration of members

of the SA Association for Nutritional Therapy (SAANT).

4. To review and implement an effective communication strategy;

5. To contribute towards an effective CPD system and manage non-compliance;

6. To enhance the professional and ethical practice of practitioners;

7. To address the registration of Food Service Managers.

PRoFESSionAL BoARD FoR DiETETiCS AnD nUTRiTion

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Prof. Edelweiss Wentzel-ViljoenChairperson


Appointment of Board Members

On 2 September 2011, the Minister of Health issued a Notice of Nominations for members to be appointed to the Professional Board (as per Government Gazette No 697 of 2 September 2011).

Nominations for two Dieticians and one Nutritionist were specifically invited from persons registered in terms of the Professional Board for Dietetics and Nutrition.

Prof. E C Swart, Mr. A Rasekhala and Ms. K Morris were appointed to fill the Board vacancies

Documents

Hpcsa Annual Report 2012 2013