CPD FAQs
Use the button View Certificates at the bottom of this page or these can be found within your ABDO Membership Profile, just click on Online CPD under Quick Links and then View Certificates. Please note it may take up to 10 working days for your certificate to appear.
Please click here for more instructions. If viewing on a smartphone, please swipe across to find other certificates under the same heading.
No, see above for instructions on where to find it.
All CPD events will be advertised both on the CPD News Page and via the ABDO E-News which comes out on a Tuesday. If you do not receive a copy of this via email and you would like to please contact our membership services department. 01227 733911
Press Manage Registration in your email confirmation and then cancel or email abdocpd@abdo.org.uk.
Your PDP is personal to you. It should include both things which you are interested in and those things that you maybe aren’t. Your plan doesn’t need to be perfect, but it does need to reflect what learning you wish to undertake during the cycle.
CPD is there to ensure you don’t only cover the bits you enjoy but also those things that you may not deal with on a day-to-day basis. This will not be checked by anyone, so it just needs to be right for you and your learning. Should the GOC decide to assess you it will only be to compare whether your CPD matches the learning outcomes on your PDP.
Yes, this is a working document so you can go back into it at any point and update / amend it. Things you added to your PDP at the beginning of 2022 may not be suitable now. Eg. You may be in a different job role now and have different requirements. These can be added to your PDP.
Ideally, yes although it is only mandatory for peer review sessions. This is the best way to remember what you learnt from each piece of CPD and how you implemented that learning into practice. This will then help you form the basis of your reflective exercise discussion and plan for next year’s PDP.
Previous years ABDO CPD have been able to run emergency online sessions to help members obtain their points requirement right up until New Years Eve. HOWEVER, this year your reflective exercise needs to be completed ideally once you have fulfilled your points requirement or at least are very close to doing so. Don’t leave it until the last minute, check your MyCPD now and see where you are and what you need to achieve your requirement.
The reflective piece must be carried one-to-one so in essence no you can’t. However, as far as current guidance states there isn’t anything to say that you are restricted to only being a peer for one person, so one of you could carry out two separate discussions.
Your peer does not need to have the same qualification as you so you could approach your locum optometrist and see if they too are looking. If not, then you can also choose someone such as an orthoptist or pharmacist to have your discussion with. As long as they work in a profession where they are required to be registered with a UK regulatory body.
No you don’t, but it advised that you have completed the majority of it to ensure a detailed conversation can take place. You will still need to have completed your CPD points requirement before December 31st 2024 for this cycle.
There are many reasons why you might decide to leave the optical profession temporarily for either a short or long period of time. If you find yourself in this situation, please read of some of the issues to consider before you let your GOC registration and/or ABDO membership lapse.
Personal indemnity insurance
You might think that you will not have to pay personal indemnity insurance as you are not in practice. However, there is the possibility that a claim can be made against you some time after you leave practice. If you don’t continue your insurance, or have ‘run-off’ cover, you may find that you have to pay legal fees yourself.
Locum work
Dispensing Optician is a protected title and you must be registered with the GOC to be able to use this. You would require personal indemnity insurance even for the occasional day working as a locum dispensing optician or contact lens optician. Click to access more information on legislation on the GOC website.
GOC restoration fee
The GOC charges a restoration fee to re-join the register. This is in addition to the standard registration fee.
Making up any shortfall in CPD
Following your career break, when you decide apply to re-join the GOC register if you did not achieve your 36 points in the previous CPD cycle, you will have the number of points you didn’t achieve in that cycle added on to your requirement for restoration. Depending on when you decided to take your break, you may be asked by the GOC to accrue up to 36 points before you can be restored to the register. Although ABDO provides many forms of CPD to help you, this can be an extremely onerous requirement, and can take months to achieve via free-of-charge CPD. As well as the number of points to be gained for restoration, the GOC will also stipulate the other CPD conditions need to be met, such as gaining half as interactive points and covering all four domains. Contact lens opticians in shortfall will also have to gain peer review points.
If you were up-to-date with your CPD points in the last cycle, or you weren’t on the GOC register for the whole of the last cycle, a dispensing optician will have the minimum restoration requirement stipulated by the GOC, 12 points. If you are a contact lens optician, 6 of the 12 points must be contact lens competencies, and 6 general dispensing. Once you have achieved the restoration requirement, your CPD ‘score’ is set to zero, and from your restoration date you must start gaining points for the current cycle.
ABDO provides a wide choice of CPD and ways to gain it. Almost all will be free-of-charge to ABDO members during the 2022-2024 period.
Before you let everything lapse, consider whether it would be less trouble, less expense and safer to stay on the GOC register and continue your ABDO membership. At least try to ensure that you don’t have a CPD shortfall in this period, or you may find that it is extremely difficult to get back into work after your break.
Find more information restoring registration with the GOC
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ABDO A&G: R1.4, R1.6 and R5.3
If you are returning to work after a break and intend to re-join the GOC register, the GOC restoration CPD and other requirements must be met. To start the process of restoration to the register you should:
- Contact the GOC’s Registration department. They will tell you how many CPD points you must gain before restoration, what competencies you must address and how many points are required to be interactive.
- Ask the GOC for a ‘U-number’. This will identify you to CPD providers so that you can accrue CPD points before you receive your new GOC D-number.
- If you are not already a member, join ABDO. This will allow you to have access to all membership benefits, including Personal Indemnity Insurance (PII) at best rates. PII is a requirement for all GOC registrants. Other membership benefits include but are not restricted to: free or low cost CPD, legal support and a monthly copy of Dispensing Optics. Contact ABDO Membership for a full list of member benefits.
For more information about restoring to the GOC register visit the GOC website
Updating your information
When you are finally back on the register you will be provided with a brand new GOC number. If you are an ABDO member, please don’t forget to update this information via the membership portal. This will ensure you continue to obtain CPD points from any sessions you complete that are provided by ABDO CPD.
Obtaining your shortfall in CPD points to gain re-registration
ABDO CPD provide several ways to help you obtain CPD points:
ABDO Regional CPD events
ABDO offer face-to-face evening events throughout the year around the country. Each event will offer 6 CPD interactive points including an peer review.
Online CPD
Visit the Events page to see what discussion based interactive CPD is available.
Visit CPD Online in your membership profile for the latest Dispensing Optics CPD articles and recorded lectures with mcqs.
Further information
ABDO CPD can support members wishing to re-register with the GOC.
Contact ABDO CPD on 01206 734155 or abdocpd@abdo.org.uk if you need assistance.