CONTINUING PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
iCHIP Professional Registration
iCHIP promotes professionalism in health informatics by providing individuals, employers and the wider community with a recognised framework for professional recognition and development.
iCHIP is based on a voluntary register of health informatics professionals who are committed to working to standards that are clearly defined.
Who can register for iCHIP?
The iCHIP register is designed to accommodate individuals who work directly and indirectly with ICT in healthcare, at every level. The register will include many professional roles including:
- Managers
- Clinicians
- ICT staff
- Administrative staff
- Health records staff
- Clinical informatics staff
- Researchers
- Educationalists
- Commercial suppliers
What are the benefits of the I-CHIP register?
- For individuals: Registration with I-CHIP validates expertise by benchmarking their profiles against the ICT industry standard Skills Framework for the Information Age (SFIA). It provides independent evidence of professionalism, clarifying progression pathways and facilitating career planning in a structured manner.
- For employers: I-CHIP can be used as a recruitment tool to streamline selection procedures, with independent assessment of each applicant's professional levels, even in specialised areas. It enables an employer to set goals appropriate to the needs of the organisation and of the individual.
- For healthcare: I-CHIP aims to advance the application of informatics in the promotion of health and well-being, and to uphold and improve the standards of qualifications and competence in the field.
Preliminary Registration for iCHIP in Ireland
A process of preliminary registration is now available during the inaugural phase of iCHIP in Ireland. This provides applicants with access to the online iCHIP registration system. Pending their full approval and the rollout of iCHIP, successful applicants will be transferred to the full system.
- Initial Application: Applications for registration with iCHIP will be approved only following qualified assessment against defined professional standards and competences. Although the registration process takes account of your self-assessment outcome, you may apply to join the register at another level provided you offer sufficient justification.
- Renewal: An individual's registration will be retained only by adequate demonstration that defined professional standards and competences are being maintained, together with evidence of continuing professional development. This is entered online and you may complete the whole process in one go, or in stages if you prefer.
- Withdrawal: An individual's registration will be withdrawn in cases where levels of competence and professional development are not maintained, where contravention of the professional Code of Conduct is proven or where allegations or complaints against a registrant are upheld by Council.
Multiple Levels of iCHIP Registration
Although the registration process takes account of your self assessment outcome, you may apply to join the register at another level provided you offer sufficient justification. Read more about the various registration levels.
- Student and Affiliate: This is suitable for those who are just commencing a career in Health Informatics or wish to support the profession although not practising. You may be a student, a trainee or just moving into Health Informatics from another area, and have not yet gained the requisite experience for full registration.
- Level 1 Registration: This is intended for those who are either relatively new to the profession, or whose work does not require a particularly high level of health informatics knowledge or experience.
- Level 2 Registration: This is for those who have begun to develop a career in health informatics. Applicants will typically have a minimum of two years experience in health informatics, and some level of responsibility, qualification and experience.
- Level 3 Registration: This is intended for those individuals whose career in health informatics has reached a stage where they have the knowledge and experience to provide professional leadership. As with Level 2, the assessment of your application provides flexibility to trade-off between qualifications, experience and employment profile.
Continuing Professional Development (CPD)
All applicants and those renewing their registration are required to provide a Continuing Professional Development (CPD) plan for the following 12 months. Record your progress in completing your CPD plan online. You may complete this process in one go, or in stages if you prefer.
Once you are registered, a CPD Diary is available for you to record progress against your planned activities or even add new activities. At the end of your registration year, an assessment of your planned and actual activities forms part of the registration renewal process. In this way you can demonstrate your continued professionalism and competency in health informatics.
The iCHIP Code of Conduct
The iCHIP Code of Conduct sets out the standards of behaviour required of health informatics professionals registered with the United Kingdom Council for Health Informatics Professions. It deals with all aspects of professional activity including registrants' duties to patients, the public, employers and colleagues.
Adoption of the Code of Conduct is a mandatory prerequisite for registration with iCHIP in any category and a registered person who fails to comply with the code will be removed from the iCHIP registers.
The iCHIP Code of Conduct requires that a health informatics professional shall:
Work to high professional standards
All health informatics professionals shall exercise their professional skills and judgement to the best of their ability and discharge their duties with integrity by:
- Giving professional advice that is objective and reliable.
- Ensuring that information systems for which they are responsible are fit for their purpose.
- Maintaining a high standard of professional and technical expertise appropriate to their role and discipline, and continuously seeking to develop their knowledge and competence.
- Accepting personal responsibility for all work done or advice given by themselves or by others under their supervision or direction.
- Ensuring that they, and any persons under their supervision, have the necessary knowledge and competence to undertake their duties, and conversely that no person knowingly works beyond their current competence except as part of a properly supervised training and development programme.
Respect the rights and interests of others
All health informatics professionals shall work to high ethical standards, respecting the legitimate rights and interests of their employer, other professionals, clients, and other relevant authorities by:
- Promoting respect for the individual and their rights, and ensuring equal opportunities in all aspects of professional activity, including staff management and recruitment, education development and training, and relationships with clients and colleagues.
- Carrying out their duties with diligence and integrity for the benefit of their employer and/or client, refusing any personal
- inducement in the exercise of their professional judgement, and avoiding any real or apparent conflict of interest
- Ensuring that they and their organisation are aware of, and comply with, any relevant legislation or regulations, particularly as
- regards protecting the security, confidentiality, accuracy and integrity of health information.
- Keeping confidential any privileged information obtained in the course of their professional duties regarding the activities of
- individuals or organisations – except where there is an overriding ethical or legal duty to disclose it.
- Taking all reasonable steps to ensure that any undesirable consequence which they believe may result from failure to accept their advice is communicated clearly to any individual overruling or neglecting such advice.
Protect and act in the interests of patients and the public
All health informatics professionals shall, to the best of their ability, protect and promote the interests of patients and the public by:
- Ensuring that information systems and equipment for which they are responsible are procured, installed, maintained and operated professionally, efficiently and safely, and provide good value for the public money invested in them.
- Ensuring the security, confidentiality, accuracy and integrity of information, and protecting the safety of patients and the public, both directly through their personal actions and indirectly through the design and operation of any information systems for which they are responsible.
- Reporting to the proper authorities any improper or misleading use of information, whether accidental or deliberate, or misconduct by any person in connection with the procurement, operation or use of information systems and equipment.
- Promoting the appropriate use of information to enhance patient and public involvement and to support patient empowerment, dignity and choice.
- Taking all reasonable steps to avoid waste of natural resources, damage to the environment, and wasteful damage or destruction of the products of human skill and industry.
Promote the standards and standing of the profession
All health informatics professionals shall, to the best of their ability, promote the standards and standing of the profession by:
- Promoting professionalism in health informatics through all aspects of their work, acting as advocates for high standards in the management of health information in their workplace, and setting an example of high standards to staff and colleagues.
- Sharing their knowledge and experience with their peers, participating in professional activities and organisations appropriate to their role and discipline, and encouraging others to do so.
- Avoiding personal behaviour, public statements or actions likely to bring the profession as a whole, or individual members of the profession, into disrepute, and notifying the Council promptly of any circumstances that might do so.
For more information about registering with iCHIP contact info@hisi.ie
