[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]If you are heading into the Health or Fitness industry, you need to know about CPD Points. Here’s what it’s all about, and what you can expect from continuing to develop your professional skills once you are qualified.
“There is no end to education. It is not that you read a book, pass an examination, and finish with education. The whole of life, from the moment you are born to the moment you die, is a process of learning.”
– Jiddu Krishnamurti
We never stop learning. And that is a good thing. Imagine there was nothing left to learn – it would make the rest of our life pretty dull. Luckily there is no need to think about that, because there is always, and will always be, tons of lessons and new knowledge out there for us to internalise.
Businesses have caught on to this too, and since the late 20th century, employees are encouraged, if not obliged, to continue to learn skills that relate to their career. This ongoing learning is known as CPD – Continuous Professional Development.
What is CPD?
CPD is about continued learning, in order for professionals to maintain, broaden and improve their professional competence throughout their working life. In other words, CPD is about learning things that are useful, above all, for your job and professional life so that you keep up to date with standards and levels of competence in your line of work.
Nicole Jennings, Operations Manager at eta College explains,
“CPD is continuing education for professionals. There are points that are allocated according to courses, extra skills, or extra knowledge-based training that professionals get in order to ensure that they are up to date with the industry requirements.”
Who in SA needs CPD Points?
Not everyone needs to collect CPD points. It depends on which industry you work in. Certain industries require you to continue your skills in order to remain registered as a professional. And in certain industries, you cannot continue working if you are not registered.
Each industry has its own set of regulations and minimum number of annual CPD points. Some professions that require you to engage in CPD are,
How do you get CPD points?
You can get CPD points by attending certain short courses, workshops, conferences, or other similar events that provide you with new skills and knowledge for your profession and that have been registered with the industry-specific CPD organisation.
Every industry has its own CPD registry. This registry decides whether a course or workshop qualifies to provide CPD points for a given profession. So, every course, workshop, or other event that wishes to provide CPD points must first apply to its respective registry board so that they can review it, and allocate an adequate number of CPD points.
For example, if you are a personal trainer and you complete a specialisation as an Olympic Lift Instructor, and this workshop is registered with REPSSA (the registry for fitness professionals in South Africa), you can submit your certificate of completion to REPSSA to claim your CPD points.
Fitness & Health CPD in South Africa
As a fitness professional in South Africa (e.g. personal trainer, sports coach, Pilates instructor, etc.) you need to obtain 12 CPD points each year in order to remain registered with REPSSA.
Note, you can only claim your CPD points for a completed course or workshop from the company with which it has been registered. This means that if you are a physiotherapist who specializes in sports injuries, you cannot claim CPD points from a course registered with REPSA. As a physiotherapist you are registered with HPCSA (Health Professionals Council of South Africa) and you need to check which courses are registered with them for CPD.
CPD at eta College
eta College is a training institute that specialises in sports and fitness qualifications. The college has campuses across South Africa, as well as in Botswana, Dubai and Mauritius, with up to 200 students on each campus.
Alongside full-time courses both on campus and through distance learning, eta believes in continuous development of skills and knowledge once professionals enter the fitness industry. The college offers a range of specialisations that are registered with REPSSA, which means that fitness professionals can claim the allocated fitness CPD points once they have completed one or more of these courses.
Nicole explains,
“Once you are qualified and registered with REPSSA, the idea is to continue your training through small courses. eta also offers specialisation courses and workshops that help our graduates with continued education.”
Eta’s specialsation courses have between 6 and 12 allocated CPD points. Two popular courses are:
- Kettlebell Coach (12 CPD points)
- Olympic Lift Instructor (12 CPD points)
Here’s their full list of specialisations with the allocated number of CPD points:[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column offset=”vc_hidden-lg vc_hidden-md”][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1/3″][vc_column_text]
[dt_divider style=”thin” /]eta Specialisation Courses (CPD): Athletic Performance
Duration:
2 days[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]Type of program:
Specialisation
Recognition body:
REPSSA
CPD:
12[/vc_column_text][/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1/3″][vc_column_text]
[dt_divider style=”thin” /]eta Specialisation Courses (CPD): Combat Trainer
Duration:
2 days[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]Type of programme:
Specialisation
Recognition body:
REPSSA
CPD:
12[/vc_column_text][/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1/3″][vc_column_text]
[dt_divider style=”thin” /]eta Specialisation Courses (CPD): DNA Fit
Duration:
1 day[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]Type of programme:
Specialisation
Recognition body:
REPSSA
CPD:
6[/vc_column_text][/vc_column_inner][/vc_row_inner][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1/3″][vc_column_text]
[dt_divider style=”thin” /]eta Specialisation Courses (CPD): High-Intensity Training
Duration:
2 days[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]Type of programme:
Specialisation
Recognition body:
REPSSA
CPD:
12[/vc_column_text][/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1/3″][vc_column_text]
[dt_divider style=”thin” /]eta Specialisation Courses (CPD): Kettlebell Coach
Duration:
2 days[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]Type of program:
Specialisation
Recognition body:
REPSSA
CPD:
12[/vc_column_text][/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1/3″][vc_column_text]
[dt_divider style=”thin” /]eta Specialisation Courses (CPD): Lifestyle Coaching
Duration:
1 day[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]Type of program:
Specialisation
Recognition body:
REPSSA
CPD:
6[/vc_column_text][/vc_column_inner][/vc_row_inner][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1/3″][vc_column_text]
[dt_divider style=”thin” /]eta Specialisation Courses (CPD): Loaded Movement Trainer
Duration:
2 days[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]Type of programme:
Specialisation
Recognition body:
REPSSA
CPD:
8[/vc_column_text][/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1/3″][vc_column_text]
[dt_divider style=”thin” /]eta Specialisation Courses (CPD): Olympic Lift Instructor
Duration:
2 days[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]Type of programme:
Specialisation
Recognition body:
REPSSA
CPD:
12[/vc_column_text][/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1/3″][vc_column_text]
[dt_divider style=”thin” /]eta Specialisation Courses (CPD): Primal Movement Specialist
Duration:
1 day[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]Type of programme:
Specialisation
Recognition body:
REPSSA
CPD:
8[/vc_column_text][/vc_column_inner][/vc_row_inner][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1/3″][vc_column_text]
[dt_divider style=”thin” /]eta Specialisation Courses (CPD): Sport Massage
Duration
12[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]Type of programme:
Specialisation
Recognition body:
REPSSA
CPD:
12[/vc_column_text][/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1/3″][vc_column_text]
[dt_divider style=”thin” /]eta Specialisation Courses (CPD): Suspension Trainer Specialist
Duration:
1 day[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]Type of programme:
Specialisation
Recognition body:
REPSSA
CPD:
8[/vc_column_text][/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1/3″][/vc_column_inner][/vc_row_inner][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column offset=”vc_hidden-sm vc_hidden-xs”][vc_column_text]
| CPD | duration | eta Specialisation Courses (CPD) | Type of programme | Recognition body |
| 12 | 2 days | Athletic Performance | Specialisation | REPSSA |
| 12 | 2 days | Combat Trainer | Specialisation | REPSSA |
| 6 | 1 day | DNA Fit | Specialisation | REPSSA |
| 12 | 2 days | High Intensity Training | Specialisation | REPSSA |
| 12 | 2 days | Kettlebell Coach | Specialisation | REPSSA |
| 6 | 1 day | Lifestyle Coaching | Specialisation | REPSSA |
| 8 | 2 days | Loaded Movement Trainer | Specialisation | REPSSA |
| 12 | 2 days | Olympic Lift Instructor | Specialisation | REPSSA |
| 8 | 1 day | Primal Movement Specialist | Specialisation | REPSSA |
| 12 | 2 days | Sport Massage | Specialisation | REPSSA |
| 8 | 1 day | Suspension Trainer Specialist | Specialisation | REPSSA |
[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]For more info on one of the courses, click here.
Note, only people with an existing qualification in fitness, or extensive knowledge in a related field, will be allowed to register for the specialisation courses.
To find out more, visit the eta website.
What do professionals think of CPD?
“It keeps us up to date and serves as a refresher and covers all aspects of real estate. It helps maintain a standard level across the whole country for all estate agents.”
– Xandra Bolliger, Remax Estate Agent
“I believe in the concept of CPD. Knowledge in every professional field changes on a constant basis, especially Engineering. CPD ensures that the professional is involved and using their engineering skills, and is abreast of changes in the industry.”
– Orrin Veerasamy, Eskom Senior Control & Instrumentation Engineer
“CPD Points are quite easy for doctors to get – we need 30 points per year (any rolling 12-month period). There are numerous lectures, most free, as well as on-line points. Many accredited courses and conferences are available as well, reasonably priced. Typically a course costs R800-R1000 per day, and the points are earned at 1 point per hour. We also need a certain number of ethics points per year included in the 30 points. It’s not a bad system, as we need to keep our knowledge updated.
Points are randomly audited by HPCSA – I have been audited once so far, but always have more than the required number of points. The problem lies in the smaller disciplines, e.g. dental technicians need to earn 20 points per year, and there are no free lectures or courses. A typical course costs R1500 per day, so it becomes costly to get the required points.”
– Tanya Donaldson, Medical Doctor
FundiConnect 2cents
It’s no secret that some of you might not be too keen on attending extra workshops or courses on top of work and paying for it – and you might only complete them for the sake of compulsory CPD. But you should try to take this opportunity to really use the knowledge you learn! It can be really fun, and a nice change from your every day tasks.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]
