Women and Birth
Volume 21, Issue 2 , Pages 55-64, June 2008

The birth of ‘MidPLUS’: Australia's new national continuing professional development program for midwives

  • Julia Monaghan

      Affiliations

    • National CPD Project, Australian College of Midwives, GPO Box 666, Canberra ACT 2601, Australia
    • ,
  • Allison Shorten

      Affiliations

    • National CPD Project, Australian College of Midwives, GPO Box 666, Canberra ACT 2601, Australia
    • School of Nursing, Midwifery and Indigenous Health, University of Wollongong, Northfields Avenue, Wollongong, NSW 2522, Australia
    • Corresponding Author InformationCorresponding author. Tel.: +61 2 42 213 964; fax: +61 2 42 213 137.

Received 15 February 2007; received in revised form 13 February 2008; accepted 11 March 2008.

Summary 

The national continuing professional development (CPD) program of the Australian College of Midwives, MidPLUS, was officially launched in September 2007. In our role as program developers we were dedicated to the belief that this national CPD program would be an important step for Australian midwives, and contribute to demonstrating a commitment to providing safe and effective care for Australian women and families. This paper outlines key issues involved in providing CPD programs for professional groups and highlights how this information was used in the decision making behind the design of MidPLUS. The key operational elements of CPD programs included program design, program administration and related professional issues. Important features and functions of the MidPLUS program are highlighted and justification is given for our overall design. This information may assist midwives who are considering using the MidPLUS program and are asking the question: CPD—what does it mean for me?

Keywords: CPD, Midwifery, Professional development, MidPLUS

 

PII: S1871-5192(08)00023-1

doi:10.1016/j.wombi.2008.03.005

Women and Birth
Volume 21, Issue 2 , Pages 55-64, June 2008

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