Registrar’s Update November 2019

RCT and RCCP have signed a Memorandum of Understanding

The RCT is pleased to announce that we have signed a memorandum of understanding with the Registration Council for Clinical Physiologists (RCCP). The RCCP holds a voluntary register for practitioners in six disciplines of Clinical Physiology. Their key aim is to ensure the highest levels of safety for patients of clinical physiologists.

Their key work strands include:

·         Maintaining and publishing a publicly accessible register of properly qualified members of the professions

·         Promoting awareness of the Register among employers and education providers

·         Working in partnership with professional bodies to promote the highest standards of professionalism

·         Approving high standards of education and training and continuing professional development

·         Investigating complaints and taking appropriate action

·         Campaigning for the introduction of statutory regulation of clinical physiologists to ensure that nobody can opt out of the patient safety measures that they provide

This agreement sets out our commitment to work together and with other suitable Accredited Registers towards statutory regulation for healthcare science technologists and practitioners, for the better protection of the public; to share financial and operational information as necessary to create a ‘cluster’ register; information shared to be used only for this purpose; to share information on standards, entry requirements, and register policies and procedures, this information to be used solely in order to align these to create a ‘cluster’ register and for no other purpose; to create a separate agreement, in line with the General Data Protection Regulations, should it become necessary to share data on registrants to form a ‘cluster’ register.

To read the RCT and RCCP joint statement, please click here.

Renewal fees

The RCT management board have reviewed the fees for 2020 and details can be found on the RCT website. A registrars update explaining how the annual fees will be spent in 2020 is being put together and will be circulated shortly.

RCT Assessor vacancies

We currently have vacancies for RCT Assessors on the RCT panel. If you are registered on the RCT are looking for a new challenge, this is an interesting and varied role to add to your CV and could also count towards your CPD. If you are an IPEM member and would like to submit an application, please visit the ‘Get Involved’ page on the IPEM website when you are logged into your account, where you will find the role description and generic application form; or see the RCT website.

Mandatory direct debit payments for renewal fees – reminder

As mentioned in previous updates, the RCT Management Board has made the decision to introduce mandatory payment by direct debit for renewal fees for all registrants in the UK.  This will become the only way to pay from December 2020 for renewals due on 1 January 2021.  If you do not currently pay by direct debit, we would encourage you to consider this option for your upcoming renewal, so that this payment method is in place for when it becomes mandatory. You can pay in 1 annual payment in January or have the amount due split into 12 monthly payments. Please use this link to access the direct debit application form.

New ART representative joins the RCT Management Board

The RCT would like to welcome Kevin Gibbs who has replaced Ian Wilde as one of the ART representatives. Kevin has worked at Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust for over 15 years, 13 of those years as the Lead Renal Technologist for the Renal Services Departments both Adult and Paediatrics.

Proposing a new Scopes of Practice

The RCT is looking for interested groups or individuals to help us develop new scopes of practice. These new scopes of practice are intended for professions which may need a registration home with the RCT. For example the profession may not already have a home, it may have developed over time into a profession in its own right from part of an existing one, or it may be an emerging profession looking to develop registration for the first time.

To assist anyone wishing to bring new scopes of practice to the RCT management board, we have developed a set of guidance notes to set out what we need in order to take any proposal forward. A copy of the guidance notes can be found here.

NEW Scope of practice

We have recently introduced a new Clinical Computing scope of practice for the RCT and are about to commence piloting of the new scope, before introducing it for new applicants.  If you know of anybody in your department who is working in Clinical Computing (management of computer systems, not software development) and is interested in applying to join the RCT, please ask them to email the RCT for further details of the pilot.

PSA Re-Accreditation

We are pleased to advise that the re-accreditation process with the Professional Standards Authority is now complete and we have gained accreditation for the coming year.

Iain Threlkeld

The RCT Registrar


The Register of Clinical Technologists