THE PHASING OUT OF OLD PSP QUALIFICATIONS

* National Certificate: Pharmacist Assistant (Basic)
* Further Education and Training Certificate: Pharmacist Assistant (Post-Basic) for pharmacy support personnel

The current pharmacy support personnel (PSP) qualifications – National Certificate: Pharmacist Assistant (Basic) and Further Education and Training Certificate: Pharmacist Assistant (Post-Basic) – will be replaced with the Occupational Certificate (Basic and Post-Basic). This article explains the introduction of the Occupational Certificate, enrolment, and the teach-out period of current qualifications.

The life of the current qualifications will end on 30 June 2023 and the last date for new enrolments with approved providers is 30 June 2024. Thereafter, the teach-out period (i.e. the period where the learner is required to complete the qualification) for the qualifications ends on 30 June 2027. The table below summarises

Table 1: Registration end dates for National Certificate: Pharmacist Assistance and the Further Education and Training Certificate: Pharmacist Assistance.
Table 1: Registration end dates for National Certificate: Pharmacist Assistance and the Further Education and Training Certificate: Pharmacist Assistance.

It is foreseeable that there will be persons who were previously registered as learners with the SAPC for these qualifications, who may request to be restored to the register of learners for their previously registered qualification as they wish to complete their training during the teach-out period. There may also be learners who wish to be trained in a different sector during the teach-out period. Council, therefore, developed the Guidance Document for Registration of Learners During the Teach-Out Period of the Previously Registered Qualifications for Pharmacist’s Assistants with the Registration End Date of 30 June 2023 to guide the Skills Development Providers and the Office of the Registrar on how to manage the registration of learners during the teach-out period (e.g. restoration of learners for these qualifications, and change of sector during and after the teach-out period).

We provide guidance to these learners and explain the responsibilities of the Skills Development Providers (SDPs) below.

Enrolled learners during the teach-out period

  1. Registered Pharmacist’s Assistants (Learner Basic and Learner Post-Basic) shall be allowed to change providers during the teach-out period.
  2. Registered Pharmacist’s Assistants (Learner Basic and Learner Post-Basic) may apply for a change of premises and/or tutor during the teach-out period.
  3. Registered Pharmacist’s Assistants (Learner Basic and Learner Post-Basic) are allowed to extend their contracts with the SDP during the teach-out period, provided that such extension is not beyond the teach-out period end date.
  4. Registered Pharmacist’s Assistants (Learner Basic and Learner Post-Basic) (as well as qualified Pharmacist’s Assistants) are not allowed to change sectors during the teach-out period because it will be deemed as a new enrolment for a qualification that does not exist.
  5. In an event that the tutor is no longer approved (e.g. resignation, death, etc.) the learner will be required to submit the application for a change of tutor and pay the applicable fee.
  6. In the event that the facility is no longer approved for the training of Pharmacist’s Assistants, the Responsible Pharmacists will be required to apply for premises approval for such training, or the learner may apply for a change of premises if he/she wishes to complete the training in another facility.

Previously enrolled/registered learners

  1. Learners who were previously enrolled with an approved SDP and previously registered with the SAPC (i.e. before the last date for new enrolments) may be allowed to complete their current unfinished qualification ONLY during the teach-out period where the provider enrols learners under the following conditions:
    1. complete the application form for restoration of a name to the register due to removal;
    2. the pharmacy at which the in-service training will take place has been approved by Council for such in-service training;
    3. the tutor has been approved by Council;
    4. pay the appropriate restoration fee and the annual fee applicable in the year of restoration; and
    5. continue paying annual fees during the completion of the qualification.
  2. Learners cannot apply for restoration one month before the end of the teach-out period as this does not necessarily leave them enough time to complete the qualification.
  3. Learners may not be allowed to complete the qualification for which they were previously registered during the teach-out period if –
    1. they were enrolled with the provider but not registered with the SAPC before the last date of enrolment; and/or
    2. failed to pay the restoration fee and the annual fee.

Provider responsibility

  1. The SDPs should ensure that the restoration of learners will provide an opportunity for the learners to complete all the requirements of the qualification, (for example learners should not be restored where the provider foresees that they might not be able to complete the 12 months in-service training before the end of the teach-out period).
  2. The SDPs should ensure that learners are registered with Council during the teach-out period.

There will be no restoration of learners, nor change of sector after the teach-out period. Learners who do not complete their qualifications during the teach-out period will have to register for the new qualification.

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