The AVA has lodged a submission on Victoria’s proposed new Continuing Professional Development (CPD) guidelines, supporting modern, outcomes-based learning while advocating for practical implementation that supports the veterinary workforce.
Key messages from the AVA submission included support for a shift away from counting CPD hours and points towards a broader professional development framework that promotes lifelong learning, reflective practice, mentoring and the maintenance of professional competence throughout a veterinarian’s career. The AVA also urged the Veterinary Practitioners Registration Board of Victoria (VPRBV) to ensure any new requirements remain practical, proportionate and achievable, avoiding unnecessary administrative burden and unintended impacts on the veterinary workforce.
The submission highlighted strong existing engagement by veterinarians in professional development and used AVA member data to demonstrate the profession’s commitment to ongoing learning. At the same time, the AVA called for greater national consistency in CPD requirements across Australia to reduce confusion, duplication and compliance complexity for veterinarians, employers and CPD providers.
While supporting greater flexibility in how CPD is undertaken, the AVA recommended that the VPRBV provide clearer guidance and practical examples to help practitioners understand what would constitute reasonable CPD participation under the proposed framework. The AVA also advocated for realistic compliance expectations, requesting that practitioners be given a minimum of 28 business days, rather than seven days, to provide CPD records if requested by the Board.
The AVA welcomed the inclusion of wellbeing within the proposed framework and emphasised that wellbeing is best supported through education, workplace culture and practical resources. The submission also expressed strong support for mentoring of new graduates, while highlighting the need for flexibility, mentor training and access to external mentoring programs, particularly for practitioners working in rural, regional and workforce-constrained settings.
The AVA has offered to work collaboratively with regulators on communication, implementation and change management initiatives as CPD requirements continue to evolve nationally. The submission reinforces the AVA’s ongoing commitment to ensuring CPD frameworks strengthen professional standards while supporting workforce sustainability, practitioner wellbeing and long-term career success across the veterinary profession.
The full AVA submission can be found here.