Learning Plans

Most regulatory authorities operate competence programs of some kind as part of their mandate to ensure the proficiency and professionalism of their membership. As an association management software designed specifically for regulatory authorities, Alinity’s continuing competence module is just one of several optional modules available to expand the scope of functions of your implementation.

One of the essential elements of the competence module is the Learning Plan, which registrants use to state their planned or completed learning objectives for the year. Learning Plans are highly customizable and can be configured to meet your organization’s specific needs; here, we’ll demonstrate one of the more common versions, but remember that the entirety of the competence model can be customized as required.

An unbroken cycle of learning.

It starts at renewal, when the registrant is required to initially create their learning plan for the year. The registrant simply logs in through the client portal on the device of their choice, and clicks the renewal button. For more information about the renewal process, see our renewal video series. The specific part of the renewal that we’re going to look at here are the learning objectives. The registrant fills out all the required fields, thereby creating their learning plan for the year.

Once the learning plan has been created, it becomes available in the learning plans tab of the registrants dashboard. Previous years’ learning plans are locked for editing, though they can still be viewed. The current year, however, is still available for editing; this allows the registrant to upload documents and credentials as they earn them, rather than having to wait for the next renewal period. In this example configuration, registrants can also edit their learning plans to reflect changes in their learning throughout the year. They must still meet the minimum credit requirements as laid out by the College, however.

Once renewals open again the next year, registrants are given one last opportunity to finalize their learning plan declaration, make any last changes and upload the relevant documents. Once they submit this new renewal, the learning plan will be locked in, and may be subject to audit. At the same time, they’ll be asked to create a new learning plan for the new renewal year, helping to ensure an unbroken cycle of learning.

Ongoing education is essential to maintaining the highest standards of care and professionalism in self-regulated professions, and learning plans help codify and streamline the process into an easy, convenient process for registrants and college staff alike. For more information about the Alinity Continuing Competence module, feel free to watch the complete continuing competence video series, and for a free live demonstration of the Alinity association management software solution, contact us at info@softworksgroup.com.