After your initial registration with the General Optical Council (GOC), you are required to maintain your registration-level skills by attending and participating in GOC-approved continuing education and training (CET).
The GOC’s CET scheme is divided into 3-year periods, over which you should accrue 36 CET points, of which at least 18 must be ‘interactive’, ie by attendance at meetings and discussions. The current 3-year period is 1st Jan 2016 – 31st December 2018. By the end of 2018 you must have gained CET points equivalent to the number of whole months that you will have been on the GOC register as a qualified dispensing optician.
For example, if you are added to the GOC register in September 2016, you will need 27 points by December 2018.
CET points can be gained in a number of ways. ABDO have pledged to offer, as part of the membership fee, at least the minimum GOC CET requirement over the 3-year period. You will find CET articles in Dispensing Optics journal each month, which you can complete online. There will be free CET events advertised in the event section of the ABDO website for different ABDO Areas. You may attend CET in any Area. There are also other ABDO/ABDO College events which offer CET, but there may be a charge for these.
To start – follow these steps:
- Details of the CET scheme can be found on the GOC website www.optical.org. Log into ‘MyGOC’ and set up your MyCET access. You cannot set up MyCET with a GOC student registration number.
- Attend GOC-approved CET events, such as attending ABDO Area CET evenings and complete CET articles in Dispensing Optics journal.
- To find out about CET events, look in the Diary sections of The Optician or Optometry Today, access the “CET Directory” on the GOC website, or go to www.abdo.org.uk/events. Make sure that the CET you choose has dispensing opticians included in the target groups. There is no retrospective approval.
- Ensure that you sign attendance lists and give your GOC number. The provider of the CET will add the points to your record on the GOC website.
- When points are uploaded by the CET provider, your will receive an email from the GOC to tell you that there are points for confirmation on your record at MyCET. Log-on to the GOC website regularly to confirm any credits which are pending. You are required to complete CET in all of the nine competencies for a dispensing optician during the current cycle.
- Check ‘MyGOC/My CET’ to view full details of your points’ record. This is the ‘evidence’ which the GOC will check in order to confirm your eligibility for continued registration. However always keep a separate record of CET completed.
Further information about the CET scheme can be found by clicking here.
You can contact the ABDO CET Office if you would like any advice on CET:
ABDO CET
5 Kingsford Business Centre
Layer Road
Kingsford
Colchester CO2 0HT
Telephone: 01206 734 155
Email: abdocet@abdo.org.uk