The Duality of Continuing Professional Development in Mental Health Social Work: Voluntary and Involuntary Status

In recent years, regulation of the Continuing Professional Development (CPD) requirements of accredited mental health social workers (AMHSWs) in Australia has increased. AMHSWs are now obliged to do 10 hours of CPD in focused psychological strategies (FPS) each year to retain their accreditation status. CPD in FPS is often provided by psychologists and is not tailored to the broader context of social work practice. Given that AMHSWs are now mandated to undertake CPD in FPS it is essential that educational opportunities are provided that are appropriate to their ongoing needs. In this paper the findings of a 2010 national study of the CPD requirements of AMHSWs are presented. Just under 50% (n = 566) of social workers accredited with the Australian Association of Social Workers participated in this study. A main finding was that AMHSWs wanted a range of CPD courses offered at different levels that were accessible, affordable and tailored to the context of social work practice. Accessibility to appropriate CPD was particularly an issue for social workers in regional, rural, and remote areas. This was the first comprehensive study of the postqualifying educational needs of AMHSWs in Australia and lays the foundation for CPD development for AMHSWs and further research in this area.