Allied Health Professions Council registration details & More.

Allied Health Professions and Professionals Council registration details & More.

The Allied Health Professions Council is an organisation tasked with regulating the allied health professions in Ghana. It was established by Act 857 of 2013. Additionally, it was required to maintain and encourage these professionals' professionalism and effectiveness.

The goal of this mission is to provide the people of Ghana the greatest standard of medical treatment and safety. For all your registration and licencing needs, you must get acquainted with this organisation if you are an allied healthcare practitioner in Ghana.

Healthcare professionals who work in fields other than medicine, pharmacy, or dentistry are catered for by the council. Together with other healthcare workers, these specialists provide diagnostic, technical, and support services to guarantee that patients get the best possible health results.

Professions regulated by the Allied Health Professions Council

The professions under the council are:

• Physiotherapy
• Occupational Therapy
• Mental Health
• Optometry
• Nutrition
• Environmental Health
• Health Promotion
• Dietetics
• Dental Health
• Medical Laboratory Science
• Audiology
• Medical Physics
• Disease Control
• Health Information and Record Management
• Speech Therapy
• Prosthetics and Orthotics

How to register with the Allied Health Professions Council (AHPC)

Through the website of the council, you may complete the AHPC registration online. You will get a licence to practise in Ghana after you have finished the registration process and passed the licencing test. There are three different certification kinds that allow candidates to practise in Ghana for differing amounts of time. They are:

• Temporary registration: an applicant can only practice in an approved institution, and it lasts only three months. The registration is renewable yearly for a maximum of 3 years.
• Provisional registration: an applicant can only practice in an AHPC approved institution, and their registration is valid for one year.
• Permanent registration: an applicant who has practised for one year with the provisional registration has completed the internship, and has satisfied the board on all accounts can register and acquire a permanent certification. The professional should renew it before 31st December the following year.

Qualifications for registration

These are the prerequisites you should fulfil before initiating registration with Allied Health Professions Council of Ghana. An applicant must:

• Hold a degree in any of the programs listed above or equivalent qualification from a recognised institution that is approved by the board or 
• Provide evidence that they have undertaken and completed an internship program in an accredited allied health care facility.
• Have passed a professional qualifying exam. 
• Satisfy any other requirements set by the board.

If you fulfil the above requirements, you can now use the Allied Health Professions Council professional registration system to complete your registration. Here are the steps to follow:

• Visit the Allied Health Professions Council login
• Click on “Register Now” box on your upper right-hand of the screen 

If you are a new visitor, you need to click on “Not Having an Account, Sign Up” box to set up your account.

Enter your first and last name, a valid email address, create a password and confirm it, and then click “Sign Up”.

You will then click on the confirmation link sent to your email to verify your account. The verification activates your account, and it is ready for use.

• If you already have an account, click on the “Sign In” box
• Click on “My profile”
• Enter the required personal information
• Select your type of registration
• Select the correct discipline
• Upload the relevant academic documents
• Add the institutions of learning associated with the documents
• Enter any work-related information
• Enter the “End Date” particulars if you are currently working
• Enter your referee’s names and valid email addresses
• Click ‘Finish’

You have now completed the online registration, and you can print the Allied Health Professions Council registration form. You will then need to pay the stipulated registration fee towards the “Allied Professions Council”, account number 113130014299 in the Ghana Commercial Bank, Korle Bu Branch, Accra and obtain the banker’s draft as evidence of the payment.

Take the registration form, the banker’s overdraft, and academic documents to the Allied Health Professions Council office in Accra.

Allied Health Professions Council registration for exams

Any professional who wants to get an AHPC licence must take the organization's licencing examinations. You will only be regarded as certified after you have passed this test. After logging in, a prospective candidate must download the exam registration form from the AHPC website.

After downloading the form, complete it with all the necessary information. Next, as instructed by the council, you must pay a non-refundable charge and get a banker's draught as proof of payment.

The Council Secretariat in Accra should then receive the form, the banker's draught, and the relevant academic records. Before taking the test, a candidate should have finished their internship programme (if applicable).

Every year, between October and January, licencing tests are administered. Hence, the test dates, exam locations, and exam costs are disclosed prior to July 31 each year. A candidate may take a supplemental test that AHPC has put up if they are unsuccessful or have failed to appear for the licencing exam for any reason.

The council retains the right to hold these professional exams whenever they see appropriate, and it is the responsibility of candidates to monitor any updates on the agency's website or social media accounts.

The AHPC will make the results public as soon as they are available after the administration of the exams. To provide the public the chance to get to know the new registered allied health professionals, the applicants who meet the requirements are registered and gazetted.

Thereafter, in order to operate in Ghana, the candidates are given a special Professional Identity Number (PIN) as evidence of their registration with AHPC.

Allied Health Professional Council PIN renewal

The PIN is changed annually, and the previous PIN expires on December 31 of each year. Thus, by the aforementioned date, all Allied health professionals should have completed the AHPC PIN registration.

Here is the process you need to follow to complete the Allied Health Professions Council PIN renewal:

• Visit the AHPC website
• Click on “Register Now” on your upper right-hand side of the screen
• Create an account if you don’t have one using the steps given above If you have an account enter your credentials to access your account
• Select “Click Here to Log In With Pin” in the Renewal box
• Enter your Professional Identity Number (PIN) in the box provided
• Click “ Sign In” Fill in all the necessary details
• Upload a formal passport photo
• Click ‘Next’ to update your CPD details, which include the year of renewal, any CPD taken and uploading a document verifying the CPD.
• Click ‘Next’
• Enter the year of renewal
• Click the box on the left to agree to the information you have provided. If you need to correct any field, you can click on the ‘Previous’ box to take you back to the field that requires the adjustment.
• Click ‘Finish’ to submit your filled form to the AHPC

Now, you need to pay the annual renewal fees according to your qualification.

The latest fees released by the organization are as follows:

• BSC/MSC: GH¢ 150.00
• Diploma: GH¢ 100.00
• Certificate: GH¢80.00

The payment is payable to “Allied Health Professions Council”.

The account number is 113130014299 at GCB, Korle Bu Branch, Accra.

Print the filled PIN renewal form, attach the bankers’ draft, the current PIN card, and submit them to the Allied Health Professions Council office in Accra.

The procedure of renewing your AHPC PIN is now complete. The names of all practitioners who have renewed their PIN will thereafter be published and gazetted by the council. This gazettement demonstrates your excellent status with the registration authority and your job eligibility to prospective employers. If you already have a job, it also enables you to go on practising your trade there.

The training curriculum, registration, and licencing of allied health professionals in Ghana are provided by the AHPC. Allied health workers may conveniently access these government services via its updated web portal. The AHPC licence enables associated practitioners to work in Ghana while demonstrating their exceptional skill. You may now sign up for professional exams, licence renewals, and PIN renewals using this comprehensive guide. To continue to enjoy supporting patients whenever they need you, be sure you register for these services in a timely manner.

Also Read: How to Access HTI Portal Login: portal.healthtraining.gov.gh.

Source: HR Forum News