Credentialing and scope of clinical practice
The team currently processes credentialing and scope of clinical practice (SoCP) applications for
- Medical practitioners and dentists working in the 4 rural and remote Hospital and Health Services (HHSs) - Torres and Cape, Central West, North West and South West
- General practitioners working in primary care with the Royal Flying Doctor Service (RFDS)
- Senior relieving general practitioners engaged by Queensland Country Practice (QCP)
- Senior medical officers for the Flying Specialist Service (FSS) which covers South West, Central West, Darling Downs and Central Queensland HHSs
- Nurse practitioners working in the 4 rural and remote HHSs - Torres and Cape, Central West, North West and South West
- Endorsed midwives working in the 4 rural and remote HHSs - Torres and Cape, Central West, North West and South West
- Registered nurses/midwives engaging in a specific scope of practice, working in Torres and Cape and North West
- Allied health professionals engaging in extended scope of practice, working in North West and South West
Governance Framework
The relevant Credentialing Committee reviews and makes recommendations regarding SoCP to the relevant Health Service Chief Executive.
- The Chief Executive of Torres and Cape HHS has delegation to approve Statewide SoCP for RFDS and QCP (Medical).
- The Chief Executive of South West HHS has delegation to approve the applicable HHS SoCP for the FSS (Medical)
The National Safety and Quality Health Service Standards (second edition), set out the standards for health service provision. Standard 1 - Clinical Governance items 1.23 and 1.24 relates to credentialing and scope of clinical practice.
The Health Service Directive (HSD) for Credentialing and defining the scope of clinical practice (effective 24 March 2023) outlines the mandatory requirements for all health professional streams including medical practitioners and dentists, registered nurses and midwives (including nurse practitioners and endorsed midwives), and allied health. Each HHS aligns their credentialing policies and procedures to the HSD.
All rural and remote HHSs follow the principles outlined in the Department of Health Guideline - Credentialing and defining the scope of clinical practice for medical practitioners and dentists: a best practice guideline (QH-GDL-390-1-1: 2017) as the overarching policy and process document used to support and guide the Credentialing process.