Hi STU C,
I thought you were at issue with the amount you have to pay - that's how it comes across anyhow. Registration with EC(UK) and membership of IET becomes somewhat redundant if HPC registration and IPEM membership is necessary for NHS and private sector employees working with protected titles. So IET could actually be a waste of money if it is not required to hold down a job with a protected title. Perhaps this is why the IET are now concerned at this stage - I have both IET and IPEM membership since I think it's worthwhile for the magazines, etc.
Don't be fooled that IET are particularly interested in a career structure and training of technologists - not like IPEM are for those working in the NHS particularly - because the NHS is the employer that's likely to use protected titles to comply with the HPC requirements (as per the other professions who're regulated under the HPC). They're probably looking at this from the financial angle and looking to recruit members from the private sector and IPEM that have the "capability to do harm" working in healthcare thus need regulating in some way (but they want to remain "Engineers".
The fact is that NHS employees are already in post and preventing a lot of adverse technical issues sometimes created by manufacturers and suppliers of medical devices and systems themselves - irrespective of all these initials and letters flying around after peoples names - it's training, protected titles and a willingness to comply with specilaised requirements (meant to protect the patient) that will actually prevent harm to patients and allow employers to demonstrate they're trying to mitigate risk.
I don't think the general requirements of EC(UK) registration are sufficient for the job we do. Incidentally there are 7 groups proposed under the Clinical Technologist "umbrella" each with their own scope of practice defined by IPEM. Renal Technologists are included, Drew. The IPEM propoal is biased towards those working in the NHS but isn't this what the HPC covers?
