Accreditation FAQ

The Paramedicine Accreditation Committee (Accreditation Committee) is the accreditation authority for paramedicine programs of study.

The Accreditation Committee was established by the Paramedicine Board of Australia (National Board).

The Accreditation Committee:

• develops accreditation standards for approval by the National Board
• assesses programs of study and education providers against the accreditation standards approved by the National Board
• makes decisions about accreditation of programs of study, and
• monitors approved programs of study and education providers to ensure the Accreditation Committee continues to be satisfied those programs and providers meet the accreditation standards.

For more information, see the Accreditation authorities and the National Scheme page and the Accreditation Committee page.

An approved program of study qualifies a graduate to apply for registration as a health practitioner. Paramedicine programs of study are approved by the Paramedicine Board of Australia (National Board). Paramedicine programs of study must first be accredited by the Paramedicine Accreditation Committee (Accreditation Committee) against the Accreditation standards for Paramedicine . The accredited program will then be considered by the National Board for approval.

The National Board has approved the Council of Ambulance Authorities (CAA) accredited programs of study as providing qualifications for the purpose of general registration as a paramedic.

The paramedicine programs of study approved by the National Board are listed on the approved programs of study  page.

For information about paramedicine qualifications for registration please visit the Board’s Qualifications for registration page.

The Paramedicine Accreditation Committee (Accreditation Committee) has not yet started accrediting paramedicine programs of study under the National Law.

In the meantime, the Paramedicine Board of Australia (National Board) has approved the paramedicine programs of study that were accredited by the Council of Ambulance Authorities (CAA) as providing qualifications for the purpose of general registration as a paramedic.

At its inaugural meeting of 2019, the Accreditation Committee agreed on its approach to monitor these programs until their initial accreditation assessments under the National Law start.

The Accreditation Committee will start conducting accreditation assessments of the Board-approved paramedicine programs once the Accreditation standards for paramedicine take effect, from 1 June 2021.

If the Accreditation Committee decides to accredit a program of study (with or without conditions), it will give the National Board a report about its accreditation decision. The National Board will then decide whether it will approve, or refuse to approve, the accredited program of study as leading to a qualification for registration.

The National Board publishes a list of approved programs of study.

An education provider that has changed, or plans to change, a program that is on the National Board’s list of approved programs must notify the Accreditation Committee about the change. Contact the Program Accreditation Team team for more information.

An education provider must complete an application for accreditation assessment and submit the form plus all required documents to the Program Accreditation Team.

The Accreditation standards for paramedicine were published in September 2020, and take effect from 1 June 2021.  

For more information visit the Applying for accreditation page.

The Accreditation Committee expects that students are given extensive and diverse work-integrated learning experiences in a range of settings with a range of patients/clients and clinical presentations.

The Accreditation Committee considers that direct patient/client encounters throughout the program will help ensure students achieve the professional capabilities needed by paramedics. Education providers are expected to explain how the entire range of work-integrated learning experiences will ensure graduates achieve the professional capabilities.

The Accreditation Committee expects education providers to engage with practitioners acting as work integrated learning supervisors. The examples of engagement supplied by the education provider should show work-integrated learning supervisors have an opportunity to give feedback to the education provider on students’ work-integrated learning experiences.

Examples of how student learning outcomes will be measured are included throughout the Accreditation standards. For example, in accreditation standard 5: Assessment, accreditation criterion 5.2 states:

Advertising materials for your program, including on your website, need to accurately reflect the status of the Paramedicine Accreditation Committee’s accreditation decision and/or the Paramedicine Board of Australia’s (the National Board) approval. It also needs to reference the Paramedicine Accreditation Committee and/or the National Board, whichever is relevant. Some things to consider include:

• is the program accredited by the Paramedicine Accreditation Committee or expected to undergo an accreditation assessment?
• is the program approved by the National Board?
• does the program currently lead to registration?

Please see the example statements below:

Example 1: Program awaiting accreditation assessment with the Paramedicine Accreditation Committee and has National Board approval

The program of study is scheduled to undergo an accreditation assessment with the Paramedicine Accreditation Committee in 20XX.

This program is approved by the Paramedicine Board of Australia (National Board).

Graduates of the program can apply for registration as a paramedic with the National Board via the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (Ahpra) website.

Example 2: Program awaiting accreditation assessment with the Paramedicine Accreditation Committee and does not have National Board approval

This program of study is scheduled to undergo an accreditation assessment with the Paramedicine Accreditation Committee in 20XX.

Example 3: Program under accreditation assessment with the Paramedicine Accreditation Committee and has National Board approval

This program of study is currently undergoing an accreditation assessment with the Paramedicine Accreditation Committee.

This program is approved by the Paramedicine Board of Australia (the National Board).

Graduates of the program can apply for registration as a paramedic with the National Board via the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (Ahpra) website.

Example 4: Program that is accredited by the Paramedicine Accreditation Committee and has National Board approval

This program of study is currently accredited by the Paramedicine Accreditation Committee and approved by the Paramedicine Board of Australia (the National Board).

Graduates of the program can apply for registration as a paramedic with the National Board via the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (Ahpra) website.

One of the pathways to qualify for registration is to hold a qualification from an approved program of study.

See the programs of study approved by the National Board.

The Accreditation Committee does not deal with registration issues. For registration matters, contact Ahpra's Customer Service team.

No. There is a separate process with specific registration standards that must be met when you apply for registration as a health practitioner.

For more information about the graduate registration process, visit the Graduate Applications page on the Ahpra website.

It could mean that your program is not currently approved by the National Board. Contact Ahpra's Customer Service team for more information.

The Accreditation Committee establishes teams to assess education providers and programs of study against accreditation standards.

Visit the Assessors page for information about assessment teams and the Accreditation Committee’s call for applications.

Accreditation standards are used to assess whether an education provider and its program of study provide graduates of the program with the knowledge, skills and professional attributes to practise the profession. See the Accreditations page for more information.

The Accreditation standards for paramedicine take effect from 1 June 2021 and will be used by the Accreditation Committee to assess paramedicine programs of study and education providers.

The main difference between the Accreditation standards for paramedicine  that are approved by the Paramedicine Board of Australia, and the Council of Ambulance Authority (CAA) accreditation standards is that the new Accreditation standards reflect an outcome-focussed approach to accreditation.

The five domains reflect the structure initiated by the Australian Dental Council and adopted by nine other professions. The Accreditation Committee has structured the Accreditation standards for paramedicine within these five domains to enhance consistency across the National Scheme and reduce the regulatory burden for education providers.

Assuring safe practice is central to accreditation standard 1 and is paramount in the design, implementation and monitoring of paramedicine programs. The Accreditation standards require that formal mechanisms exist to ensure students in the program are fit to practise safely at all times (Accreditation standard 1. criterion 1.2). This includes all aspects of safe practice, such as (but not limited to) workplace health and safety, manual handling, infection prevention and control, and mental health.

The Accreditation standards recognise that graduates of paramedicine programs of study need a working knowledge of factors that contribute to and influence the health and wellbeing of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples. These factors include history, spirituality, relationship to land and other social determinants of health in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders.

The Accreditation standards recognise that cultural safety is determined by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander individuals, families and communities and that, in order to ensure culturally safe and respectful practice, health practitioners must:

•  acknowledge colonisation and systemic racism, social, cultural, behavioural and economic factors which impact individual and community health;
• acknowledge and address individual racism, their own biases, assumptions, stereotypes and prejudices and provide care that is holistic, free of bias and racism;
•  recognise the importance of self-determined decision-making, partnership and collaboration in healthcare which is driven by the individual, family and community; and
•  foster a safe working environment through leadership to support the rights and dignity of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and colleagues.

In addition, the Accreditation standards state:

•  The education provider actively recruits or draws on staff or other individuals with the knowledge, expertise and cultural capabilities to facilitate learning in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health.
• Cultural competence is to be integrated in the design and implementation of programs of study and should be articulated in learning objectives. The Standard states that an emphasis should be placed on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures and cultural safety.
• Unit/subject learning outcomes and assessment in the program that specifically reference the relevant National Safety and Quality Health Service (NSQHS) Standards, including in relation to collaborative practice, team-based care and culturally safe healthcare, particularly for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples.