Frequently asked questions
Click on the frequently asked questions below to read our responses.
If you can't find the answer to your question here, please contact us.
Does my membership renew automatically?
Yes, if you pay by direct debit. That is one of the advantages of paying by direct debit – you are not at risk of any unintended gaps in your membership. However, you must contact us if your professional or personal circumstances or your contact details change. If you pay by cheque or credit card, you will automatically receive renewal information. We will send you your membership certificate once we receive your payment. To set up a direct debit, call our membership helpline on 1800 509 441.
How does a career break/maternity leave/retirement affect my membership?
You can apply for retired/deferred membership of MPS if you are already an MPS member and have stopped practising medicine, either temporarily because you are on sabbatical or maternity leave, for example, or permanently because you have retired or changed your career. Holidays do not count.
While in full membership, you pay for occurrence-based indemnity, which means that, providing you were paying the appropriate subscription at the time, you can apply for our assistance with any medicolegal matters arising from that period of membership, even after retirement.
As a retired/deferred member, you would not be required to pay a subscription, but would
- Continue to receive the MPS journal, Casebook, and the Annual Report and Accounts
- Be entitled to apply to MPS for assistance with medicolegal problems arising from "good samaritan acts".*
Please note that this membership status is only valid if you do not undertake any medical practice other than bona fide Good Samaritan acts. We would be unable to help you with medicolegal problems arising from the conduct of normal clinical practice unless you were paying the appropriate subscription.
Should you decide to resume practice some time in the future, please notify us in advance so that you can be reinstated to full membership without leaving any gaps in your indemnity arrangements.
* A "good samaritan act" is one in which medical assistance is given, free of charge, in a bona fide medical emergency upon which the member chances in a personal as opposed to a professional capacity. Examples include roadside accidents and emergencies at public events attended as a spectator.
Is the subscription for a freelance (locum) GP based on the average number of sessions each week?
Core hours are defined as 8am-6.30pm, Monday to Friday. A session will normally be defined as a half-day. Where this is inappropriate, a session can be considered to be a continuous period of work of between 3.5 and 5 hours. When you are employed for a set number of hours each week, this number should be divided by four to obtain the sessional equivalent for subscription calculation.
What happens if I leave MPS?
Because we offer discretionary, occurrence based indemnity, if you leave MPS you can still contact us about matters arising from an incident that occurred whilst you were a member.