Working within the statutory requirements established for all Health Regulatory Colleges in Ontario; the College views its Quality Assurance Programs as a means of supporting members in maintaining their knowledge and skills throughout their careers. While adhering to the rigorous legislative requirements, the College’s Quality Assurance Programs have been designed to be supportive rather than investigative. Whenever participation in Quality Assurance leads to the identification of the need for remediation, information about this remains confidential as member-specific information about Quality Assurance involvement is not publicly available.
Declarations Past Due
Declarations of Completion for the Self-Assessment Guide and for the Continuing Professional Development Program were due, according to one’s Registration Certificate Number as per the table below, no later than Thursday, June 30, 2022.
College Staff currently are following up with members who have not made their Declarations by the deadline. The Quality Assurance Committee will review each of these situations to determine the appropriate action to take.
| Certificate Type | Self-Assessment Guide (SAG) | Continuing Professional Development |
|---|---|---|
| Autonomous Practice | Even Certificate Number Only | Even Certificate Number Only |
| Supervised Practice | Both Odd & Even Certificate Numbers | Even Certificate Number Only |
| Interim Autonomous Practice | Both Odd & Even Certificate Numbers | Even Certificate Number Only |
| Retired | None | None |
PEER-ASSISTED REVIEWS (PARs)
Physical distancing measures necessary to decrease the spread of COVID-19 led to the postponement of in-person Peer Assisted Reviews (PARs) in March 2020, more than two years ago. The College currently is working through the resulting significant, two-year backlog of PARs.
Catch up has begun and all nine PARs conducted in the 2021-2022 year, ending May 31,2022, resulted in positive outcomes; all members were seen to be practicing in accordance with the standards of the profession, with no requirement for remediation.
At the end of the year there were 63 outstanding PARs. All reviews are currently being arranged, except for those where deferrals have been granted due to exceptional circumstances.
SELF-ASSESSMENT
During the past year, members who did not submit their Declaration of Completion regarding their Self-Assessment by the deadline were required to submit their fully completed Self-Assessment Guides and Professional Development Plans. In 14/18 cases reviewed, the self-assessment guidelines were deemed to have been met. In the other four cases, the Committee provided remedial messages highlighting:
- The need to set specific Continuing Professional Development goals, with an emphasis on addressing identified gaps in knowledge, skill and experience
- The need to review and be familiar with all legislation relevant to the member’s authorized area of practice and population served
- That regardless of a member’s current level of professional activity, every member authorized to provide professional services must satisfy the College’s non-exemptible QA requirements
- The need to be mindful of to practice only within one’s authorized area of practice
In one other case, the Committee was unable to complete the review and referred the member to an Assessor to assist it in gathering additional information. This included whether the member was maintaining their current knowledge of relevant legislation; meaningfully considering the need for professional growth and development; identifying gaps in professional knowledge, skill and experience; and determining why the member appeared to experience difficulty in reporting their Quality Assurance activities.
In two other additional cases, the Committee referred members to the Inquiries, Complaints and Reports Committee due to their apparent lack of completion of Quality Assurance activities or lack of cooperation with the Committee.
As reported previously, new attestations have been added to the current Self-Assessment Guide and Professional Development Plan related to Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion:
- I make my best efforts to provide services in a manner that is equitable and inclusive to all members of our diverse society. (CPA I.1, II.13, II.20, III.28, III.30, IV.16, IV. 21, IV.26).
- I have made efforts to understand the socioeconomic and political factors that impact the culturally diverse groups I work with, as well as the pre-existing beliefs and assumptions that influence the ways in which I respond to clinical and research data.
- I have made efforts to utilize an objective and structured method to develop my self-awareness and approach to Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion.
While members may utilize a method of their choosing, appropriate to their own circumstances, some examples of resources that may be of assistance include:
- Guidelines for Providers of Psychological Services to Ethnic, Linguistic, and Culturally Diverse Populations
- Multicultural Guidelines: An Ecological Approach to Context, Identity, and Intersectionality, 2017
- Ontario Ministry of Health Health Equity Impact Assessment (HEIA)
CONTINUING PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT (CPD)
Over the course of the 2021-2022 year, CPD audits were completed with respect to activities of 46 members. In 34 cases, members were deemed to have met the minimum requirements of the program. In the other 12 cases, the Committee provided remedial feedback recommending that the members:
- retain better documentation of activities for review
- more effectively monitor the credits they have earned
- pay greater attention to and monitor CPD category maximums to ensure they are meeting the requirements
- protect client identities in reporting CPD activities
- develop more specific goals, based on identified gaps in knowledge, skill, and experience
In three cases, audits could not be completed, and these members were referred to the ICRC due to apparent lack of compliance with program requirements and/or lack of cooperation with the Committee.
Changes to Continuing Professional Development (CPD) Requirements and CPD Tracking System
The Quality Assurance Committee has reviewed the responses to surveys completed by members who have completed their first CPD cycles and considered observations from the first two CPD cycle audits. In response to the observations and the many helpful comments received, the College is making some changes to the program. For members beginning a new two-year cycle in July 2022, the methods for classifying and counting credits will be simpler than they have been to date. There will also be an additional requirement to earn at least five of the 50 CPD credits in activities related to Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion. The modified requirements can be found in the Quality Assurance section of the website in the Description and Expectations of the College’s Continuing Professional Development Program.
It was hoped that revisions to the online tracking system would be completed before the current CPD cycle for members with even registration numbers began on July 1, 2022. Unfortunately, due to information technology factors beyond our control, the tracking system was not available at the start of the new cycle. A simplified Downloadable Tracking Form – effective July 1, 2022 has been created and is available for members to use until the new online tracking system is operational. One may find the completed Sample of the Downloadable Tracking Form – effective July 1, 2022 helpful as a guide to using the downloadable form.
Members with Odd-Numbered Certificates of Registration, who are approximately halfway through their CPD cycle, may continue to satisfy the CPD requirements according to what was in place at the beginning of the cycle in July 2021, or if preferred, members may adopt the changes outlined above.