The need for safe and competent psychological services has continued throughout the COVID-19 pandemic and the legislated requirements for Quality Assurance activities by the College remain as relevant as ever. Members, other than those with a Retired Certificate of Registration, must ensure that they are keeping up with developments in their areas of practice and that their knowledge and skills are up to date.
SELF-ASSESSMENT AND CONTINUING PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
Members with “odd” Registration numbers, as well as those members with Certificates of Registration Authorizing Supervised Practice or Interim Autonomous Practice were required to submit their (two) online Declarations of Completion by June 30, 2021. An unfortunate systems problem beyond the College’s control caused our member portal to malfunction on June 30th. The system was fully functional again on July 6th. Those whose Declarations have been NOT received have been contacted by College staff.
A small number of members appear not to have realized that two Declarations were required, and College staff are working with them to ensure that both the SAG and CPD related Declarations are completed before the Committee imposes any related penalties.
In following up with some members, a concern was expressed about an inability to meet the CPD credits for reasons related to the COVID- 19 pandemic. Those members were reminded that there is an alternate Declaration, in the same location as the regular CPD Declaration, which is specifically intended to address this issue.
Members required to complete the Self-Assessment Guide (SAG) this year will have noticed that some changes were made to the length and format of the document. These changes were made in response to the many comments and suggestions from members who responded to the survey conducted by the Quality Assurance Committee last year. The Committee continues to discuss other enhancements to the Quality Assurance programs following review of the survey data and wishes to thank the many members who participated and offered helpful information.
Reminder: Members with “even” Registration numbers are now more than half-way through the 2020-2022 CPD cycle and those with “odd” numbers began the 2021-2023 cycle on July 1, 2021.
PEER ASSISTED REVIEWS (PAR)
Physical distancing necessary to decrease the spread of COVID-19 have led to the postponement of in-person PARs. Members already engaged in the PAR process during the past year were asked whether they would be willing to participate in a PAR via technology or wished to defer the review until it could be conducted safely in-person. Six PARs were conducted successfully via secure technology. It is hoped that program will be operating in full force soon.