CRPO Communiqué
October 2017
October 16, 2017


Message from the Registrar 
Deborah Adams Registrar


The model of professional self-regulation is a privilege. In this model, one foundational element that supports an effective and accountable self-regulatory environment is meaningful engagement between the College and its registrants. The Quality Assurance (QA) Program  is one of the mainstays of this engagement, allowing Members to work with the College to assure that their professional responsibility to the client prevails; to maintain and improve their level of competence through the continuous acquisition of knowledge, skills and judgment; and to be proactively accountable for their practice.  
 
In the initial and ongoing development of the   QA Program , CRPO operates from the principle that Members are competent professionals who are cognizant of the need to maintain and improve their skills and knowledge throughout their careers. The priorities for the development of QA resources are determined to meet the identified needs of Members to ensure safe, quality and ethical care. This is informed by what the College gathers from professional development tools (Member-completed self-assessments, learning plans and learning records), from peer and practice reviews, as well as from the general inquiries and complaints and reports that come into the College. In taking this approach, the College aims to identify and respond to developments within the profession and any changes to the system or practice environment.
 
The growth of our QA Program is underway. As we announced in the September Communiqué, we are pleased to roll out the changes to our QA Program deadlines (further details in this edition Understanding the QA Deadline Changes) that will allow the College to devote more staff resources to supporting Members as they complete annual requirements. And as you will read, our Practice Advisory Service has moved under the wing of the College's QA department and has expanded as a result. Finally, we are working to develop resources that will be useful to Members in their ongoing efforts to look critically at their knowledge and skills, to identify strengths, to reflect on areas for improvement, and to address any gaps that are found. We look forward to providing you with resources and will be looking to Members to let us know how we can ensure that they are useful and relevant to practice.
 Quick Links

In This Issue
Message from the Manager, Registration 

When the grandparenting registration route closed in March of this year, the regular route became the primary route to registration with CRPO. When considering whether to apply for registration with CRPO, prospective applicants should first review the Information for Applicants  page of our website. The resources there outline the minimum registration requirements and give an overview of the steps involved in the application process. Unlike the grandparenting registration route, which was only available for two years after proclamation in April 2015, there is no similar deadline for the regular route; there are, however, time-sensitive elements in the process, particularly once an applicant has actually submitted an application.

It is, therefore, in every applicant's best interests to avoid submitting an application until they have completed at least the minimum requirements for registration, i.e., substantially completed their education and training program (e.g. 90% complete, be completing final semester/program component, or writing thesis, having completed other program requirements), in addition to a minimum of 125 hours of direct client contact within the scope of practice of psychotherapy and at least 30 hours of clinical supervision. 

An application cannot be put on hold while an applicant works to complete clinical experience hours for initial registration into the Qualifying category of membership. Where staff discovers a shortfall in any of these requirements during the review process, applicants may be advised to withdraw the application and asked to reapply when they've completed the necessary requirements. This may, however, involve retaking the Professional Practice and Jurisprudence eLearning Module, paying all associated fees and completing a new application.

If you are unsure whether you meet the requirements, please contact info@crpo.ca . While staff cannot pre-determine if your particular combination of education/training and clinical experience is sufficient to qualify, they can explain the requirements in more detail.

Monica McPherson
Manager, Registration

UnderstandingQAMessage from the Manager, Quality Assurance 

As you are likely aware by now, some Quality Assurance (QA) Program deadlines are changing. These changes will impact Member participation in the Professional Development (PD) component of the QA Program. 

CRPO has put together a helpful summary document to explain the changes and their impact to PD participation. We encourage all Members to please carefully review the summary document .
 
We would like to communicate these changes as widely as possible so we encourage you to print and/or forward the summary document to your colleagues who may be registered with CRPO.
 
If you want to know more about the changes, please review the information on our website . If you have questions about your PD participation requirements or the new deadlines, please contact QA staff at QA@crpo.ca .
 
Lene Marttinen
Manager, Quality Assurance 

PracticeAdvisoryServicePractice Advisory Service   

CRPO offers a practice advisory service that Registered Psychotherapists (RPs) can access in order to discuss matters relating to professional practice, ethics and standards. Members of the public are also welcome to contact the service to learn more about the practice of psychotherapy and professional regulation. By connecting with the practice advisory service, RPs and the public will be provided with helpful information and resources.
 
The structure of the practice advisory service has recently changed so that RPs can be matched with a Practice Advisor who has a related professional background. Our six Practice Advisors are fellow RPs with extensive clinical experience.
 
RPs who have practice-related questions, who are facing ethical conundrums, or who simply want to discuss professional practice, are warmly invited to connect with an Advisor by:   
or
  • Phone: 416-525-8229
You will hear back from a member of the CRPO practice advisory team within three to five business days.

Concerned about a particular Member's practice?
The practice advisory service is designed to provide information and resources to Members and the public about professional practice. If you have a complaint or concern about a particular Member's practice, please contact complaints@crpo.ca .
 
Limitations of the Practice Advisory Service
The practice advisory service is meant to be an educational resource. Information provided by the College or the College's Practice Advisors is not intended to replace the advice of a lawyer, expert in professional practice or other appropriately qualified professional. If you have specific concerns about your professional obligations, please consult with a qualified professional.
 
The College retains records of your communications with the practice advisory service, mainly to ensure the quality of the service and to inform the development of Member resources. The communication  will remain confidential and will only be shared if the information in the communications is deemed relevant to a proceeding before a College committee.  
PHIPA Amendments - Reporting Privacy Breaches 

Privacy requirements are changing in Ontario and regulated health professionals need to be aware of these changes to ensure their practice is in alignment with regulations and legislation. Registered Psychotherapists should be aware of the new reporting obligations for breaches of privacy under the Personal Health Information Protection Act, 2004 (PHIPA).
 
What is a privacy breach?
Under PHIPA, a privacy breach is considered to be the unauthorized use or disclosure of personal information or the loss or theft of personal health information. This includes the viewing of health records by someone who is not allowed to view those records (known as "snooping"). Other examples include where a USB key with health information goes missing or a briefcase with client files is taken from someone's car.
 
Who needs to be notified of a privacy breach?
In the event of a privacy breach, the health information custodian (the person with custody and control of the records) needs to notify the affected individual at the first reasonable opportunity. The law requires the health information custodian to also notify the individual that the individual can make a complaint about the breach to the Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario.
 
If you are an agent of a health information custodian (for example, if you are a Registered Psychotherapist that works for a group practice, a hospital or for another regulated health professional) you need to tell the responsible custodian at the first reasonable opportunity.
 
As of Oct 1, 2017, health information custodians have to give notice to the Information and Privacy Commissioner about certain privacy breaches. The full list of reportable breaches can be found in  s. 6.3 of Ontario Regulation 224/17 made under PHIPA . Health information custodians will also be required to provide annual reports to the Information and Privacy Commissioner, starting in March 2019. 
 
This is in addition to the reporting requirement that was added to PHIPA last year requiring practitioners to report privacy-related terminations/suspensions/resignations to the College. This reporting requirement is found in s. 17.1 of PHIPA .

Important Information about Renewal of Membership for 2018-19
 
CRPO Members are required to renew their membership on an annual basis, before the end of March each year. The Renewal form for the 2018-19 membership year will be available beginning in January 2018, under the "Renewal" tab found in Members' user accounts. In addition to the online Renewal form, Members will find their membership fee invoice for the next year (April 1, 2018 to March 31, 2019) under the "Invoices" tab.

Renewal forms must be submitted no later than  11:59 p.m. ET on April 3, 2018, preceded by full payment of the annual fee, including HST (Please note CRPO's office will be closed on April 2, 2018 for the Easter holiday). Please allow at least three business days for your payment to clear the banking system before the deadline, meaning that you should make a payment by March 27, 2018. Once the payment has cleared, you must remember to return to the online Renewal form and click "Submit" to send it to us before the 11:59 p.m. ET on April 3, 2018 deadline, or risk incurring a late fee. 

Given the large number of Members and the amount of information in the Renewal form, it normally takes a regulatory body several months to review all membership renewals. Members can continue to practise as usual while their renewal is being processed.

Registration staff will contact Members if there are questions about their renewal (e.g. about currency hours, or if more information is required). Members will not receive a new Certificate of Registration for every registration year.

Detailed instructions will follow early in the new year. If you have general questions about the renewal process, please send them to  info@crpo.ca .

Council Meeting Question Period Policy

From time to time stakeholders have asked questions that they would like the Council to respond to at their meetings. In order to facilitate responding to such inquiries, at its meeting in September, Council formally adopted a Question Period Policy that sets out the process for asking questions and how they will be addressed. The policy is intended to allow Council the opportunity to do any needed background work in order to be able to provide a useful and comprehensive response. It also ensures that all stakeholders (not just those who are able to attend meetings in Toronto) have equal access to the Council process.
 
If you have a question you would like addressed by Council at a future meeting, please be sure to review this policy in advance of submitting your question. Questions for Council, or about the Policy, can be submitted to info@crpo.ca

Office Move Notice

We are pleased to announce that CRPO's office has moved and we are now fully functional in our new location:

375 University Avenue, Suite 803
Toronto, ON M5G 2J5
 
Our new phone numbers are 416-479-4330 or toll-free 1-844-712-1364. Our email address remains the same, info@crpo.ca  

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