CRPO Communiqué
September 2017
September 13, 2017


Message from the Registrar 
Deborah Adams
Registrar

At initial registration and every year at renewal, members of the 26 health regulatory colleges in Ontario are required to provide answers to a series of questions for the Health Professions Database (HPD) that the colleges are then obligated to provide to the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care. These questions collect demographic, geographic, educational and employment information about all regulated health professionals with the goal of supporting evidence-informed health human resources planning across the province. You can visit the Ministry's website to   read more about the HPD.

As I write this, total memberships sits at 4,882 Registered Psychotherapists; when the HPD information was last summarised (as of Dec. 31, 2016) we had a total of 3,931 Members.  CRPO's numbers are growing rapidly and so I thought that it would be interesting to share some of the early information we collected through the 2016 Health Professions Database submission and to commit to doing this on a regular basis so that stakeholders can see how psychotherapy is growing as a regulated profession.
 
While this information is not exhaustive and does not capture details of the practice of all Members (since the initial registration data set consists of fewer questions than the renewal data set), I think it provides an initial picture of the growing ranks of Registered Psychotherapists who are serving the mental health needs of the province. 
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Communiqué de l'OPAO - Septembre 2017 - Version française
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Message from the President 

I would like to take this opportunity to remind CRPO Members of the importance of ensuring that your RP designation is correctly reflected in any print or online media in which you indicate that you are a psychotherapist. Where Members develop print materials, subscribe to directory listings, or are listed by various professional associations, it is the Member's responsibility to ensure their designation is correctly presented.

Our regulatory requirement that the designation is correctly presented [section 8. (1) of the Psychotherapy Act, 2007] serves public safety by letting potential and existing clients know that you adhere to standards of practice, including professional accountability and professional development. In addition, your correct use of the designation will contribute to building awareness among other health care providers and other stakeholders of the professional standards associated with belonging to a statutory regulatory body.

Andrew Benedetto, RP
President

Message from the Manager, Registration 

CRPO Members must renew their membership by March 31st every year. Any Member who does not meet all of the renewal requirements within the stipulated deadlines, risks suspension of their membership with CRPO. After March 31st, any Member who has not completed the requirements for renewal incurs a late fee (currently $78 +HST) and is given an additional 30 days to complete outstanding requirements (e.g. pay fees in sufficient time for the payment to clear ahead of the new deadline, submit the online renewal form, etc.). Periodic reminders are sent, however, if the outstanding requirements are not completed in time, the Member is suspended.

Note: Any Member who does not maintain professional liability insurance in the form and amount required in CRPO's By-laws may also be suspended. Under this circumstance, unlike suspensions or revocations for non-payment of fees, if/when the Member is reinstated, the former suspension notation remains visible on the Public Register.

What are the implications of suspension and will it affect my practise of the profession?
In effect, the suspension means that a Member has forfeited their good standing with the College, is no longer a Member of CRPO, and so is not permitted to use any restricted title, practise or supervise the provision of psychotherapy for the purposes of registration with the College, nor hold themself out as qualified to practise as a psychotherapist in Ontario. In other words, if a Member sees clients or provides clinical supervision to other practitioners who see clients, these services must cease effective from the date of the suspension, as must use of the restricted title. In the interests of public protection, the suspension is also reflected on the Public Register.
 
How do I return to good standing?
To return to good standing, any Member who is suspended would need to submit the online renewal form or any other documentation as required, pay any outstanding fees (i.e. the annual membership fee, late fee and the additional penalty fee levied by the Registrar to lift a suspension (currently $156 +HST)).The Registrar will lift the suspension if they are satisfied that the former Member has paid the outstanding fees, has professional liability insurance coverage in the amount and form required under the By-laws, and will be in compliance on the anticipated date on which the suspension is to be lifted with any outstanding requirements or orders issued by CRPO's statutory committees (e.g. Inquiries, Complaints and Reports Committee, Discipline, Fitness to Practise or Quality Assurance Committees).
 
When the outstanding items are completed and conditions satisfied, the Member is reinstated to good standing, details of the suspension are removed from the Public Register and the Member is permitted to resume practice of the profession and use of the title.

Revocation
If the Registrar suspends a Certificate of Registration and the Member does not take the steps outlined above to lift the suspension, the Registrar has authority to revoke the Member's certificate two years after the day it was suspended. Again, this status will be reflected on the Public Register.
 
Reinstatement
If a former Member, whose Certificate of Registration was revoked because they failed to pay a fee that is required to be paid in accordance with the By-laws, wishes to return to practice the Registrar has the authority to reinstate the certificate, if certain conditions are met. The former Member will have to satisfy a panel of the Registration Committee that they are competent to safely practise psychotherapy, will pay the outstanding fees, have professional liability insurance coverage in the amount and form required under the By-laws, and will be in compliance on the anticipated date on which membership is to be reinstated with any outstanding requirements or orders issued by CRPO's statutory committees (e.g. Inquiries, Complaints and Reports Committee, Discipline, Fitness to Practise or Quality Assurance Committees)
 
For more information about the conditions associated with suspensions, revocations and reinstatement, see sections 23 - 27 of the Registration Regulation .

If you have any questions about suspension, please send them to info@crpo.ca .

Monica McPherson
Manager, Registration

Change is coming to QA - New Due Dates for all Members

Changes are on the way for the Quality Assurance (QA) Program and as a Member of the College, you need to know how these will apply to you. Learn more by reading below, browsing the College website , or by joining one of the information sessions. You can sign up for a session using the links at the end of this article.

What is changing?
The QA Program consists of three parts that work together to help Members maintain and enhance competence. Learn more about the Program's components .
 
 The deadlines associated with the Professional Development (PD) component are changing:
  • Starting Sept. 1, 2018, new Members will complete specific PD requirements within three months of their date of initial registration. Thereafter, new Members will complete their ongoing participation requirements every second year, as described below.
  • A Member's ongoing participation is based on their year of initial registration, and effective Dec. 1, 2017, the new deadline to complete the PD component is November 30. This means:
    • Members whose date of initial registration falls in an odd-numbered year are required to complete their PD tools by November 30 in odd-numbered years.
    • Members whose date of initial registration falls in even-numbered years will be required to complete their PD tools by November 30 in even-numbered years.
How will these changes impact Members?
The impact these changes will have on your participation deadlines depends on your date of initial registration. Click the timeframe below that corresponds with your date of initial registration for details:
Your date of initial registration is the date on which you first became registered with the College. Not sure when you became a Member? Check your Certificate of Registration, which can be found in the "Certificate" tab of your   CRPO user account   , or you can find yourself on the   Public Register   where your "Date of Initial Registration" is listed.
 
Why the changes?
In short, the College wants to provide better service to Members.
 
The old QA deadline coincided with the renewal deadline and fiscal year end. As a result, staff were extremely busy during a time-sensitive period. By removing the QA deadline from the this time period, the College will be able to use staff resources more effectively - during each time-sensitive period staff will be able to respond in a more timely way to requests for information and technical assistance.
 
Want to learn more?
Join one of the Professional Development Information Sessions scheduled to take place in early October. These sessions will take place by webinar, lasting about 1.5 hours.
 
Sign up for session 1 - Tuesday, Oct. 3, 2017, starting at 3:00 p.m.
Sign up for session 2 - Wednesday, Oct. 4, 2017, starting at 11:30 a.m.

Notice - CRPO Is Not Registering/Certifying Clinical Supervisors  

For those practitioners planning to provide clinical supervision after April 1, 2018 who have reviewed the criteria that will take effect in order for that supervision to count for registration purposes with CRPO, please note that the College is not registering or certifying Members or other qualified practitioners in a clinical supervisor category. This means that you do not need to submit supporting documentation or receive approval from the College to serve as a clinical supervisor before April 1, 2018.
 
If you intend to provide clinical supervision after April 1, 2018 you will be asked to provide relevant supporting documentation to verify that you met the criteria for demonstrating competence in providing clinical supervision when your supervisee's application is reviewed.

As April 1, 2018 approaches, the College will be working to further articulate the requirements related to supervisory competence and to provide resources useful to both supervisors and supervisees. Please look for notices that these resources are being made available over the coming months. Specific questions can be directed to  info@crpo.ca .
Controlled Act Update    

The controlled act of psychotherapy is included in the Psychotherapy Act, 2007, as a proposed amendment of the Regulated Health Professions Act, 1991, to be one of 14 controlled acts. Controlled acts are healthcare activities that can cause harm if it performed by an unqualified person. The controlled act of psychotherapy will be restricted to members of six regulated professions: psychotherapists, nurses, occupational therapists, physicians, psychologists and social workers.

Earlier this year, five regulatory colleges created a clarification document and YouTube video to help individuals who provide psychotherapy services understand the distinction between psychotherapy as the controlled act and psychotherapy that does not fall under the definition of the controlled act. 

On August 4, 2017, the Minister of Health and Long-Term Care referred the controlled act back to the Health Professions Regulatory Advisory Council (HPRAC) for review. He has requested HPRAC to:
  1. Provide advice on how to make the meaning of the controlled act clearer.
  2. Recommend criteria for deciding whether certain providers, who are not members of a regulated health profession, should be exempt from the performance of the controlled act.
HPRAC's report is due no later than Nov. 1, 2017. T he government has until the end of 2017 to proclaim this aspect of the Psychotherapy Act or it will expire. We will continue to keep our stakeholder's up-to-date as to the outcome of this review and any other news about the controlled act.
 
Review the Minister's referral letter to HPRAC

CRPO is Moving

As CRPO's office space arrangement with the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care comes to a close, we are in the final stages of preparing for a move to a new office space.  Please note that CRPO's scheduled moving day is Friday, September 15th, so our office will be closed that da y.  As of Sept. 18, 2017 we expect to be fully functional in our new location:

375 University Avenue, Suite 803
Toronto, ON M5G 2J5

Our new phone numbers as of September 18th will be 416-479-4330 or toll-free 1-844-712-1364. Our email address will remain the same, info@crpo.ca

2016-17 Annual Report - Now Available 

We are pleased to announce that CRPO's 2016-17 Annual Report is now available online and includes important information and reports about key activities and accomplishments from April 1, 2016 - March 31, 2017.

Practice Advisory FAQ 

CRPO offers a practice advisory service to respond to enquiries related to professional practice, ethics and practice standards. This service provides information and resources to Members to assist with challenging practice situations.
 
The Practice Advisory service will also continue to provide answers to frequently asked questions on various topics. This month's topic is Practising Out-of-Province. We hope Members find it to be helpful. 

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