New Recommendations for Changes to the Regulated Health Professions Act by the Health Professions Regulatory Advisory Committee

By Mia London

On May 19, 2006, the Health Professions Regulatory Advisory Committee (“HPRAC”) publicly released its recommendations for changes to the Regulated Health Professions Act. It presented these recommendations to the Minister of Health at the end of April.

The recommendations include a number of substantive changes to college structures, processes, and ultimately protections for members. The effect on regulated health professionals will be significant and concerning in a number of respects. Some of these recommendations are summarized below:

1. A new committee will be created, the Inquiries, Complaints and Reports Committee (the “ICR Committee”). This Committee will combine the investigatory powers of the Complaints and Executive Committees with respect to complaints and reports, and of Boards of Inquiry in capacity matters.
   
   In “certain exceptional circumstances”, the ICR Committee will have the power to order the Registrar to impose interim suspensions or limitations at the same time a matter is referred to Discipline or Fitness to Practice. The member will have the opportunity to make submissions before such an order is made.
2. Colleges will be required to put much more information on their web sites, including how to access the public portion of the register. The public portion of the register will need to be on Colleges’ web sites. There do not appear to be changes to the information maintained on the public register. Information will continue to be maintained on the register which is not available on the public register.
3. Discipline Committee decisions, reasons, or a summary of the reasons will be required to be published on a college’s web site as soon as the decision is released.
4. The college register will now include “a record of every complaint and report filed with the college and the disposition of the complaint and report”. Moreover, the ICR Committee will be provided with all of the information on the college register at the beginning of an investigation. Thus, it will have a record of every complaint or report filed, regardless of the disposition of that complaint or report. It can be presumed that the ICR Committee will use this information to decide on the disposition of the complaint or report before it.
5. A written record must be made of all alternate resolutions. All such settlements will be reviewed and approved by an ICR panel. The results of informal resolutions will be placed on the college register (and thus will be reviewable in the event of a subsequent complaint or report).
6. The six-year time limit during which discipline decisions imposing a suspension, revocation, or terms, conditions, and limitations will remain on the public register has been revoked. As there is no longer any time limit, it appears that summaries of these decisions will remain on the public register forever.
7. Complainants will not have party status at discipline hearings.
8. A significant change has been made to the reporting requirement that members have with respect to other health care professionals. Currently, members are required to report if in the course of practice they have reasonable grounds to believe that another member of the same or a different college has sexually abused a patient. This reporting obligation will be substantially broadened by adding a requirement to report if a member of the same or a different college “has committed an act of professional misconduct or may be incompetent or incapacitated.”
9. The Nursing Act, 1991 will be amended to replace “registered nurse (extended class)” with “nurse practitioner”.
10. An order made by the Discipline Committee on the grounds of incompetence or because of a finding of sexual abuse or an order by the Fitness to Practice Committee directing the Registrar to revoke, suspend or impose terms, limitations or conditions takes effect immediately despite any appeals. The RHPA will be amended to state expressly that a court may not grant a stay of this type of order until the appeal is disposed of.

The HPRAC report recommends regulating six new professions through the RHPA: pharmacy technicians, homeopathy, naturopathy, kinesiologists, psychotherapists, and hearing instrument practitioners. In addition, there are recommendations dealing with registration requirements, governance, and a review of controlled acts and scopes of practice.

HPRAC has invited comments to these recommendations. We will continue to keep you updated as this process of amending the RHPA unfolds.