College Imperatives
The four main areas of College business, mandate (under the Regulated Health Professions Act or RHPA) [link] and impact, include the following:
1. Registration
Through the Entry to Practice Program [link], the College ensures that only competent and qualified individuals are registered with the College and can call themselves physiotherapists. Registration with the College allows individuals to use the title physiotherapist, practice autonomously and exercise the privilege of self regulation. Registration is the public demonstration of physiotherapists’ acceptance of accountability and responsibility for their decisions and actions.
2. Quality Assurance
Once registered, physiotherapists are required to maintain their ongoing competence (i.e. the knowledge, skills and judgment required by a physiotherapist). The Quality Management Program [link] of the College ensures that physiotherapists engage in ongoing learning and maintain their competence by: providing tools to evaluate practice, reporting out to stakeholders the results of onsite practice assessment, and facilitating physiotherapists to improve when necessary.
3. Complaints and Discipline
Another important aspect of self regulation is to ensure that there is a mechanism to investigate and respond to any complaints that are made against physiotherapists. Physiotherapists are expected to adhere to a code of ethics [link] and practice according to the defined standards of practice of the profession [link]. A professional misconduct regulation [link] indicates the behaviours that the profession has defined as unacceptable. The Professional Conduct Program [link], using the rules outlined in the RHPA, ensures that a fair and transparent process is followed when a complaint about the practice of a physiotherapist is received.
4. Setting Standards
The setting of professional standards and the influencing of policy at the health systems level to improve the quality and safety of physiotherapy care is central to the mandate of protecting the public interest. Such activity includes: tracking and trending of data obtained through the College programs and in the external environment; identifying the need for policy and standards development; defining the standards of practice the profession; supporting physiotherapists to meet these expectations; establishing programs to support physiotherapists to continually improve their knowledge and skills through access to resources, education, support, and guidance; communicating with the public and other stakeholders regarding practice expectations; participating in patient safety, interprofessional collaboration and other quality improvement initiatives; and partnering with other regulators, government and others to share resources and develop collaborative initiatives that impact the RHPA mandate. All of these activities serve as a foundation to College direction and decision.
These four primary functions of the College – registration, quality assurance, complaints and discipline and setting standards - interact to assure the public (patients) that anyone using the title “Physiotherapist or Physical Therapist” meets defined standards of practice, education and competence, and is a safe, ethical and competent practitioner.
