On November 27, 2019, the Honourable Adrian Dix, minister of health, announced proposed changes to the regulation of BC’s health professions, with a focus on increasing transparency and patient safety. The proposed changes, developed by the Steering Committee on Modernization of Health Professional Regulation, were presented in a consultation paper entitled “Modernizing the provincial health professional regulatory framework: A paper for consultation.”
Key recommendations made by the steering committee include:
- That regulatory boards have equal numbers of registrant and public members, and that they move to a more consistent and smaller size.
- A reduction in the number of regulatory colleges in BC from 20 to five.
- The creation of a new independent body to oversee BC’s health regulatory colleges.
- Simplification of the complaints and discipline process in order to provide clear focus on patient safety, public notification and strengthen public trust in regulation.
In addition to input provided through the public engagement, much of the discussion surrounding the development of the goals and objectives was focused on the report by Harry Cayton 'An Inquiry into the performance of the College of Dental Surgeons of British Columbia and the Health Professions Act' (‘the Cayton Report’).
About the Cayton ReportIn March 2018, Minister of Health, Adrian Dix, commissioned Harry Cayton, former chief executive of the United Kingdom’s Professional Standards Authority, to review the Health Professions Act and its regulations, to make recommendations to help modernize the regulatory system in B.C. The ensuing report (“The Cayton Report), released by Minister Dix in December 2018, puts forward a series of suggestions to renew BC’s overall health-regulator framework. |
In response to the report, Minister Dix established a steering committee to consider options and draft a proposal on how to modernize the regulatory framework for health professions in BC.
Members of the public, community groups and health-sector stakeholders were invited to submit feedback on the proposals in the consultation paper from November 27, 2019, to January 10, 2020 via an online survey and/or written submission.
CPBC Reponse to Modernizing the Provincial Health Profession Regulatory Framework Consultation Paper
The College Board met on November 29 and December 20, 2019 to discuss the consultation paper and a CPBC response.
Our response is organized to align with the following five themes laid out in the consultation paper:
- Improved governance,
- Improved efficiency and effectiveness through a reduction in the number of regulatory colleges’,
- Strengthening the oversight of regulatory colleges,
- Complaints and adjudication, and
- Information sharing to improve patient safety and public trust.
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Much like the recommendations made by Harry Cayton in his report, many of the proposals in the consultation paper resonated with us as a high performing college, as they reinforced current practices already underway at CPBC.
We commend the Steering Committee for their foresight and leadership, and for their work to reform health profession regulation in the public interest.
The College was significantly influenced by the findings in the report, and in preparing for the future of pharmacy practice, will continue to follow regulatory best practices including ‘Right Touch Regulation.’ Right Touch Regulation means always asking what risk we are trying to regulate, being proportionate and targeted in regulating that risk or finding ways other than regulation to promote good practice and high-quality healthcare.