Changes to the Health Professions Regulatory Bodies

On November 24, 2022, the Health Professions and Occupations Act received Royal Assent. While it is not yet in force, it will eventually replace the Health Professions Act to govern health professions and health occupations in British Columbia.

The most significant change in the 278-page Act is the reduction of the number of regulatory colleges from 15 to 6:

• The colleges of dieticians, occupational therapists, opticians, optometrists, physical therapists, psychologists, and speech and hearing will be amalgamated into one regulatory body; and
• The colleges of chiropractors, massage therapists, naturopathic physicians, traditional Chinese medicine, and acupuncturists will be amalgamated into one regulatory body.

Currently, the colleges of physicians and surgeons, oral health professionals, nurses and midwives and pharmacists will be unaffected.

In addition to the amalgamation of regulatory bodies, there are other changes that will be introduced by the new Act:

• A new oversight body that is funded by the colleges to conduct routine audits and set standards for policy and practice;
• The colleges will fund the Health Professions Review Board;
• A new discipline process to separate the investigation stage from the discipline stage;
• The colleges will fund counselling services for victims of sexual abuse and sexual misconduct and the victim will be able to recover costs directly from the registrant;
• The colleges must have anti-discrimination measures in place – discrimination is a form of misconduct and is defined by the Act as conduct that is prohibited under the Human Rights Code; and
• There will be no elected board members of colleges – board positions will be filled by appointment only.

The amalgamations of colleges and the above changes will mean amendments to the colleges’ rules and bylaws.

So, what does this mean for health professionals once the Act comes into force?

There are still discussions happening between the colleges, the BC Health Regulators and the Ministry of Health and more information will be provided as it evolves. You should become familiar with the updates that will be made to your college’s rules and bylaws.

If you are a health professional or health occupation under one of the colleges that will be affected by the amalgamations, you will be required to update your practice permit with your new college. The timing and process for updating a health profession corporation practice permit are not yet known but it is anticipated there will be a transitional period during which time a registrant will have the opportunity to update their corporate records as necessary.

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