Ministry of Health Confirms Name of New Multi-Profession College

The Ministry of Health has deposited regulation changes that reflect the final name for the new multi-profession regulatory college that will amalgamate:

  • The College of Occupational Therapists of BC
  • The College of Dietitians of BC
  • The College of Optometrists of BC
  • The College of Opticians of BC
  • The College of Physical Therapists of BC
  • The College of Psychologists of BC
  • The College of Speech and Hearing Health Professionals of BC

The name for this new multi-profession college is the College of Health and Care Professionals of BC.

COTBC will amalgamate with the other six colleges to form the College of Health and Care Professionals of BC on June 28, 2024. Until then, COTBC and the other six colleges will continue to regulate health professionals.

CEOs Appointed for Two Future Multi-profession Colleges

CEOs have been appointed in anticipation of the amalgamation of 11 regulatory health colleges to form two new multi-profession colleges on June 28, 2024.

Carin Plischke, currently the Registrar and CEO of the College of Occupational Therapists of BC, has been appointed CEO of the new multi-profession college that will amalgamate the College of Chiropractors of BC, College of Massage Therapists of BC, College of Naturopathic Physicians of BC, and College of Traditional Chinese Medicine Practitioners and Acupuncturists of BC on June 28, 2024. She will assume the CEO role part-time while continuing to oversee the College of Occupational Therapists of BC (COTBC) until amalgamation.

Dianne Millette, currently the Registrar of the College of Physical Therapists of BC, has been appointed CEO of the new multi-profession college that will amalgamate COTBC, the College of Dietitians of BC, College of Optometrists of BC, College of Opticians of BC, College of Physical Therapists of BC, College of Psychologists of BC, and College of Speech and Hearing Health Professionals of BC on June 28, 2024.

Dianne will also continue to oversee her college while taking on the CEO role part-time until amalgamation. With more than three decades of experience in health profession regulation, Dianne has the knowledge and skill set to successfully lead this new college after amalgamation.

Role of the CEOs before amalgamation

Before amalgamation, the two CEO roles will focus on establishing the new colleges’ staffing and culture to ensure continuity of regulatory operations, business and budget planning, and building relationships with partners.

Proposed new college name

The Ministry of Health has proposed the following name for the new college that will amalgamate COTBC and six other colleges: The College of Health and Care Professionals of BC. The deadline for feedback on the name was January 12, 2024. We will share the new college’s name once the Ministry has decided.

As a reminder, COTBC is being directed by the Ministry of Health to amalgamate with the six other colleges. This amalgamation is part of the Ministry of Health’s multi-year initiative to modernize BC’s health profession regulatory framework. More information is available on the Ministry of Health’s Professional Regulation webpage.

We will continue to keep you updated on our website as the amalgamation work progresses.

If you have questions about this announcement, including Carin Plischke’s role in the period before amalgamation, email her at info@cotbc.org.

FAQs on Proposed Occupational Therapy Regulation Amendments

The College published a new set of FAQs regarding the proposed amendments to the Occupational Therapists Regulation.

The FAQs respond to the following questions:

  • Why is the regulation changing?
  • Will the proposed changes to the regulation impact my scope of practice as an occupational therapist?
  • Will the scope of practice of occupational therapists working in mental health be affected if mental health (i.e., psychosocial) is not expressly referenced in the regulation’s definition of occupational therapy?
  • Is COTBC responding to the proposed Regulation?

If you have comments on the proposed regulation, we encourage you to respond to the Ministry of Health via PROREGADMIN@gov.bc.ca.

MoH Proposes Amendments to OT Regulation

The Ministry of Health is proposing amendments to the Physical Therapists Regulation, the Occupational Therapists Regulation, the Dietitians Regulation and the Traditional Chinese Medicine Practitioner and Acupuncturists Regulation. 

The proposed amendments are intended to align each regulation better with the Health Professions Act model (a shared scope of practice and restricted activities). All revisions and amendments are determined by the Ministry of Health.

The Health Professions Act requires notice before proposed amendments can be enacted, and this notice period started on Tuesday, January 23, 2024.

Proposed amendments to the Occupational Therapists Regulation are posted on the Ministry of Health website. The Ministry requests that comments on these proposed regulation amendments be submitted as soon as possible

By e-mail: PROREGADMIN@gov.bc.ca

By mail: 

Professional Regulation and Oversight Branch
Health Sector Workforce and Beneficiary Services Division
Ministry of Health
1515 Blanshard Street
Victoria, BC

2022-2023 AGM Q&A Follow Up

The College of Occupational Therapists of British Columbia held its 2022-2023 annual general meeting via Zoom on Thursday, November 16, 2023You can listen to an audio recordingincluding answers to questions the College received in advance of the event.

Responses to questions posed during the virtual AGM are provided below.

“How have the clinical OTs represented in our current board sought to uphold the OT code of ethics principles of Informed Consent and Confidentiality in response to Bill 36 (which doesn’t uphold these principles)?”

As a Board member, my role in upholding the current code of ethics is to ensure that the College has the appropriate resources, including staff, to continue the work of protecting the public.

I support the ongoing work of the College staff to meet the goals identified in the strategic plan, which includes providing practice supports and ensuring a Quality Assurance Program is in place to support OTs who may need additional assistance to demonstrate competent practice.

The College operations under the amalgamated college will have to comply with the requirements of the Health Professions and Occupations Act (HPOA) once it is proclaimed in force; however, we do not see that the HPOA will diminish the importance of informed consent and patient confidentiality which are fundamental requirements for the protection of clients/patients.

– COTBC Board Member

 “You mentioned there would be webinars in the new year. Will these be on competencies content? Or on processes (such as about amalgamation, ACCR)? Thanks!”

Webinars will be provided on the changes to the ACCR, including the eLearning Module developed by the Association of Canadian Occupational Therapy Regulatory Organizations (ACOTRO) to support registrants in implementing the Competencies for Occupational Therapists in Canada. The eLearning module will replace the Professional Performance Quiz in the 2024 ACCR.

Webinars may be provided on amalgamation. Updates are posted to the Amalgamation 2024 section.

“Will it be June 2024 or June 2025 that we must be vaccinated in order to be licensed to practice?” and “How does Bill 36 mention of vaccine requirements relate to the ACCR competencies to be eligible for licensing?”

Thank you for your questions regarding the HPOA. Based on the information available to us at this time, we understand that the HPOA will not be proclaimed in force and take effect until sometime in 2025. The College does not make policy decisions regarding the need for vaccination or impose requirements for it. Any direction for mandatory vaccination falls within the jurisdiction of the Provincial Chief Medical Officer and/or individual employers.

For your reference, please see the 2022-2023 Annual Report.