Tag: Amalgamation

Name Proposed for New Multi-Profession College

On December 1, 2023, the Ministry of Health posted proposed amendments to the regulations of seven colleges to reflect the proposed name for the new multi-profession regulatory college that will be the result of amalgamating the following colleges effective June 28, 2024:

  • College of Occupational Therapists of BC
  • 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

The name for the new college being proposed by the Ministry of Health is The College of Health and Care Professionals of BC.

If you choose to, you can submit feedback on the proposed name directly to the Ministry of Health until January 12, 2024, by emailing PROREGADMIN@gov.bc.ca.

The Ministry of Health is responsible for the decision on the college’s name.

As a reminder, the College of Occupational Therapists of BC 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. This initiative is informed by the Cayton Report and the 2020 Recommendations of the Steering Committee on Modernization of Health Professional Regulation. More information about the government’s initiative to modernize the provincial health profession regulatory framework is available on the Ministry of Health’s Professional Regulation web page.

Updates about amalgamation will be posted on the COTBC website.

Read FAQs about the name proposed for the new multi-profession college.

Registrar’s March Monthly: BC-PAN, Amalgamation, New Staff

The BC Public Advisory Network (BC-PAN) recently held a workshop on the Modernization of Health Regulation. BC-PAN was formed in 2019 to promote meaningful engagement in healthcare regulation across the province. The BC-PAN intends to encourage comprehensive engagement on important issues related to healthcare regulation in BC.

At the recent BC-PAN workshop, the group identified that the public might be unaware of changes coming to healthcare regulation involving amalgamation. COTBC is interested to hear from the public about their questions and concerns. A summary from the BC-PAN workshop includes highlights from other colleges (PDF) about their experiences joining other health regulators.  

COTBC continues to engage with the Ministry of Health and the other regulatory colleges that form the amalgamation. We do not have an amalgamation timeline to share. Please continue to check the COTBC website for new information.

New Staff

On another note, I would like to welcome two new staff members to the COTBC team. I am pleased to announce Brenda Carroll has taken on the role of Executive Director of Inquiry, Discipline, Monitoring and Privacy, and Apurva Bhardwaj is Manager of Projects. Brenda and Apruva bring a combination of unique education, work history and skills that are an exciting addition to our organization. Welcome, Brenda and Apruva!