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Baseline Information Form for the Medical Radiation Technologist Database
Election Results
2007 Annual Report
HPRAC Review: Interprofessional Collaboration and MRT Scope of Practice
Health System Improvements Act Implementation
CMRTO Comprehensive Guidelines
English Language Proficiency Standards for Internationally Educated Applicants
Council Highlights
Sharon Saberton Presents the Welch Memorial Lecture
Professional Practice Issues
Suspended Members
Baseline Information Form for the Medical Radiation Technologist Database
You recently received a questionnaire to complete for the MRT Health Human Resources Database. Under the College’s by-laws you are required to provide the College with a range of demographic, education and employment data.
If you have not yet returned your form, it is very important that you do so by October 10, 2008. This information is critical to help with health human resource planning in Ontario and Canada. Additional forms are available at www.cmrto.org.
Election Results
The College is pleased to announce the results of recent elections for Council in Districts 3 and 6 for 2008.
District #3 – Radiography, Central District
Acclamation Claudina Di Zio Longo
District #6 – Nuclear Medicine
Elected Tammy Urso
The three year term for both these Council members started at the Council meeting held on July 10 & 11, 2008.
David Price has been re-elected president and Tammy Urso vice president, both for a one-year term.
2007 Annual Report
Once again, the College is pleased to announce that the 2007 Annual Report is available online. The annual report is one of our most important channels for providing information to you about how the College functions and meets its mandate. The annual report is available in HTML or PDF format at www.cmrto.org. Any member who prefers to have his or her own copy can receive one by mail on request. Just give us a call at either 416-975-4353 or 1-800-563-5847.
HPRAC Review: Interprofessional Collaboration and MRT Scope of Practice
Phase I
At the end of May the College submitted a response to the Health Professions Regulatory Advisory Council’s (HPRAC) consultation discussion guide on interprofessional collaboration. Our response was based on wide consultation with members to ascertain what, if any, mechanisms are needed to facilitate and support interprofessional collaboration among health colleges and among the professionals who are members of the colleges.
The College’s response to HPRAC recognizes that interprofessional collaboration and patient-centred care are not new concepts to MRTs who are accustomed to working in multidisciplinary teams. The response also acknowledges that medical radiation technology is by its very nature a collaborative practice because it involves several health professions.
The discussion guide and College’s full response can be found on the HPRAC website at www.hprac.org.
Phase II
As reported in the last edition of Insights, the College and the Ontario Association of Medical Radiation Technologists (OAMRT) collaborated and made a joint submission to HPRAC, requesting an amendment to the scope of practice statement for medical radiation technologists along with an expansion of the number of controlled acts authorized to MRTs. These changes are proposed to reflect the current practice of MRTs in Ontario and to eliminate barriers to interprofessional collaboration.
Although the time-line for the submission was very short, the College struck a working group comprising key stakeholders representing all four specialties from diverse practice settings across the province. Interviews were conducted with front line MRTs, managers, educators, radiologists and representatives from associations and regulatory colleges in other provinces. With the valuable support from our members and stakeholders, the College was able to meet the deadline and produce a comprehensive document that addresses the current practice of MRTs in Ontario.
The College would like to thank those members and stakeholders who participated in working group meetings, interviews, provided supporting educational material and legislation and carefully reviewed the draft documents.
The final submitted document is available on the HPRAC website at http://www.hprac.org/en/projects/Medical_Radiation_Technology_Scope_of_Practice.asp.
HPRAC invited written responses to the submissions by August 15, 2008 and will also post these on its website.
The College expects that HPRAC will conduct some form of public consultations in the fall. We will keep you updated regarding the next steps of this important initiative.
Health System Improvements Act Implementation
Over the past few months the College has been taking action to implement the many changes required by the Health System Improvements Act which amends the Regulated Health Professions Act. This implementation includes developing recommended changes to the Quality Assurance and Professional Misconduct Regulations. These proposed changes and the rationale for them have been mailed to members for their responses and comment by September 30, 2008. The Health System Improvements Act also requires the College to make changes to its register, including posting the public portion of the register on the College website by June 2009. Proposed changes to the CMRTO register by-law which arise from the Health System Improvements Act will be circulated to members this fall, again asking for member feedback.
CMRTO Comprehensive Guidelines
Council has determined to postpone for the time being the revision of the CMRTO Comprehensive Guidelines. It has made this decision because the College has a submission before HPRAC to amend the scope of practice statement of MRTs, and to expand the controlled acts authorized to MRTs. As the legislation governing the profession may change as a result of HPRAC’s review of this submission and HPRAC’s advice to the Minister of Health and Long-Term Care, revising the CMRTO Comprehensive Guidelines does not make sense at this time.
For more information on how legislative changes happen, please see the professional practice article later in this issue of Insights. The College would like to thank everyone who offered to assist with this project. We will keep you informed of the revised timelines as the initiatives impacting this project proceed.
English Language Proficiency Standards for Internationally Educated Applicants
The College has recently received funding from the Government of Ontario to evaluate and validate the College’s language proficiency standards for applicants who are internationally educated. The first phase of the project began this April with an extensive review of existing English language benchmarks. Over the next couple of months, College members will be asked to participate in an on-line survey to identify the required competencies for successful communication in the workplace. These defined competencies will be validated by experts in language proficiency assessment.
Phase II of the project will happen this fall and will involve standards setting. During this phase, identified competencies for successful communication will be correlated with Canadian language benchmarks and used to evaluate three language proficiency tests—Test of English as a Foreign Language™ (TOEFL), International English Language Testing System (IELTS) and Michener English Language Assessment (MELA)—to determine appropriate scores for the language proficiency requirement of the College. Results will be analyzed and validated by a team of experts in the field of English language assessment.
The final phase of the project is planned for the spring of 2009. During this phase, the findings and results of the project will be compiled and shared with other regulatory bodies, associations and educational institutions. The College will also seek out opportunities to present at conferences and will share the findings with key organizations. The identified competencies for successful communication will be available for the development of language training courses specific to MRT practice, and for educators of English as a second language.
This is a wonderful opportunity for you to be involved in a project that proposes to expand the range of acceptable assessment options for internationally educated applicants for demonstrating English language proficiency. The College will continue to update you on the progress of this project and will share the findings and final report when available.
Council Highlights
A summary of key decisions taken by Council at each of its meetings is available on the College’s website. The highlights here capture some of the main elements of the Council meeting held on April 11, 2008.
2007 Financial Audit
Council received and approved the College’s financial statements and auditor’s report (KPMG LLP) for the year ending December 31, 2007. KPMG LLP was also re-appointed as the College’s auditor for the current fiscal year.
By-law No. 35 Enacted
After circulation to College members and consideration of comments received, Council enacted By-law No. 35. This by-law amends another College by-law (By-law No. 28) and permits the College to collect additional information from members about themselves and their practice. Council has determined, as part of its strategic plan, to participate in the Canadian Institute for Health Information’s (CIHI) project to establish a health human resource database for medical radiation technologists in Canada. This project will also assist the College in meeting its obligations under section 36.1 of the Regulated Health Professions Act to provide the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care with health human resource information about medical radiation technologists in Ontario.
Mohawk College of Applied Arts and Technology/McMaster University, Medical Radiation Sciences Program, Radiation Therapy Specialization and Radiography Specialization
Council determined that the Mohawk College of Applied Arts and Technology/McMaster University, Medical Radiation Sciences Program, Radiation Therapy Specialization and Radiography Specialization are approved educational programs in radiation therapy and radiography respectively for the purposes of registration with the College.
Ontario Pilot – Provincial Nominee Program
Background information was provided to Council about Ontario’s Pilot Provincial Nominee Program (PNP). The PNP allows employers to attract skilled immigrants to meet their labour needs. Following an approval process, the provincial government will nominate the candidate and his or her family for fast-tracked permanent residency and provide support in obtaining an interim work permit.
Sharon Saberton Presents the Welch Memorial Lecture
In late 2007, the Canadian Association of Medical Radiation Technologists (CAMRT) extended an invitation to past Registrar of the College, Sharon Saberton, to present the Welch Memorial Lecture at the 2008 CAMRT Annual General Conference.
The opportunity to present the Welch Memorial Lecture is extended to a person who demonstrates commitment and has made an outstanding contribution to the growth or aims of the association, or has been responsible for a technical improvement to student and/or MRT training.
Sharon’s presentation—given at the conference in June in Moncton, NB—was entitled “Working, Hiring and Leading in a Changing World – How Can We Prepare for the Workplace of the Future?” The presentation was very well attended and Sharon received a standing ovation from her many colleagues in medical radiation technology.
On behalf of all MRTs, the College extends its congratulations to Sharon on being granted this auspicious honour in recognition of her outstanding contribution to the profession of medical radiation technology during her career.
Professional Practice Issues
Legislative changes – How do they happen?
Anyone who has had a lengthy career in healthcare will know that our healthcare system has changed radically over the last 20 years. We are now being challenged to care for older and sicker patients at a time when the available resources, both financial and human, are shrinking.
Remarkably, health professionals continue to meet these challenges and come up with innovative strategies to do more with less and make the highest and best use of their knowledge and skills to benefit patients. As a result, the range of professional practice of most professionals, including MRTs, has expanded. In light of this, MRTs may wonder why the scope of practice of the profession and the acts authorized to the profession under the Medical Radiation Technology Act have not changed since the proclamation of the Regulated Health Professions Act almost 15 years ago. To understand the reason for the apparent slow pace of change, one needs to examine the process involved in changing the regulatory structure and the factors that influence the pace of change.
Because the scope of practice of the profession is set out in legislation, changes to the scope and the controlled acts authorized to MRTs may only occur as the result of legislative amendment, a process which can be complex and unpredictable. The College is currently involved in a scope of practice review directed by the Health Professions Regulatory Advisory Council (HPRAC). HPRAC is an arm’s length body whose mandate is to provide advice to the Minister of Health and Long-Term Care on matters related to the regulation of healthcare professionals in the province. Prior to providing advice to the Minister on these matters, including changes to scope of practice and authorized acts, HPRAC engages in research and a consultation process which may take several months or years. This process culminates with HPRAC providing its advice in a report to the Minister. These reports may only be made public by the Minister and often this does not happen for many months after the report is filed, if at all.
Although HPRAC may be supportive of a change in a profession’s scope of practice, that does not necessarily mean it will happen. There may be other professions who have concerns about a change in a profession’s scope and there may be challenges related to funding, technology or other legislation.
Proposed changes to legislation must be introduced into the provincial legislative assembly, undergo three readings in the legislative assembly, and possible referral to a standing committee of the legislature for further public consultation, prior to becoming law. This process may be affected by the legislative schedule and agenda. That is not to say that under some circumstances, legislative change can’t move quickly through these stages provided there is consensus and the political will to support the change.
When it comes to legislative change, it is clear we cannot expect to control each step or the external factors which may affect those steps. But the College can make submissions to HPRAC which demonstrate why it is in the public interest that the scope of practice of medical radiation technology should be changed.
Suspended Members
The following are the people whose certificates of registration were suspended between April 1, 2008 and August 31, 2008 for failure to pay their fees in accordance with section 24 of the Health Professions Procedural Code. A person whose certificate of registration has been suspended is not a member of the College unless and until the suspension is removed.
| 03584 |
Crate, Judith A. |
| 04020 |
Sharma, Bhadrika |
| 11288 |
Molina, Dennis |
| 12300 |
Quinton, Angela |
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