As reported in the Spring 2011 edition of Insights, the amendments to the Medical Radiation Technology Act (MRT Act) which provide for a new scope of practice statement and additional authorized acts for MRTs, come into force on September 1, 2011.

In preparation, the College undertook a project to review, validate and update the CMRTO Standards of Practice. Members and stakeholders contributed to the new Standards of Practice in working groups, in consultation sessions with individual subject matter experts and through an online survey completed by more than 800 members. The revised Standards of Practice were approved by Council at the June 16-17, 2011 meeting and, effective September 1, 2011, they will constitute the new standards of practice for members of the College. The new CMRTO Standards of Practice will be sent to all College members this September.

In September Linda Gough, Registrar, will be presenting workshops on the new Standards of Practice at the following locations around the province:

CMRTO: Standards of Practice Workshops

A letter with the locations of the workshops was sent to all members in July 2011, and is available on the College’s website. The presentation will also be available on the website in early October.

At the June 16-17, 2011 Council meeting, David Price, M.R.T.(R.) was re-elected as President, and Donna Lewis, M.R.T.(T.) was elected as Vice-President of the College.

In addition to the election of the positions of President and Vice-President, Council also appointed members to the College’s Committees. A list of current Council and Committee members can be found on the College’s website.

The College’s 2010 annual report is now available online. The annual report is one of our most important channels for providing information about how the College functions and meets its mandate. The annual report is available in PDF format at www.cmrto.org. Any member who prefers to have his or her own copy can be sent one by mail on request. Just give us a call at either 416-975- 4353 or 1-800-563-5847.

It is a legal requirement that members maintain their registration with the College while practising medical radiation technology in Ontario. Following the steps below will ensure that your certificate of registration is renewed on time and assist in avoiding late fees and penalties.

Annual Renewal of Registration
As a member of the College, it is your responsibility to pay the annual fee for renewal and to submit the application for renewal to the Registrar of the College on or before your birthday every year. The Application for Renewal of Registration form is mailed to current members at the mailing address the College has on file 30 to 60 days before their birthday. While it is the College’s practice to mail an Application for Renewal of Registration to each member, it is the member’s obligation to pay the annual fee even if the application is not mailed or received. If you need a replacement form or have not received the form 30 days before your birthday, contact the College.

In order to renew your registration, you are required to complete the Application for Renewal of Registration form, sign it, and return it to the College with the annual fee. Incomplete forms will be returned to you without being processed. You may also renew your registration using the Online Member Service section of the College website. The amount of the fee is set by College by-law and is available on the College website. The fee may be paid by credit card (Visa or MasterCard), cheque or money order payable to the College of Medical Radiation Technologists of Ontario. Members who pay their annual fee by cheque will have their Certificate of Registration mailed to them after a holding period of 21 days from the date the renewal is processed to allow for clearance of payment through the bank. Cheques post-dated no later than your birthday will be accepted.

If payment is received after your birthday, the annual fee will include a late fee, provided that payment is received within three months of your birthday. The amount of the late fee is set by College by-law and is available on the College website.

It is important that you ensure you continue to be registered as a member of the College. If at any time you have questions regarding your registration status, you may call or email the College.

Change of Name and Other Register Information
It is your responsibility to notify the College within 7 days of any change of name, business address (for any place of practice), business telephone number (for any place of practice), home address, home telephone number, mailing address or electoral district.

If you have changed your name, you are required to complete the Change of Name form and submit it to the College, along with the required evidence of the change of name. The Change of Name form is available on the College website, or from the College upon request. Don’t forget that using a name other than your name as set out on the College register in the course of practising as a medical radiation technologist, is defined as an act of professional misconduct under the professional misconduct regulation.

You may update your business address (for any place of practice), business telephone number (for any place of practice), home address, home telephone number, mailing address or electoral district in the Online Member Service section of the College website (www.cmrto.org). You can also update information about you that the College collects for health human resources planning purposes online.

Or you may complete the Notice of Change of Register Information form available on the College website, to notify the College of any changes of your information as it relates to the College register, other than a change of name. This form may be faxed or mailed to the College.

Resignation from the College
If you are no longer practising medical radiation technology in the province of Ontario and would like to resign from the College, you can do so by writing a letter to the College, or by completing the Notice of Resignation section on the Application for Renewal of Registration, or the Notice of Resignation form available on the College website (www.cmrto.org). The College does not accept resignations by telephone or email as a signature is required. The annual fee cannot be refunded if you are a member for only a portion of the year. It is important to resign your membership with the College in order to avoid having your certificate of registration suspended for failure to pay fees, and the payment of a penalty, in addition to the annual fee, at the time of reinstatement.

Suspension of a certificate for failure to pay fees
If you do not renew your certificate of registration, including paying the annual fee and late fee, within three months after your birthday, your certificate of registration will be suspended. Your name will be published in the College publication Insights as a person whose certificate of registration has been suspended for failure to pay fees. You will no longer be a member of the College, nor will you be authorized to practise medical radiation technology in your specialty in Ontario or use the title and abbreviation for your specialty. Information about you which is available to the public on the College website includes a notation of a suspension of a certificate of registration and the date of the suspension.

To have the suspension lifted:

• You must submit proof that you are competent to practise as a medical radiation technologist in your specialty(ies) in the year in which you wish to resume practice in Ontario
  
• If you have not been practising for five years, you will be required to complete the retraining program approved by the College before you are eligible for reinstatement
  
• You must pay the applicable fees

To reinstate with the College following suspension, you must complete the Application for Reinstatement form for each of the specialties in which you wish to reinstate, and submit it to the College with the applicable fees. This form is available on the College website (www. cmrto.org) or from the College upon request. (See “Fees for reinstatement with the College” for the applicable fees payable to reinstate with the College following suspension.) If you are reinstated, the date on which the suspension was removed will be available to the public on the College website.

Reinstatement with the College
If you are a former member of the College, you are eligible for reinstatement if you resigned in writing during the year in which you stopped working in Ontario, and if you submit proof that you practised the profession competently in your specialty within the past five years (either in Ontario or in another province or country). If you have not been practising for five years, you will be required to complete the retraining program approved by the College. In order to reinstate your registration with the College, you will need to complete an Application for Reinstatement form and pay a registration fee equal to the annual fee prorated to your next birthday. The Application for Reinstatement form is available on the College website (www.cmrto.org) and can be mailed or faxed upon request. If you are planning to reinstate your registration in more than one specialty, you will need to complete an Application for Reinstatement form for each specialty. The College should receive your completed Application for Reinstatement form and reinstatement fee no later than 14 days prior to the date you plan to return to work in Ontario.

Fees for Reinstatement with the College
The fees for reinstatement will depend on whether your certificate of registration was suspended for failure to pay the annual fee or you submitted a written resignation during the year in which you stopped working in Ontario. They will also depend on whether it has been over five years since you last practised as a medical radiation technologist.

If you submitted a written resignation during the year in which you stopped working in Ontario, and you apply for reinstatement within five years since you last practised you must pay:

• a re-registration fee equal to the annual fee prorated to your birthday

If your certificate of registration was suspended for failure to pay fees, and you apply for reinstatement within five years since you last practised you must pay:

• a re-registration fee equal to the annual fee prorated to your birthday (provided the prorated amount is no less than 50% of the annual fee), and
• a penalty of 100% of the annual fee.

If it has been over five years since you last practised as a medical radiation technologist, contact the College to discuss the fees payable for reinstatement.

Remember… College staff are available by phone or email to assist you in maintaining your registration with the College. Following the steps set out above will help you avoid late payment fees, and will help you to continue to be registered as a member of the College.

The college publication What You Must Know About… Registration is also available on the College website at www.cmrto.org.

Using our online resources is a fast and easy way to renew your registration, pay your fees, update your address and employment information and update your Health Human Resources (HHR) information. Members can renew their registration online and pay their fees by credit card (Visa or MasterCard) through the College website at www.cmrto.org. The College has taken steps to protect the security of information provided through online payments, with credit card transactions protected by VeriSign. There is no additional charge to renew your registration online.

To access the online member services, you’ll need a password (which was mailed to members in 2009 and again in March 2011). If you’ve misplaced your initial password, contact the College and we’ll mail you a new one. The initial password is sent only by mail to your address on file with the College, as a security measure. If you have already accessed the online member services and have forgotten your password, click the "forgot password" button and you will be sent an email with your password.

Amendments to Ontario Regulation 543 under the HARP Act which affect MRTs came into effect on July 1, 2011. The amendments define CT scanners and dental CT scanners as classes of x-ray machine and set out the health professionals who are authorized to order CT and dental CT scans and operate CT and dental CT scanners. As members of the College, MRTs are authorized to operate CT scanners and dental CT scanners provided certain conditions are met.

Amendments to the HARP Act that are not yet in effect include expanding the authority of Nurse Practitioners (RNs in the extended class) to order any type of x-ray and authorizing physiotherapists to order x-ray procedures in accordance with the regulations made under the HARP Act. Once the government makes an announcement, the College will inform members of the effective date for these further changes. A consolidated version of

A consolidated version of Regulation 543 is available on e-laws at: http://www.e-laws.gov.on.ca/html/regs/english/ elaws_regs_900543_e.htm

There is also a link to the regulation in the Resource Room of the College website under Acts, Regulation and By-laws at http://www.cmrto.org/resource/regulations. asp.

If you have any questions regarding these amendments to the HARP Act and the regulations, you may wish to call the College.

There were no members whose certificates of registration were suspended between May 1, 2011 and June 30, 2011 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.