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I would like to start this month’s message by providing an update on the Continuing Competence and Professional Liability Insurance audits. I want to give a big round of applause to those who were selected for the CC audit this year. We audited 546 records and had a 93% success rate! This is a fantastic outcome, and I hope those that were audited found the process relatively painless. One key element that seemed to have streamlined the process is the ability to upload certificates right into the member portal throughout the year creating a simplified process during the audit. With a goal of auditing 10% of the membership per year, we will continue to look at ways to make this process easier for everyone involved.
The Professional Liability Insurance audit is now completed as well. This year marks the first time the College reviewed the records for the PLI information entered into the portals, and I think overall we were pleased with the results. There were a very small number of practitioners who were found to have provided inaccurate information. However, when the audit revealed that the information was invalid, we were able to connect with these members and ensure they had a valid PLI policy to keep an active permit. While the number of members in this situation was relatively small, the impact that legal action could have on an uninsured practitioner would be devastating. Moving forward, the College is going to implement the ability to upload your PLI certificate directly into the member portal during renewal. This should eliminate the inaccuracies and ensure that everyone remains protected from litigation and streamline any audit process.
I also wanted to share the news about an exciting new project the College is undertaking. As you are likely aware, the new Canadian Paramedic Competency Framework (CPCF) was released by COPR a few months ago. The CPCF is a comprehensive framework that outlines the essential competencies and regulatory practice standards for paramedics across Canada. The CPCF defines the core competencies that paramedics at different levels (Emergency Medical Responder, Primary Care Paramedic, Advanced Care Paramedic and Critical Care Paramedic) should possess. These competencies cover a wide range of skills, knowledge and attitudes necessary for safe and effective patient care.
The College staff and our educational stakeholders have determined that in order to align with the new national competency framework, a unified approach is required which will be led by the College. The goal is to review the existing curriculum for EMR, PCP and ACP programs and determine what changes need to be made so that future students will be well prepared for this profession. We also will be looking to develop clear learning outcomes for the Critical Care Paramedic designation, which is an area that has not been delivered in Alberta.
The overall goal of this project is to develop a curriculum “template” for all designations that each educational provider can take back and adapt their existing programs to. We also will be looking into finding efficiencies with practicums as well as developing a plan to provide “GAP training” to existing registrants. I want to assure you that there will be ample opportunity to provide input and feedback on all aspects of this so please keep an eye on your emails.
I’ll close this message by reminding you all the Annual Members’ Meeting will be live on May 22, 1 pm. If you can, please tune in and participate. I hope to see you there.
Stay safe and take care,
Tim A. Ford
Registrar