News

Apr 28

Exemption from 2020 Professional Development Plan

Thank you to all the occupational therapists who have taken the time to complete their Professional Development (PD) plans.We hope that the process of setting and achieving learning goals over such an unpredictable year, or of reflecting on personal growth despite the challenges of 2020, will assist you in providing safe, quality care to the people of Ontario. As the College reflects further, we would like to acknowledge the evolving situation related to the pandemic and have made the decision to exempt the formal requirement to complete the PD Plan for 2020-2021. We still hope that those who have not completed the PD plan will...

Apr 22

New Provincial Orders: Change to Scope of Practice in Hospitals

On Thursday, April 22, 2021, the Government of Ontario released amemo from the Ministry of Health providing information on new orders in effect in Ontario. The new order is available to read here:Ontario Regulation 305/21 Regulated Health Professionals, made under theEmergency Management and Civil Protection Act, 1990. This order authorizes health care professionals including occupational therapists to provide patient care services outside their regular scope of practice in hospitals, and enables hospitals to employ, contract, appoint or otherwise engage regulated health professionals from out-of-province. Under theEmergency...

Apr 20

Revised Requirements for Professional Development Plans (Update: Exemption from 2020 Professional Development Plan )

[Updated April 28, 2021] As the College reflects further, we would like to acknowledge the evolving situation related to the pandemic and have made the decision to exempt the formal requirement to complete the PD Plan for 2020-2021. Learn more about this decision:https://www.coto.org/news/exemption-from-2020-professional-development-plan Professional Development is about growth, which can take place in many ways, sometimes through planned activities such as enrolling in a course, and sometimes through unplanned events such as the sudden onset of a global pandemic. Each of us continues to be impacted by COVID-19 which has...

Apr 20

Updated information about accessing COVID Care Learning

The College has been encouraged to share these COVID-19 education resources onCOVIDCareLearning.ca to support occupational therapists if you are redeployed. The rapid rise and severity of COVID-19 cases may result in large redeployments of health professionals across the system. We are committed to helping you prepare if you are one of the individuals whoare redeployed– and thank you for your help during these challenging times. Use these free resources curated for COVID-19 education: At the onset of the pandemic, a provincial team launched theCOVIDCareLearning.caplatform as an essential learning tool for redeployed...

Apr 20

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Survey Update

The College would like to thank all registrants who responded to the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) survey that was circulated from January 20th to February 26th, 2021. A total of 408 registrants responded which provided the College with valuable insight and learning about diversity, equity and inclusion in occupational therapy practice. We would like to thank you for your openness and for sharing your stories and diversity experiences with us. Your feedback has helped to inform several next steps. Some of the feedback pertained to the College’s need for internal education and training and we are pleased to inform...

Apr 19

New Emergency Orders: Re-deployment of health care professionals in Ontario

On Friday, April 9, 2021, the Ontario Government introduced new emergency orders that permit the re-deployment of health professionals working for Ontario Health and Home and Community Care Support Services to hospitals. Learn more about these orders on the government website. Earlier in the pandemic, the College developed a series of Q & As to guide occupational therapists who may have been re-deployed to other settings. That guidance has been updated to address questions we have received regarding scope of practice. View the Q & A section on our COVID-19...

Apr 7

Provincial Emergency and Stay-at-Home Order Effective April 8, 2021

Provincial Emergency and Stay-at-Home Order Effective April 8, 2021...

Mar 31

New Terminology in Effect April 1, 2021

To improve clarity for the public, at its January 2021 meeting the Council approved changes to the College’s bylaws to amend the terminology used for the College’s Council and its registrants. As of April 1, the College Council will be referred to as the Board, with individual members referred to as Directors; the Council President will be referred to as the Board Chair; and the Vice-President will now be referred to as Vice-Chair. Also approved were changes to the Council and Committee eligibility criteria. These change are reflected in the College bylawsand throughout the College website. We will continue to update...

Mar 29

March 25, 2021 Council Meeting Highlights

College Performance Measurement Framework Council approved the completed College Performance Measurement Framework (CPMF) for submission to the Ministry of Health. As a self-regulated profession, enhancing accountability and providing valuable information publicly will help to build stakeholder and public trust, and ideally help us to continue to excel as a regulator where we are protecting the public through our operations and programs.View the College CPMF. Board Competency Framework Council approved the adoption of the College Board Competency Framework, which will be available later this year. The Board should be comprised...

Mar 29

Deadline Extended: CoreCom-CanCom Survey Closes April 5, 2021

Closing soon! Take the CoreCom-CanCom survey. Watch the video, review the competency document, and complete the survey! Last chance! If you haven’t completed the CoreCom-CanCom survey yet, there’s still time to be a part of this exciting project to help shape the new draft competencies for occupational therapists in Canada. We welcome diverse perspectives. Your feedback is important to us, so we’ve extended the deadline to April 5, 2021. Make sure your voice is heard! Please complete the survey before it closes on April 5th, 2021. Don’t delay! Complete the CoreCom-CanCom survey:...

Mar 25

Reminder: CoreCom-CanCom Survey

Don’t forget to take the CoreCom-CanCom survey Watch the video, review the competency document, and complete the survey! Have you taken the CoreCom-CanCom survey yet? Your feedback on the current draft will help inform and identify improvements to the new draft competencies for occupational therapists. The CoreCom-CanCom project is a collaborative, national initiative between occupational therapy organizations and regulators across Canada to develop the expected competencies for occupational therapists in Canada. Please complete the survey before it closes on March 29th, 2021. We want to hear what you think! Take the time...

Mar 22

Q&A: Risk Categories and Quality Assurance

You asked us: I have been practicing for over 25 years and am concerned that this is considered a “risk category” for Quality Assurance selection. Can you please explain this? Our answer: When redeveloping the new selection process for participation in the College’s Quality Assurance program, a subject-matter expert was retained to develop an evidence-informed and right-touch approach. This consultant, through expertise and research review, developed the final 18 risk indicators, 1 of which is the isolation risk of being many years (more than 25) since graduation. The justification for this risk came from a...

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