All health professionals regulated under the Health Professions and Occupations Act (HPOA) have a professional, ethical, and legal responsibility to report any unsafe practice or serious professional misconduct of any other regulated health practitioner to the regulatory body that the practitioner is licensed with.
A regulated health professional who believes the public is at risk because another health professional is not fit to practise due to a health condition, is a significant risk to the public, or if they have reasonable grounds to believe that the other health professional has committed an act of sexual misconduct, sexual abuse or discrimination. has a duty to report this, regardless of whether the practitioner is from their own profession or a different health profession.
Traditionally, duty to report notifications have been raised when a registrant’s competence is in question. Unethical and unprofessional conduct can also constitute a danger to the public.
The HPOA provides legal immunity to health professionals who comply with this duty to report, as long as the report is made in good faith.
This duty to report is distinct from the requirement to report a child in need of protection as set out in section 14 of BC’s Child, Family and Community Service Act.
Learn more
To learn more and find out how to make a report, visit the appropriate college website.
Please note that duty to report is separate from the complaint process for patients and clients.