Health regulation protects you by ensuring that B.C.’s regulated health professionals have the appropriate training and skills to provide qualified, safe, and ethical care.
In B.C., regulated health professionals are licensed by one of six health regulatory colleges governed by provincial legislation and regulations. Each college maintains a public register of qualified professionals who have met the requirements to practise safely within their own profession.
Protecting professional titles
All health professionals must be licensed by the appropriate health profession college in order to use the professional titles that are “protected” by their college. For example, only registrants of the BC College of Nurses and Midwives are authorized to use the title “nurse” while practising their profession in this province.
Knowing that your health professional is registered helps you to recognize qualified professionals who have demonstrated the requirements to practise safely.
Receiving and investigating complaints
You are also protected by each regulatory college’s process to receive and investigate when allegations of unsafe, unethical, or unprofessional practice are submitted by the public or other health-care providers. Colleges have the power to issue limited types of disciplinary action for administrative matters, and the ability to resolve less serious issues by making agreements with health professionals..
When a health professional has committed misconduct, sexual misconduct, sexual abuse, or discrimination, disciplinary action is determined by an independent Health Professions Discipline Tribunal (Discipline Tribunal), which oversees the discipline process for regulated health professions in B.C. The Discipline Tribunal is led under the Health Professions and Occupations Regulatory Oversight Office (HPOROO). Once the tribunal has determined disciplinary action, they make a disciplinary order, which regulatory colleges are responsible for enforcing.
More information about the Discipline Tribunal can be found on the HPOROO website.