British Columbia’s regulated health professions provide care for patients and clients in a variety of settings, including hospitals, other health-care facilities, and the community.
When choosing a health professional, especially in community settings, you can ask them if they are registered with a regulatory college. You will also find a public register of registered professionals on each college website.
Registered health professional titles
Health professionals in B.C. must be a college licensee to use certain “protected” professional titles (for example: “nurse,” “registered massage therapist,” “dentist,” or “dietitian”).
When an unregistered and unqualified practitioner is using the title of a regulated health professional in B.C., it is considered to be unlawful practice..
B.C.’s regulatory colleges take any report of unlawful practice seriously, following up and taking appropriate action, as necessary.
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On August 27, 2020, the BC Ministry of Health announced a plan to modernize and strengthen the province’s health regulatory system. Find out more about regulatory modernization in BC, and read the latest news on how health profession regulators are evolving.