News

By now you will have renewed your 2008/09 Registration.  If you missed the March 31 deadline you've been removed from the CDBC register. If are not registered, you may not practice dietetics or use the protected title "Dietitian." You are eligible for late renewal until September 30 by contacting the office.  Please note, there is an additional fee of $250. By clicking here 2008/2009 registrants may update their profile at any time. Reminder: Verification of Competence to perform the Reserved Acts must be received before you may provide these services.  Please call the office if you have any questions about the renewal process or access to the site.

During the February 29, 2008 meeting, the Board re-elected Glenn Kissmann (Interior/North) as Chair of the Board of Directors and Heather Martin (Vancouver Coastal) as Vice-chair.  Terms are effective April 1, 2008 to March 31, 2009.  Congratulations Glenn and Heather!

 

Laura Cullen (Vancouver Coastal) and Carol Kline (appointed public representative) were thanked and honoured for their six years on the interim and elected CDBC Boards.  Their time and dedication helped create the foundation for the College.  Laura was particularly thanked for her leadership as Chair of the Board for five years.

Maria Dedegikas was appointed to the vacant Vancouver Coastal position effective April 1, 2008 for a two-year term.  Maria is a fairly new graduate, practices dietetics in long term care and will bring a fresh perspective to the Board.  Jane Darville was appointed to the Board by the government for a one-year term as a public representative.  Jane's experience in health care and with boards and public policy development will be an asset to the College. Welcome!

Thank you for your feedback!

After considering your input, the Quality Assurance Committee and Board approved the (Interim) Standards of Practice and Indicators as "final". They will be forwarded to the government for approval as Schedule B of the bylaws.  To link to the document on the website, click Standards of Practice.  The Standards and Indicators will look familiar to you - they form the Self-assessment portion of the Continuing Competence Program.  Also approved was a full text Standards of Practice document which provides a context for the Standards and Indicators. Thank you to those who participated!

Melanie Journoud, RD, Practice Advisor, has now reviewed all Professional Development Plans that were submitted this year and has provided feedback to all registrants.  Thanks to all of you who provided comments on the Standards of Practice, CCP document, forms and processes.  You were listened to!  Revisions made to the program are reflected in the updated documents that will be posted on the website by April 1.  These will be used by Group 1 registrants who are beginning a new 3-year cycle on April 1.  Groups 2 and 3 will continue using the documents currently posted:  a PDF version of the Professional Development Guide (PDG) is available as well as the Professional Development Plan and Progress Tracking form and the Self-assessment Relative to the Standards of Practice form in Word format.  The Word documents may be downloaded to your computer for electronic data entry.  Also, the CCP PowerPoint presentation may be viewed through this link.  

Fern Hubbard, Registrar, and Melanie Journoud, Practice Advisor, continue to provide CCP introductory sessions to any group of at least 10 registrants.  Please contact the office if you'd like a presentation made to your local RD group at 604.736.2016 or toll-free within BC at 1.877.736.2016.

Province-wide liaison sessions are coming...

The office is making arrangements for Fern Hubbard and local Board members to meet province-wide with dietitians, employers and educators.  The intent is to relay new College initiatives and activities and facilitate discussions about workplace barriers that prevent or hinder RDs to provide full scope of practice services.  The Minister of Health wants to increase the availability of health care services which provides an opportunity for the College to request changes in workplace practices and an expanded scope of practice.  In order to be ready to meet with the government, we need to know what the difficulties are - and we need you to tell us.  Watch for liaison sessions in your area.  If you're planning a gathering of dietitians over the next few months, please contact us.  The College would like the opportunity to "tag" on to your event and speak with practicing RDs in your community.   

News from the Registrar

Registration of New Dietetic Graduates

New graduates traditionally complete their internship year between May and August.  The Registrar will be meeting with interns to discuss Temporary Registration processes and ensure they are knowledgeable about their responsibilities being a CDBC registrant, and the College's responsibilities to them.  The College welcomes all new Temporary Registrants!.

National Registrars' Meeting

The most recent in-person meeting was December 3-4, 2007 in Winnipeg.  The meeting focused on:

Implementation of the Essential Competencies:

• status of provincial implementation processes
• discussion of correspondence
• development of a draft Review Process
• incorporation of the Essential Competencies into the Canadian Dietetic Registration Examination by November 2009.

Website available at www.dieteticregulation.ca The next in-person meeting will be in May 2008.  Teleconference meetings are held monthly.

National Regulators Organization

The Alliance of Canadian Dietetic Regulatory Bodies is a national organization composed of ten equal and independent members who represent the provincial dietetic regulatory authorities. Representatives are Registrars or Chairs of the provincial Board or Council. The mandate of the organization is to:

• Share information and perspectives.
• Undertake initiatives to advance dietetic regulation in Canada.
• Develop and implement competency based assessments for registration.
• Maintain and administer the Canadian Dietetic Registration Examination (CDRE).
• Facilitate labour mobility through the Mutual Recognition Agreement.
• Act as the contact point for external groups on matters related to the regulation of dietitians in Canada.

The national regulators have recently published two significant documents:  "Introduction to Essential Competencies for Dietetic Practice" and "Essential Competencies for Dietetic Practice".  The Essential Competencies have a broad impact on dietetic education and practice in BC and across Canada.  They will be used in the following ways:

• as the education and internship benchmark for determining eligibility to register with the CDBC and other dietetic jurisdictions;
• as the educational basis for transfer under the Mutual Recognition Agreement;
• as the standard for assessing applicants educated outside of Canada;
• to revise the blueprint for the Canadian Dietetic Registration Examination;
• as the foundation for the CDBC Standards of Practice which have been incorporated in the new CDBC Continuing Competence Program;
• as a resource for the development of CDBC Practice Guidelines; and
• as a guide for practice remediation (future initiative).