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Changes to Bylaw 5

CDHO is proposing changes to its bylaws related to the following:

  1. Replacing the terms “President” and “Vice-President” with “Chair” and “Vice-Chair”.
  2. Strengthening requirements for candidates for Council and committees related to legal proceedings against CDHO.
  3. Removing the requirement that there be more members of Council on a committee than non-Council committee members.
  4. Replacing the in-person process for deputations to Council.
  5. Updating references to fees that have been already reduced or cancelled.
  6. Updating provisions to align with the Health Professions Procedural Code or current emerging practices.
  7. Other minor housekeeping amendments.

Details of Proposed Changes

1.    Replacing the terms “President” and “Vice-President” with “Chair” and “Vice-Chair”

The terms “President” and “Vice-President” have long been associated with representative politics. For CDHO, these terms do not accurately reflect the duties of the offices and may suggest to the public that the officers serve the interests of the profession rather than the public. The terms “Chair” and “Vice-Chair” more accurately reflect the duties of these offices and do not carry any implication that the positions are politically motivated.

2.    Strengthening requirements related to legal proceedings against CDHO for candidates to Council and committees

Under the current bylaws, a candidate who is seeking election or appointment to Council or to a committee cannot have been part of a legal proceeding against CDHO within one year of being nominated1. It is proposed to eliminate the time limit on this prohibition. It is a clear conflict of interest to have been both part of a legal proceeding against CDHO and to serve on CDHO’s governing body or one of its committees at any time. This proposed change prohibits such conflict. It also aligns with the disqualification provisions of the bylaws, which require a member of Council or a committee to be disqualified for partaking in a legal proceeding against CDHO2.

3.    Removing the requirement that there be more members of Council on a committee than non-Council committee members

The bylaws set out the composition of the various CDHO committees. The committees are composed of a set number of professional and public members of Council, and non-Council committee members (who can be dental hygienists or members of the public). The bylaws currently require that committees have more members of Council than non-Council committee members.

It is proposed to remove the limit on the number of non-Council committee members. This would allow Council to appoint additional non-Council committee members to meet the operational needs of the committees and ensure that an appropriate roster of committee members is available to serve when needed. These amendments do not change the quorum requirements for committees.

4.    Replacing the in-person process for deputations to Council

Section 4.12 of the bylaws permits external groups or individuals to request an in-person deputation before Council. Deputations often involve a request by the group or individual for Council to take some action on a given matter. All requests for deputations must be reviewed and approved by the Executive Committee.

This section of the bylaws is unnecessary because the Executive Committee may always invite a group or individual to attend and speak at a Council meeting or respond to a request by a group or individual to make a presentation to Council. More commonly, CDHO asks for written submissions from any concerned individuals or interest groups on significant initiatives before Council, such as regulatory and bylaw amendments.

5.    Updating references to fees

It is proposed to update references to fees that were already reduced or cancelled.

  • CDHO reduced its application fee for new applicants from $75 to $50 effective April 1, 2023.
  • Similarly, CDHO eliminated the fee for applications for self-initiation effective April 1, 2023. Since then, Council also approved rescinding the standard for self-initiation, making the reference to this fee redundant.

6.    Updating provisions to align with the Health Professions Procedural Code or current emerging practices

Section 14.2 of the bylaws has been updated to include reference to the information that RDHs already provide to CDHO as required by the Health Professions Procedural Code.

Section 14.3 of the bylaws has been updated to clarify that an RDH must notify CDHO within 14 days of changes to any information they are required to provide to CDHO (and not merely the information listed in this section). This would include changes to their name, contact information, practice address, etc. CDHO already advises RDHs that they must notify it of any changes to their information within 14 days.

Section 15.6 of the bylaws has been updated in three ways to:

  1. Reflect changes to the Health Professions Procedural Code that require information related to charges, conditions of release and findings of guilt to be posted to the Public Register. The Code already requires CDHO to post this information to the Public Register, and these updates bring the bylaws into alignment with the Code.
  2. Include information related to an RDH’s education in dental hygiene (e.g., date of graduation, educational institution) on the Public Register. This information is already posted by CDHO on the Public Register.
  3. Permit the Registrar to include additional information on the Public Register that they believe to be in the public interest related to outcomes directed by CDHO committees, including: cautions; specified continuing education or remediation programs; undertakings; disciplinary referrals and findings; findings of incapacity; and resignations during an investigation. CDHO is already required to post relevant information related to these matters, including a summary, key dates, notations of appeal, etc. The amendments provide the Registrar with discretion to include additional information related to these matters where they are of the view that it is in the interest of the public to do so.

7.    Other housekeeping amendments

Several housekeeping amendments are proposed, such as replacing gendered terms (i.e., “he”, “she”), with gender-neutral language (e.g., “they”) and revising provisions for clarity.

View the updated Bylaw.

Provide your Feedback

We invite you to provide feedback via the Changes to Bylaw 5 survey. The deadline to submit your feedback is February 12, 2024. If you have any questions, please contact us at communications@cdho.org.

1 CDHO Bylaws, section 3.1(16)
2 CDHO Bylaws, section 3.8(q)