Hi everyone! I hope you’re enjoying the (finally!) warmer weather.
It’s been an exciting few months since my last message to you in April. We were thrilled to hear that the Ontario Government directed regulatory colleges, including CDHO, to begin developing the regulatory framework for future changes to scopes of practice. The regulatory framework is all the pieces that need to be in place for the proposed enhancements to the RDH Scope to become reality – updating legislation; developing new Practice Standards; identifying the competencies necessary to safely and competently administer local anaesthetic and order x-rays; and the authorization process to prescribe and administer local anaesthetic.
We have started developing these elements, and there will be plenty of opportunities for RDHs and our partners to participate in this work, so please stay tuned for more information. We are getting some questions around timing and when enhancements to the Scope will take effect. As a reminder, there are no changes to the Scope at this time, and we will share more information as it becomes available from Government. I’d like to thank the profession for their tireless efforts to get us to this point. Congratulations to everyone involved in this work!
Finally, preparations are underway for the 2027 Quality Assurance Assessment. We emailed all RDHs at the end of May, announcing the selection criteria and that we are once again seeking volunteers for assessment. We’ve already seen great interest to that call! It’s inspiring to see so many RDHs volunteering for assessment. We’ve come a long way with this particular piece of the QA Program, and there is always more work to be done. My thanks to the profession for working with us to make the assessment process more collaborative and relevant, and for their continued engagement. As a reminder: We continue to offer optional Peer Circles, and I encourage you to register to see what they’re all about. We’re visiting several cities across Ontario and there are online options for those who can’t make it out.
I hope you enjoy the beginning of summer!
Dr. Glenn Pettifer
Registrar/CEO