A government committee report recommends streamlining the regulation of health professionals in B.C. by reducing the number of regulatory colleges, altering the makeup of college boards, and improving the transparency of the complaint system.
A steering committee made up of Health Minister Adrian Dix, Green Party MLA Sonia Furstenau and Liberal MLA Norm Letnick put forward the proposal that will now go to public consultation.
“They will make colleges more effective and efficient and bring them into the 21st century,” Dix said.
There are currently 20 health professional colleges in the province with more than 120,000 members. The province is proposing a system where there are five colleges.
The College of Physicians and Surgeons of B.C., the College of Pharmacists of B.C. and the B.C. College of Nursing Professionals would remain, while the other colleges would be grouped into two other larger colleges.
The steering committee report also suggests adding members of the public to college boards.
The report suggests that “actions resulting from accepted complaints” should be made public in an effort to improve transparency.
Currently, colleges only allow the public to see the results of patient complaints that are considered a “serious matter.”
“Improving public transparency and safety has been central to our efforts to modernize the way health professions are regulated,” Furstenau said.
The provincial government has been working on an overhaul of the regulatory system for months. Expert Harry Cayton presented the committee with a report that recommended massive changes to the system.
“Through collaboration and teamwork, British Columbians will be able to trust that health care is a non-partisan issue, and health professional colleges are putting the public’s best interest first,” Letnick said.