What is the Quality Practice Framework?
Our new QP Framework focuses on risk-based, evidence-informed activities that will ensure, promote, and support practice quality. It outlines the purpose, guiding principles, and design features for the Quality Practice program. We continue to develop the Elements of this Framework.
A sincere thank-you to the 681 registrants who responded to our “Tell us what you think – really!” survey over the summer. Your comments and suggestions will guide us to effectively support quality physical therapy practice in BC.
In other news, the new Workplace Standards Advisory Committee has continued its work, with three meetings over the summer to discuss the pilot project. Read below for more details about their progress.
Preliminary Results from our Registrant Survey
The survey was circulated and the results were compiled by Pivotal Research Inc. A total of 4,597 registrants were invited to participate in the online survey, with 681 registrants completing it, representing a 14.8% response rate. We see that almost 70% of those who responded had read our Quality Practice e-Newsletters – great news!
In the Quality Practice program section of the survey, you were asked to indicate your agreement with a number of statements relating to the program. For each statement, you were asked to select one option from a five-point scale where 1 was strongly disagree and 5 was strongly agree.
A) The Quality Practice Program’s New Direction
When asked about your agreement with the change of direction in the design of the program, you indicated a high level of acceptance (81%) of the change of direction.
B) Workplace Standards Element
You were asked about the Workplace Standards Element in particular. Results showed a high level of agreement (87%) of the importance of the workplace environment to the quality of your practice. A smaller number (67%) agreed that a tool similar to the ASR would be helpful in identifying potential workplace risks.
You were asked to consider your own workplace and practice context and suggest workplace supports or risks that should be included as the Workplace Standards were being developed. Your answers included suggestions that could be grouped according to the following themes:
- Peer support & collaboration, leadership support, mentorship
- Resources, workshops, online modules, education opportunities
- Performance reviews/evaluations
- Support for solo practices/working alone
- Practitioner safety
- Work environment/workplace bullying/workload
- Physical layout, equipment, staffing
C) Professional Development Element
Overall, 96% of you indicated that knowledge acquisition/creation/translation activities are important in supporting the quality of your practice, but only 49% of you felt that external review/practice monitoring activities are important in supporting practice quality.
When you were asked about other types of professional development activities that should be incorporated into this Element, you provided suggestions that could be grouped according to the following themes:
- Access to educational resources/self-development courses/professional courses
- Mentoring, leadership development
- Gender equity/cultural diversity
- Other
When you were asked about what else the College should consider to ensure that the Professional Development Element is relevant to your practice, the following themes emerged from your responses:
- Need for recognized formal courses relevant to your practice area
- Specialization
- Recognition of parental leave and its impact on participation in PD activities
- Recognition of administrative/leadership/research roles
- Workload/caseload management
All of this important information will be considered as the Professional Development Element evolves. We’ll share more information about this Element in the next issue of the QP e-Newsletter.
An Update on our Workplace Standards Advisory Committee
The eight members of the Workplace Standards Advisory Committee met three times since we issued our last e-Newsletter. They reviewed and condensed the workplace standards drafted by our consultant. It’s important that these standards are applicable to all practice contexts. The committee also looks to ensure the standards fall into one of these categories:
1) Indicators about the College’s Practice Standards – focused on awareness of College regulations and expectations in such areas as clinical records management, documentation, supervision, telerehabilitation, infection prevention and control, confidentiality, privacy and security.
2) Indicators about the College Bylaws and Code of Ethical Conduct – focused on professionalism, professional responsibility, ethics, communication, and quality improvement.
3) Indicators related to registrant health, wellness, and fitness to practice – focused on assisting you in identifying risks within your workplace environments that may lead to decreased engagement or eventual burnout, such as workplace culture, registrant engagement, and workplace engagement.
The results of the registrant survey support these categories. Your thoughtful comments and suggestions will inform the committee as they look to refine the list of standards in preparation for the upcoming pilot.
Workplace Standards Pilot
Before we ask you to answer questions about these standards during registration renewal, the College needs to make sure they are relevant and important to each of you. You practice in such varied environments, in public and private practice, and in roles that are not only clinical in nature. We aim to pilot these questions with some of you and ask your opinion about the relevance of the proposed standards to your own practice. If you volunteer for the pilot, then you will be exempt from completing this step at registration renewal in 2022.
Stay tuned for a call for volunteers, coming via email to full registrants in November. The pilot will run in December and January and the feedback you provide will inform any changes needed prior to launch in May 2022, when it will be called the Workplace Standard Report (WSR).
Remember – as registrants, you will answer the workplace standards questions (the WSR) in the same way as you answer the questions on the Annual Self Report (ASR). Only you will see your answers (they won’t be shared with the College) and you will be provided with resources and suggestions to minimize any risk to the quality of your practice that might exist within your workplace based on your answers. The College will only receive aggregate (not individual) data.
If you have any questions or comments, please contact qap@cptbc.org.
Next Issue: November 2021
Our next issue of this Quality Practice e-Newsletter series comes to your inbox this November. We’ll provide a progress report on the Workplace Standards and Professional Development Elements, and the upcoming steps in the WSR pilot.
