Self-regulation of the profession of kinesiology is a privilege; with privilege comes great responsibility. In Ontario, kinesiologists are expected to observe practices that ensure public protection. Through regulation, the Ontario public is assured that a profession's practice standards and core competencies are being met and that regulated professionals are providing safe, competent care. The Regulated Health Professions Act, 1991 requires each regulatory college to have in place a quality assurance (QA) program which includes self-assessment, peer and practice assessment, continuing education and professional development, and mechanisms for monitoring members' participation and compliance.

Self-Assessment

Self-assessment is the first step in the QA Program. It is the foundation on which you will plan your professional development throughout the year. The self-assessment tool will guide you in reflecting on your practice in relation to the established practice standards and core competencies of kinesiology, and help you to identify whether you are achieving your professional goals.

Through completion of the annual self-assessment, you will identify those areas of knowledge, skill and judgment that you would like to strengthen. You will then be able to identify learning needs and that will help you to set the learning goals in your individual learning plan (ILP).

Self-Assessment Portal

Shortly, the College will launch the self-assessment portal. This is an online system for planning and recording your achievements and learning opportunities.

The self-assessment tool, accessed through the portal, provides a series of questions related to the practice standards and core competencies against which you will assess your knowledge, skills and judgment, and will identify areas for improvement. Links to learning resources, such as the College's practice standards, are available as you complete the self-assessment.

Individual Learning Plan

Once you complete the eight self-assessment sections, you will be asked to identify a minimum of three learning goals which will form the basis of your individual learning plan (ILP). Areas identified for improvement in the self-assessment sections will be automatically transferred to your ILP. You will then be able to prepare a plan of activities to achieve your specific goals.

Continuing Professional Development

Members are not required to accumulate or report activity credits. Your choice of professional development activity does not have to be pre-approved by the College at this time. Rather, learning is expected to be self-directed. Members are encouraged to select learning activities based on their own needs and goals. The College recognizes the variety of ways in which professionals learn and so it encourages members to reflect on how learning impacts their individual practice.

Professional Portfolio

The portal provides a mechanism for members to upload evidence of learning activities. To demonstrate compliance, you are required to maintain a portfolio of your self-assessments and your ILPs as well as records or evidence of continuing professional development activity. Acceptable evidence of participation in learning activity includes, but is not limited to, certificates of attendance/participation related to workshops, seminars and courses; meeting agendas for the College's council, committees or working groups; synopsis of reading or other materials consulted for self-study; records of learning discussions/interactions with colleagues in health professions and copies of mentoring agreements. You are also encouraged to include client feedback, performance reviews from supervisors or employers and résumés.

You may choose to compile either a hard-copy or electronic portfolio. However, if you are selected for a Peer and Practice Assessment, you will be required to present an electronic or hard copy of all portfolio contents.

Confidentiality?

Documentation submitted by members through the online portal will be presented to, and considered by, the Quality Assurance Committee in aggregate form only to inform the development of programs and tools in support of members' practice and professional development. Members' documentation will not be individually reviewed. However, a member of the College's staff or an assessor will review the portfolios of each individual member who has been selected for a Peer and Practice Assessment.

Information supplied by the member in compliance with the Quality Assurance Program, which is stored online or in any other format, cannot be shared with any other committee, including the Discipline Committee, nor can it be used in court. It is protected under the Regulated Health Professions Act, 1991, sections 80.2 through to and including 83.

Timeframe and Eligibility

The annual 90-day self-assessment period begins December 1 and ends on March 1 of the next calendar year. All members who are registered in the General Class at least 30 days before the start of the self-assessment period are required to participate. All other members must complete their self-assessments the following year, between December 1 and March 1.

Questions about the Self-Assessment process?

You are invited to attend an upcoming webinar titled Quality Assurance and the Self-Assessment Portal. The host/presenter will be Lara Thacker, Director of Quality Assurance. You will learn about the new portal and receive tips on how to successfully complete your online self-assessment. Stay tuned for webinar dates and registration information.

The online portal is the first of many initiatives to help enhance your practice. If you have any questions regarding the self-assessment process, please contact Lara Thacker at lara.thacker@collegeofkinesiologists.on.ca or call 416 862 4792.

The College has developed Practice Standards and Practice Guidelines to assist members in understanding their responsibilities as regulated health professionals. The Practice Standards define the expectations that members must meet to practise competently, safely and ethically. The Practice Guidelines provide advice and recommendations on how members can practise according to the Standards.  

Members are encouraged to read the Standards and Guidelines and reflect on how their practice incorporates the profession's expectations of care in the public interest and how they can work to exceed these expectations. Practising according to the Standards enhances the care provided to clients and helps to ensure the public's confidence in the profession.

The College is committed to promoting the highest quality care in kinesiology in Ontario. Members should seek to understand their obligations as regulated health professionals and ask for clarification and guidance, when necessary. Members may contact the College about any practice issue or to provide feedback on the Standards and Guidelines. Check the Professional Conduct pages of the College website for more information and for practice resources.

Click here to learn about the College's membership and to see how the College has grown.

There are times when kinesiologists may be involved in a care team that is comprised of several health professionals. These teams are expected to coordinate care in the best interest of the patient/client.

The Federation of Health Regulatory Colleges of Ontario (FHRCO) has created the free Interprofessional Collaboration (IPC) e-Tool to assist interprofessional teams to coordinate care within the expanded and overlapping scopes and authorities. The e-Tool allows teams to create a work plan to coordinate client care and provides a checklist of critical questions to ensure that optimum care is provided to clients. The e-Tool provides a list of scopes of practice and authorities to perform controlled acts for each regulated health profession. A series of FAQs are also included that address issues such as consent to treatment, accountability and clarifying roles. The e-Tool can be accessed here.

1. If I am a student who just graduated, will I meet the criteria for currency of knowledge and proof of experience by delaying my application for registration by waiting three years before applying?

No, you will not have met the criteria. Applicants applying under the grandparenting provisions must have practised the profession in Canada in any three years prior to April 1, 2013 for at least 2000 hours and have practised the profession for at least 1500 hours in the three years immediately prior to the date of their application to the College.

2. I missed the April 1 deadline. Am I no longer eligible to register?  

You may apply for registration at any time. If you are applying under the grandparenting provisions, you have three years from April 1, 2013 to submit an application and be considered for exemption from writing the entry-to-practice examination. Applicants who qualify for registration under the grandparenting provisions who miss this three-year window will be required to write the examination. There is no registration time frame for those who are required to write the examination. However, if you wish to work as or to call yourself a kinesiologist in the province of Ontario, you must first register with the College. 

3. What is the Council? 

The Council is the College's governing body. Public members, appointed to provide the public perspective and to ensure accountability, as well as members of the College comprise Council. The composition is as follows:

• Nine (9) elected members of the College;
• At least six (6) and no more than eight (8) public members appointed by the Ontario government; and 
• One (1) elected member of the College who is also a faculty member of an Ontario university's faculty or department of kinesiology.

4. What does Council do? 

Council acts as the board of directors of the College. Council is responsible for ensuring that the College's legislated mandate of public protection and improving the practice of the profession is achieved. Council establishes the entry-to-practice requirements to ensure that only qualified kinesiologists practise in Ontario; determines the standards necessary for competent, safe and ethical practice and maintains a quality assurance program to ensure the continuing competency of members, among other things.

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