Cultural Safety and Cultural Humility: #itstartswithme

The First Nations Health Authority has launched a campaign to support the advancement of cultural humility and cultural safety for First Nations and Aboriginal peoples in the British Columbia health system.  The #itstartswithme cultural humility campaign is centered around personal and systemic change for better health services.

Cultural safety is an outcome based on respectful engagement that recognizes and strives to address power imbalances inherent in the healthcare system. It results in an environment free of racism and discrimination, where people feel safe when receiving health care.

Cultural humility is a process of self-reflection to understand personal and systemic biases and to develop and maintain respectful processes and relationships based on mutual trust. Cultural humility involves humbly acknowledging oneself as a learner when it comes to understanding another’s experience.

The College encourages all registrants to visit the FNHA website and explore the #itstartswithme educational resources at www.fnha.ca/culturalhumility.   

In addition, we encourage all registrants to learn about the Indigenous Cultural Safety (ICS) Online Training Program delivered by the Provincial Health Services Authority of British Columbia.  This course can be claimed for CE credits.  The training program that is most appropriate for dental hygienists is the Core ICS Health program.  It should be noted that all health professionals who work in a health authority are required to complete this program. To learn more and sign up to take the program please visit http://www.sanyas.ca/training/british-columbia
  Back to Top

Streamlined Professional Renewal

During renewal for the 2017-18 registration year, dental hygienists will be paying their registration fees to the College at the same time as membership fees are collected by the College on behalf of the BCDHA and CDHA.
 
By aligning the renewal year of the associations with the College and collecting all professional fees from all dental hygienists in BC during the College’s renewal period, all dental hygienists in BC will automatically have access to comprehensive and continuous professional liability insurance coverage effective March 1, 2017.
 
During the transition period of January 1, 2017 to February 28, 2017, all dental hygienists need to ensure that they have professional liability insurance coverage in place.  You can obtain this by purchasing a CDHA/BCDHA membership for this interim period, with a reduced fee. 
 
In order to facilitate seamless insurance coverage through the transition period to the Streamlined Renewal process, CDSPI insurance will be accepted during the transitional period of January/February, 2017. However, after reviewing information supplied by CDSPI prior to its October board meeting, the board feels that the CDSPI policy may not be in a form acceptable to them after March 1^st.  The board recognizes that renewal 2017 represents a transition to the new streamlined system and felt it was in the public’s interest to continue to allow the CDSPI insurance for an additional two month period.
 
CDSPI has indicated through correspondence with the College that if their insurers request coverage for January and February only in writing, and include their signatures, they will bill only for the two months.  CDSPI will automatically send a renewal invoice according to your current billing frequency with them if they have not previously received a written request for the two month coverage period. CDSPI has indicated that the premiums will be pro-rated accordingly for the two month period. It would be best to contact CDSPI directly to clarify this information.
 
Please note, as previously communicated, the College will also accept the interim insurance policy from DH Pro for the transitional period of January/February 2017.  Please contact DH Pro for more details.


More information about Streamlined Professional Renewal can be found here:
Streamlined Professional Renewal news announcement 
Streamlined Professional Renewal FAQs document 

  Back to Top

Inquiry Focus: Collaborating on the QAP Assessment Tool

Each year the College is made aware that some registrants work together when completing the QAP Assessment Tool despite numerous reminders that the tool must be completed independently.  At the onset of the QAP Assessment Tool, the following reminder appears:
 
Registrants are not permitted to reproduce, copy, save or share in any way any of the content of the QAP Assessment Tool in order to help preserve its integrity. It is considered a serious offence to breach the security or confidentiality of the QAP Assessment Tool and registrants are required to read and agree to a security Statement of Understanding prior to beginning the QAP Assessment Tool.
 
This past year, two registrants were referred to the Inquiry Committee for Own Motion investigations regarding information it had received concerning allegations the Registrants had collaborated when completing the QAP Assessment. 
 
Following the investigation the Inquiry Committee found that the Registrants had engaged in unethical behaviour by failing to comply with the Statement of Understanding on their completion of the QAP Assessment Tool by collaborating with another registrant.  The Registrants’ behaviour constituted professional misconduct.
 
In accordance with their Consent Orders, both Registrants were required to submit a reflective essay outlining the circumstances of their breach of the Statement of Understanding and collaboration with another registrant, their experience with the Inquiry Committee process and what they learned from the process, and to submit it for approval to the Inquiry Committee.  The Registrants acknowledged that the reflective essay may be published in the College’s online newsletter, “ACCESS” at the discretion of the Registrar
 
Click here to read the Reflective Essay by the first registrant.
 
Click here to read the Reflective Essay by the second registrant.
 
To read more about these investigations, click here.
  Back to Top

Act amended to allow Dental Hygienists to Administer Naloxone in ‎an Emergency

Amendments to the Health Professions Act (HPA) have come into effect that allow all health professionals regulated by the HPA, including Dental Hygienists, to administer naloxone in an emergency situation to a person they suspect is suffering from an opioid overdose. Naloxone can be administered by injection or intranasally.  As a professional, you are required to ensure that you are properly educated and/or trained before providing care.  We are continuing to work with all stakeholders on this important issue. More information related to how to obtain naloxone kits and educational resources will be distributed shortly.
  Back to Top