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Accreditation

Prepare and Apply

Thank you for your submissions! Due to an overwhelming number of applications received, the expedited service is suspended until April 15. Apologies for any inconvenience.

Accreditation Requirements

Here you will find all of the accreditation requirements, from preparing an eligible program to completing the application package. Preparation should begin at least 3 months in advance. Plan to apply at least 6–8 weeks prior to start date. Refer to the Overview page for important information on eligibility, processing times, application fees and credit types.

Read Documentation
  • NEW Feb 2024 UBC CPD Ethical Standards 2024 now available: UBC CPD Ethical Standards for Accredited CPD Activities
  • NEW Feb 2024 Steps for COI Management see UBC CPD Ethical Standards, Appendix B
  • NEW Feb 2024 Non-Compliance Procedure see UBC CPD Ethical Standards, Appendix C
  • TBC 2024 Responsibilities for Accreditation An infographic summarizing the responsibilities for accreditation.
  • Recognize the Mainpro+ Quality Criteria, a custom version of educational standards developed by CFPC.
  • Check the accreditation UPDATES for the most recent changes.
  • Refer to the UBC CPD Planning Guide if you want a more detailed guide.
Application Checklist and Forms

CHECKLIST for a complete application:

The requirements are identical whether submitting either online or by email.

Explanations of each item in the checklist can be found further below under Planning Phases.

Application Form (for email only)
  Application Form (PDF) — Select one. Please save PDFs to your computer BEFORE filling them out.
MOC application
Mainpro+ application
MOC & Mainpro+ application
NEW Feb 2024 (one for all) : Application-MOC-Mainpro-2024
Signature Documents to submit
  Disclosure Forms NEW Feb 2024 Disclosure form (2024) (pdf)
Disclosure link (for SPC only): https://ubc.ca1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_d6WjDBVZfnm8lwx
  Declaration Forms Accountable physician declaration form
MOC declaration form
Mainpro+ declaration form
Program Materials to submit
  Needs Assessment Tools Eg. previous evaluation summary, survey results, etc. Needs Assessment (sample)
  Budget

Identify projected revenues/funding from all sources, and general expenses. If internally funded, state org/dept name. Indicate how any surplus or deficit will be handled. See Budget (sample)

  Program Agenda Detailed program agenda with start and end times and breaks is needed for accurate credit count. Include learner-centred objectives, brochure, invitation email, links to website, registration. Agenda (sample)
  Speaker Communications

A copy of the instructions to speakers regarding accreditation standards for which they are responsible in their presentations.
Speaker Comms (sample)

  Evaluation Form Program evaluation (sample)
Speaker evaluation (sample)
  Certificate Certificate (sample)
  Reflective Tool* Reflective Tool (required only for assessment programs)*
 

Sponsorship Agreement*

Sponsorship Agreement (sample) (required only for programs seeking commercial sponsorship)*

 

Apply Here

Apply once your program has been developed and before you begin advertising.

Fees due upon submission.

If applying online (recommended) the signed documents and program materials can be uploaded. View the online application form by clicking Apply Online. Online submission will direct you to the payment page.

If applying via email, complete the appropriate PDF application form, with signed documents and program materials, and send as attachments. Note: Fillable PDFs need to be saved to your computer BEFORE completing to work properly.

Apply Online or Apply via Email

Planning  Phases

Submitting an application is only part of accreditation. You must ensure your program is planned according to accreditation standards.

All accredited CPD activities must adhere to the ethical, educational, and administrative standards throughout the program development process, from A to Z. These standards are embedded into each of the program planning phases, outlined below:

Preparation Phase

Physician Organization

Only a physician organization may seek accreditation.

A physician is a not-for-profit group of health professionals with a formal governance structure, accountable to and serving, among others, its physician members through continuing professional development, provision of healthcare and/or research.

To be eligible for accreditation of CPD programs, a physician organization must exist for at least one year.

Physician organization membership extends beyond receiving a newsletter; it must meet the following membership criteria:  

  1. Membership is comprised of physicians.
  2. Membership is not solely comprised of the Board of Directors.
  3. Defined criteria on who is eligible to be a member.
  4. Defined expectations of members (eg. payment of dues, etc.).
  5. Membership includes the right to vote on strategic directions and initiatives of the organization as a whole.

The definition of physician organization includes the following:

  • Faculties of medicine
  • Hospital departments or divisions
  • Medical societies
  • Medical associations
  • Medical academies
  • Physician research organizations
  • Physician clinics
  • Health authority hospital department or medical advisory committee (HAMAC)
  • Canadian provincial medical regulatory authorities (MRAs)

This definition does NOT include:

  • Healthcare/pharmaceutical industry commercial interests (HPIs)
  • Health authority administration offices
  • Disease-oriented patient advocacy organizations (e.g. Canadian Diabetes Association)
  • Government departments or agencies (e.g. Health Canada, Public Health Agency of Canada)
  • Small number of physicians working together solely and specifically to develop educational programming
Co-development

FOR MOC ONLY
Co-development is the process by which two or more not-for-profit organizations — at least one of which must be the physician organization — prospectively collaborate to develop content. Although some responsibilities may be delegated to the co-developing organization, the physician organization must assume control over all aspects as if they were planning the event independently.

Co-development may or may not include financial support; but for-profit organizations cannot be co-developers.

Scientific Planning Committee (SPC)

Every CPD activity must have a scientific planning committee (SPC), accountable to and overseen by a fiscally responsible physician organization. The SPC is responsible for protecting the CPD learning environment and program content/quality. The SPC must follow the UBC CPD Ethical Standards for all aspects of the CPD activity and ensure that the CPD activity is not used to promote or sell products or services that serve any form of professional or financial interests, including their own.

The SPC must (i) include at least two physicians and (ii) be representative of the target audience. Members must be aware of their responsibilities pertaining to accreditation/certification standards. The SPC must have a chair and an agreed decision-making process to enable it to fulfill its responsibilities.

Disclosures (from each SPC member) and declarations (for specific SPC member roles) need to be signed and submitted with application.  See below.

Responsibilities of SPC

  • Uphold the UBC CPD Ethical Standards for all aspects of the CPD activity
  • Identify the educational needs of the intended target audience
  • Develop learning objectives
  • Select educational methods
  • Select SPC members, speakers, moderators, facilitators and/or authors
  • Develop and deliver content
  • Evaluate outcomes
  • Oversee logistics
  • Review disclosures and mitigate conflicts of interest
  • Ensure commercial sponsorship support and programming comply with standards
  • Declarations
  • Disclosures
  • Informing others of accreditation standards (speaker letter)


NOTE: Representatives of a healthcare/pharmaceutical industry commercial interest (HPI; see UBC CPD Ethical Standards , Element 3 for definition) cannot be members of the SPC or participate in decisions related to any aspect of the CPD activity.

Declarations

Consult CHECKLIST & Forms to access the appropriate Declaration Forms.

Declarations are required by select SPC members who qualify to take on a formal role for the credit type. A qualifying physician may have more than one SPC role (eg. one could serve as accountable physician and RCSPC member).

Accountable Physician

Required for all programs. The accountable physician is the chair or one member of the SPC representing the physician organization, and as such agrees to assume ultimate responsibility for upholding the accreditation/certification standards and for following the UBC CPD Guidelines for Support in preparing and implementing the CPD activity. 

RCPSC Member

Required for MOC credits. One member of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada (RCPSC) is required to be on the SPC to represent the target audience of specialists. The declaration verifies the RCPSC member of having had substantial input into the program.

UBC FoM Member

Required for Mainpro+ credits. One physician member of the UBC Faculty of Medicine (UBC FoM) is required to be on the SPC to represent UBC FoM.  The declaration verifies the UBC FoM member of having had substantial input into the program. 

CFPC Member

Required for Mainpro+ credits. One member of the College of Family Physicians of Canada (CFPC), residing in the province of BC, is required to be on the SPC to represent the target audience of BC family physicians.

Disclosures

A conflict of interest (COI) occurs when external interests interfere or appear to interfere with the primary interest (in this case, a CPD activity). A global best practice is for all individuals involved in developing CPD activities to be transparent about their financial relationships through a disclosure process, outlined below.

See the CHECKLIST & Forms for the fillable pdf disclosure form.

Disclosure REVIEW

  1. UBC CPD reviews disclosures of SPC Collect SPC disclosures and include with application.
  2. SPC reviews disclosures of content contributors (speakers, moderators, facilitators, and authors). Disclosures are reviewed to eliminate specific COIs and mitigate any remaining relevant relationships. The process is described in the UBC CPD Ethical Standards, Element 3 (summarized in Appendix B). Note: Content contributor disclosures do not need to be submitted to UBC CPD.
  3. Ensure disclosures are available to participants for transparency. See Disclosure slides & summary

COI Management

See the step-by-step process for COI Management at UBC CPD (Appendix B of the UBC CPD Ethical Standards).

Define Target Audience

For CPD activities to be eligible for accreditation, the PRIMARY target audience must be physicians (specialists, family physicians, or both). Aside from governing the program design and content, identifying the target audience determines which type of credits will be most appropriate. You can look up individual physicians in the provincial regulatory college directory (or either national medical college) to verify what kind of medicine they are certified to practice in BC: https://www.cpsbc.ca/public/registrant-directory 

RCPSC Specialists
(MOC credits)

CFPC Family Physicians
(Mainpro+ credits)
Acute Care Point of Care Ultrasonography (POCUS)
Addiction Medicine
Adolescent and Young Adult (AYA) Oncology
Adolescent Medicine
Adult Cardiac Electrophysiology
Adult Echocardiography
Adult Hepatology
Adult Interventional Cardiology
Adult Thrombosis Medicine
Advanced Heart Failure and Cardiac Transplantation
Aerospace Medicine
Anatomical Pathology
Anesthesiology
Brachytherapy
Cardiac Surgery
Cardiology (adult or pediatrics)
Child and Adolescent Psychiatry
Child Maltreatment Pediatrics
Clinical Immunology & Allergy (adult or pediatrics)
Clinical Pharmacology & Toxicology
Clinician Educator
Clinician Investigator Program
Colorectal Surgery
Critical Care Medicine (adult or pediatrics)
Cytopathology
Dermatology
Developmental Pediatrics
Diagnostic Radiology
Emergency Medical Services
Emergency Medicine
Endocrinology & Metabolism (adult or pediatrics)
Forensic Pathology
Forensic Psychiatry
Gastroenterology (adult or pediatrics)
General Internal Medicine
General Pathology
General Surgery
General Surgical Oncology
Geriatric Medicine
Geriatric Psychiatry
Gynecologic Oncology
Gynecologic Reproductive Endocrinology & Infertility
Hematological Pathology
Hematology
Hyperbaric Medicine
Infectious Diseases (adult or pediatrics)
Internal Medicine
Interventional Radiology
Maternal Fetal Medicine
Medical Biochemistry
Medical Genetics and Genomics
Medical Microbiology
Medical Oncology
Neonatal Perinatal Medicine
Nephrology (adult or pediatrics)
Neurology (adult or pediatrics)
Neuropathology
Neuroradiology
Neurosurgery
Nuclear Medicine
Obstetrics & Gynecology
Occupational Medicine
Ophthalmology
Orthopedic Surgery
Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery
Pain Medicine
Palliative Medicine
Patient Safety and Quality Improvement
Pediatric Emergency Medicine
Pediatric Hematology/Oncology
Pediatric Radiology
Pediatric Surgery
Pediatric Urology
Pediatrics
Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation
Plastic Surgery
Psychiatry
Public Health and Preventive Medicine
Radiation Oncology
Respirology (adult or pediatrics)
Rheumatology (adult or pediatrics)
Sleep Disorder Medicine
Solid Organ Transplantation
Sport and Exercise Medicine
Surgical Foundations
Thoracic Surgery
Transfusion Medicine
Trauma General Surgery
Urology
Vascular Surgery
Other/General Practice/Health Care Professional
Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada
Canadian Medical Protective Association

Aboriginal health
Academic medicine
Addiction medicine
Administration
Adolescent medicine
Aesthetic Medicine
Allergy
Allied health professionals
Alternative/complementary medicine
Anesthesia and analgesia
Art and medicine
Assessment
Basic sciences
Behavioural science
Cancer care
Cardiovascular medicine
Cardiovascular surgery
Child Abuse
Chiropractic medicine
Chronic disease management
Clinical practice guidelines
Communication
Community medicine
Cosmetic medicine
Critical care
Culture
Dentistry/oral medicine
Dermatology
Diabetes
Domestic Violence
Drugs
Emergency medicine
Endocrinology
ENT
Environmental medicine
Epidemiology
Ethics
Faculty Development
Forensic medicine
Gastroenterology
General surgery
Genetics
Geriatric medicine/care of the elderly
Global health
Gynecology
Health economics
Health policy
Hematology
History
Homecare
Hospitalist care
Imaging techniques
Immunology
Infectious disease
International medicine
Laboratory medicine
Legal/medico-legal
Lifestyle
Management
Medical careers
Medical education
Medical informatics
Medical students and residents
Men’s health
Mental health
Molecular medicine
Nephrology
Neurology
Neurosurgery
Nuclear medicine
Nursing
Nutrition and metabolism
Obstetrics
Occupation/industrial medicine
Oncology
Ophthalmology
Orthopedic surgery
Pain management
Palliative care
Pathology
Patients
Pediatrics
Pharmacology
Pharmacy
Practice improvement
Practice management
Preventive medicine
Prison medicine
Psychiatry
Psychotherapy/counseling
Public health
Quality improvement
Radiation therapy
Radiology
Rehabilitation medicine
Religion/spirituality
Research methods
Respiratory medicine
Rheumatology
Rural medicine
Sexual health and medicine
Sociology
Sports and exercise medicine
Statistics
Surgery
Thoracic surgery
Toxicology
Transplant medicine
Travel medicine
Tropical medicine
Urology
Vaccines
Vascular surgery
Women’s health

 

 

Conduct Needs Assessment

Needs assessment is the process involved in gathering information to identify the learning needs of the target audience. The learning needs are the basis for identifying appropriate learning objectives and the content and format of the educational activity. To identify the learning gap the SPC should describe the target audience, work environment or work activities, and demonstrate a valid professional practice gap from which the educational needs are identified. Identify preferred learning style and current knowledge or skill level, then determine desired knowledge or skill level.

The most useful needs assessments are those where multiple methods are utilized to identify educational needs linked to improved patient care. 

To help identify needs, the SPC should ask the following questions:

  • How common is the need among our target audience?
  • How many different assessment sources indicate this need?
  • How significantly will the unfulfilled learning need hinder health care delivery?
  • How directly is the need related to actual physician performance?
  • How likely is it that a CPD activity will improve practice behaviour?
  • Are sufficient resources available to effectively address this topic?
  • How receptive will our target audience be to a session on this topic?

NOTE: With the new National Standard released in Jan 2018, needs assessment tools are required to be submitted with an application (examples include past evaluations, focus group questionnaires etc.).

Perceived and Unperceived Needs

Perceived Needs

When learners already know what they want, perceived (self-recognized) needs can be identified with the following tools:

  • Survey

  • Interview
  • Focus Group Interview
  • Key Informant
  • Representative Planning Committee
  • Meetings with Colleagues
  • Evaluation of Previous CPD Activity

Unperceived Needs

Needs that are unknown to the learner can be identified using:

  • Knowledge test

  • Chart Audit

  • Critical Incident Reports

  • Duplicate Prescription/Health Care Diary

  • Expert Advisory Group

  • Patient/Colleague Feedback

  • Direct Observation of Practice Performance

  • Data from Electronic Medical Records (EMR)

  • Provincial and national datasets

Financial Accountability


The physician organization must have overall accountability for the finances of the CPD activity.

Accredited activities should aim to be financially self-sustaining, and should not be profit-generating. Surplus funds generated from a recurring activity should be earmarked for the planning, development, or delivery of subsequent activities of a recurring nature. Surplus funds from a single, non-recurring event should be returned to the physician organization (not an individual) and be used to support continuing education activities in the organization.

Create a Budget

Identify all sources of funding/revenue and expenses directly on the budget, even if internally funded. Indicate how any surplus or deficit will be handled. A budget with all projected revenues/funding from all sources, and general expenses, is to be submitted with the application package.

See the CHECKLIST & Forms for a sample budget.

Sponsorship

If you are planning to obtain sponsorship, please follow the UBC CPD Ethical Standards for Accredited CPD Activities 2024, Element 4. Remember that commercial sponsorship requires that participants be charged registration fees.

Only the UBC CPD-approved sponsorship opportunities may be offered. The terms, conditions and purposes by which commercial sponsorship is provided must be documented in a written agreement that is signed by the CPD provider organization and for-profit sponsors. The sponsorship agreement reflects the sponsorship request/prospectus.

See CHECKLIST & Forms for: Sponsorship Agreement

Sponsorship

Choose Learning Format

Ensure that the learning format is consistent with the identified needs. Learning format determines CPD credit category:

Group Learning Credits

At least 25% of the total education time must be allocated for interactive learning which allows participants to interact with the group. Examples: Conferences, webinars, workshops, seminar series, etc.

Synchronous Group Learning (VIRTUAL)
Participants have opportunity to interact with instructors, each other, and materials in real-time same as if in-person.
    
Asynchronous Group Learning (ONLINE)
Participants still have opportunity to interact with instructors, each other, and materials, but not necessarily in real time. Program requires interactive opportunity for learners such as a monitored, facilitated discussion board that closes after limited time.

Assessment Credits

Includes objective assessment of learner; and for M+ physicians also directed to assess own practice data

MOC SECTION 3: Knowledge Assessment (SAP)

Participants demonstrate knowledge, record their responses (online module, quiz, etc.).
Program provides:

  • Correct and incorrect answers, plus explanations of why they are correct/incorrect
  • A scored assessment
  • Suggested further resources for more information

MOC SECTION 3: Performance Assessment (SIM)

Participants are observed demonstrating performance (skills, coachee, etc.)
Program provides:

  • Individualized feedback to participants on their performance
  • Reflective Tool: used for self-reflection and development of action plan

MAINPRO+ Assessment

Participants receive individualized feedback and are instructed to review and reflect on their own practice data relative to previously established standards.  Best for data-centred CPD activities verifiable against physician EMR data. 
TIP: Can use Reflective Tool

See the CHECKLIST & Forms for a sample reflective tool

Create Learning Objectives

Learning objectives that address identified needs must be created for the overall event and for individual sessions, and be available to participants. A learner-centered objective is specific, short-range, and relatively concrete. It describes what a learner will be able to do differently afterward (what learner behaviour will change).

Learner Centered Objectives

The change in behaviour is characterized by the use of an action verb. Crystalize the intent of your sessions by reviewing the list of action verbs.

“What will the learner be able to DO once learning has occurred?”

Eg:
Identify the inflammatory markers in AMD.
Recognize the predictors of diabetic retinopathy.
Describe the process of fluid detection by OCT.
Appraise difficult cases presented by members.

TIP: Avoid the use of vague verbs such as understand, know, appreciate, familiarize, gain knowledge of, grasp, be aware of, comprehend, appreciate, study, become acquainted with or learn about.

CanMEDS/CanMeds-FM

The CanMEDS and CanMEDS-FM competencies are frameworks that identify and describe the abilities physicians require to effectively meet the health care needs of the people they serve. These abilities are grouped thematically under seven roles. A competent physician seamlessly integrates the competencies of all seven CanMEDS Roles.
 
CPD activities usually address one or two roles for the learner by tying them to the learning objectives.

CanMeds ROLE Description  
Medical/ Family Medicine Expert Medical Expertise  
Communicator Communicating with Patients  
Collaborator Collaborating with Colleagues  
Leader Coordinating Team Care  
Health Advocate Advocating for Improved Care  
Scholar Contributing to Medical Academic
Knowledge Domain
 
Professional Accountability and Ethical Practice  

 

Develop Content

Design your CPD learning activity to address the professional practice gaps identified by the needs assessment.

​Create a detailed program with an agenda of topics, speakers, start and end times, question and answer/discussion periods, breaks, etc.

  • Include learner-centred objectives.
  • Count credit hours by totaling the educational hours and subtracting the breaks.
  • Relay the accreditation standards to all those developing content ("speaker communications"): Consult CHECKLIST & Forms for template
Non-Compliance Procedures

The SPC must identify and address instances of non-compliance with the UBC CPD Ethical Standard 2024. The SPC must have a procedure for addressing non-compliance; where no other procedure exists, the UBC CPD Non-Compliance Procedures (see Appendix C) may be used. The SPC must inform UBC CPD should any instances of non-compliance arise.

 

Speaker Letter

Inform Content contributors of Accreditation standards

The SPC must inform content contributors (e.g. presenters, authors, instructional designers, facilitators, moderators, etc.) of the requirements to:

  • develop content and learning objectives based on the identified needs of the target audience [note: SPC should share identified needs with content contributors]
  • develop learning objectives that are learner-centred
  • create content and materials that provide (where applicable) a balanced view for therapeutic options related to the content area and reflect the current scientific literature
  • describe therapeutic options using generic names (or both generic and trade) and not reflect exclusivity and branding
  • declare any off-label use when making therapeutic recommendations for medications that have not received regulatory approval
  • make every effort to avoid bias, whether commercial or other
  • disclose all financial relationships with commercial and not-for-profit organizations
  • presenters must disclose to learners both on slides and verbally
  • include references to evidence used to create content
  • adhere to time allotment, including time for interactivity such as Q & A
  • ensure content and materials are available to the SPC for review prior to being made available to learners
  • ensure content and materials meet professional standards and legal requirements, including the protection of privacy, confidentiality and copyright

Consult CHECKLIST & Forms to access the speaker communication (comms) template.

Application Phase

Apply Now

By now your program is ready to be reviewed for CPD credit approval.

Consult the CHECKLIST & Forms  to ensure you have all of the required documentation and apply.

Applying via the online portal is recommended.

Delivery Phase

Deliver Program

Once your program has been approved, you will receive an approval email with your official accreditation/certification statement to be used on certificates, as well as the "Accredited by UBC CPD" logo. This information may also be used for advertising the CPD credits for your learning activity. UBC CPD forwards notification of approval to the appropriate medical college(s) so that physician may claim credits after attending.

Registration

All participants must be able to register and receive a receipt or record of registration, and attendance records are kept by UBC CPD for 6 years.

Certificates

A certificate of participation or written confirmation signed by the chair of the SPC is to be issued to participants for all accredited/certified activities. Physicians must login to their member portal with the Royal College to claim the MOC credits, or the CFPC to claim the Mainpro+ credits.

Anyone may use certificates as proof of participation if they are not physicians. Health professionals such as nurses and midwives especially use these certificates to track their own CPD.

See the CHECKLIST & Forms for: Certificate template. 

The certificate must specify the following elements:

  1. Participant name
  2. The title of the activity as it appears on the application
  3. The name/logo of the physician organization responsible for the activity (and co-developer if applicable)
  4. The date(s) the activity took place
  5. The location of the activity (i.e. city, prov or virtual base)
  6. Accreditation/certification statement issued upon approval, including number of CPD credits
  7. Cert+ session ID (Mainpro+ only)

Evaluate Program

The SPC must collect learners’ evaluation responses regarding the degree to which the accredited/certified CPD activity (1) met the stated learning objectives (2) was perceived to be biased (3) motivated the learner to change their practice, and (4) achieved appropriate balance with respect to therapeutic options. 
See the CHECKLIST & Forms for: Evaluation Form and Speaker Evaluation templates.

Questions required to be included on the evaluation:

  1. Did the program meet the stated learning objectives?     Yes   No
  2. Did you perceive any degree of bias in any part of the program?  Yes   No | If yes, please explain:
  3. Reflecting on the program content, I am motivated to change my practice in the following ways:
  4. Can you identify any barriers to incorporating what you learned into your practice?
  5. [Required only if content covers treatments e.g. medications, etc.]: Did the program content offer balanced views of therapeutic options?
  6. [Required only for programs seeking MOC credits]: Which CanMEDS Role(s) were relevant to this activity? Check all that apply: ☐ Medical Expert ☐ Communicator ☐ Collaborator ☐ Leader ☐ Health Advocate ☐ Professional ☐ Scholar

Note: As of June 2018, these two questions are no longer required on evaluations for Mainpro+ programs:

  • This CPD activity content enhanced my knowledge
  • Indicate which CanMEDS-FM roles you felt were addressed (Note: CanMEDS question still required for MOC only).
Post-Activity Phase

Report Back

The evaluation must include the question: “Did you perceive any degree of bias in any part of the program? Yes/No”. The responses to this question (ie. the number of yes, no and total responses) are to be forwarded to UBC CPD within 3 months of the event, via a brief email.

Send via Email