hidden

Accreditation

FAQ

Is my organization eligible to apply for physician credits?

Only a physician organization may apply for physician credits. 

Please see the definition for a Physician Organization.

How do I submit an application?

You can find all that is required for a complete application package on the Prepare and Apply page.  

See the application checklist and items listed within the Preparation Phase menu for information on accreditation standards and accountability, sponsorship, disclosures, learning objectives, certificates.

You can also view our latest updates here.

What are the key accountability requirements?

The physician organization determines the SPC, the SPC is accountable to the physician organization.

For specialist credits, an RCPSC specialist is required to be on the SPC.

For family physician credits, a CFPC member is required to be on the SPC (this can be the same person). Note UBC CPD can only certify UBC programs for Mainpro+ credits.

Which application fee should I pay?

The application fees are based on whether your program is seeking commercial support, not whether or not it has been received. This will be reflected in your budget. If yes, sponsorship estimates are to be included in your budget under revenue along with registration fees (programs seeking commercial support are required to charge registration fees to participants).

You can find our application fees on the Accreditation Overview page.

What is the process for the disclosure forms?

Planning committee disclosure forms must be sent with your application; speaker disclosures need not be submitted to UBC CPD, but both planner and speaker disclosures must be made available to the participants at the event to ensure transparency to the participants of the nature of any industry relationships.

  • Disclosure forms are completed by each member of the planning committee and submitted to UBC CPD for review
  • The planning committee reviews the disclosures completed by each of the presenters and ensures appropriate conflict of interest (COI) management. See "Select Scientific Planning Committee (SPC)" within the Preparation Phase  menu for more information on COI management. 
Are my objectives learner-centered?

Some objectives are not considered concrete or measurable enough to be learner-centered such as those that begin with: know how to, be able to, understand, be comfortable with, ...

To focus the intent of the objective please refer to (and distribute to your speakers) the attached Verbs for Learning Objectives list and replace with clear action verbs such as: Identify, demonstrate, review, discuss, describe, etc.

For more information on creating learner-centered objectives, see "Create Learning Objectives" within the Preparation Phase menu.

What is the process after accreditation? How do physicians get their credits?

Once a program is approved, UBC CPD sends a notice to the Royal College and/or CFPC as we are a CACME-accredited provider for these Colleges.

When physicians attend an event, they receive a certificate from you with the statement of accreditation as issued to you in your formal approval. Please see the Application Checklist for a Certificate template.

With this certificate, physicians log in to their Royal College or CFPC account and enter their credits and the name of the event accordingly.

You may use a sign in sheet, but it is not mandatory. Each physician should claim only those credits accrued in the activity – the onus is on the physicians to be accountable for their own learning.

How would I obtain credits for rounds/journal club?

Is the target audience specialists, family physicians, or both?

Family physician rounds/journal club:

You can apply to UBC CPD for Mainpro+ credits for rounds/journal clubs provided the following conditions are met:

  • Rounds: SPC needs to be accountable to the head of the department, chief of staff, or equivalent in order to be eligible for rounds certification.
  • Journal Club: Well-organized, pre-planned journal clubs involving groups of family physicians are eligible for Mainpro+ credits provided they are designed and delivered to meet the Mainpro+ certification standards.

Specialist rounds/journal club:

UBC CPD cannot accredit specialist rounds/journal clubs. Instead, there is a very simple self-approval (registration) process with the Royal College directly, although the same rigorous accreditation standards apply.

  1. Go directly to the Royal College website and review their Self-Approval Toolkit for rounds (link below).
  2. Complete the Self-Approval Checklist and send it to the email address they provide on the form. You will likely not receive acknowledgement from the Royal College, but understand that by formally registering you are confirming that your rounds adhere to the Royal College accreditation standards.
  3. Then, find the Royal College Rounds Accreditation Statement for rounds/journal clubs which you will see in the centre of the toolkit page. Put the accreditation statement on the certificates, signed by the Chair, that participants receive.

Self-Approval Toolkit: https://www.royalcollege.ca/en/cpd/accreditation-continuing-professional-development-cpd-activities/cpd-accreditation-rounds-journal-clubs-small-groups.html

There is no charge for specialist rounds registration this way, and there is no expiration until the Chair changes so you must make a note of this so that there is no lapse in your accreditation over the years.

Is a registration fee required for participants?

Physician education that is accredited may be offered for free only when there is no commercial support.

How do physicians claim their Mainpro+ credits without an ID number?

Programs approved by university providers now have a Session ID# attached (June 2018).

CFPC members can manually enter credits and bypass the need for a session ID by selecting:
Group Learning >>Certified >>Other Certified Group Learning Activities from the drop-down menu then manually enter the programs and credits.

Why are health authorities not considered physician organizations?

Health Authorities in BC are not considered physician organizations because they are connected to government. However, a physician committee within the HA, such as the Medical Advisory Committee, is eligible to take the role of physician organization. Please see the definition for a Physician Organization.

Can physicians claim credits for teaching, planning?

If learning occurs during a teaching or planning process, physicians may claim Self-Learning Credits. See Credit Types for more information.

Can physicians claim credits for attending a meeting in which all participants are planners (ie. AGM, strategic planning, operational planning, conducting needs assessment, etc.)?

These types of meetings are not eligible for a formal credit application. If learning occurs during such a meeting, physicians may claim Self-Learning Credits. See Credit Types for more information.

Can physicians claim credits and also be paid for attending a CPD activity?

Generally physicians cannot be paid for attending a CPD activity. However, physicians may receive compensation to cover lost income due to attendance at a CPD activity.

Who can receive certificates?

All participants. 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.

To claim the MOC credits or Mainpro+ credits, physicians must login to their member portal with the Royal College (for specialists) or the CFPC (for family physicians) respectively.

Can residents claim credits?

Medical residents may begin participating in the MOC and Mainpro+ credit programs during residency.
Specialist residents may transfer up to 75 credits reported during residency into their first 5-year MOC cycle.
Family physician residents may transfer up to 40 Certified Mainpro+ credits reported during residency into their first active Mainpro+ cycle.