Accreditation
Overview
UBC CPD is a CACME-accredited CPD Provider
The medical profession in Canada maintains ongoing standards of knowledge, skill, and professional conduct through accredited CPD programs. UBC CPD is accredited by and adheres to the standards of the Committee on Accreditation of Canadian Medical Education (CACME) and is thereby able to provide CPD study credits to physicians for learning activities on behalf of the two national medical colleges, The Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada (RCPSC), and College of Family Physicians of Canada (CFPC). UBC CPD reviews and approves hundreds of CPD activities each year through our Accreditation Office.
Ensure Eligibility
- Only physician organizations are eligible to apply for credits.
- Physicians must be the primary target audience of the CPD activity, which must address at least one of the CanMEDS and/or CanMEDS-FM competencies for physicians. See details.
- Applications from pharmaceutical, medical communications, or for-profit companies will not be accepted.
- For Mainpro+ credits for non-UBC activities please apply directly to the BC Chapter of the CFPC
- Applications received within 2 weeks (10 working days) or less of an activity start date will not be processed.
Application Review Fees
A non-refundable fee is charged for application reviews. The following fees are in effect as of SEPT 8, 2023 and are subject to an annual increase.
NOTICE: Fee increase postponed to Dec 2024: Fees will increase and the expedited fees will be a flat rate of $500. In order for us to provide the timeliest service - and for you to avoid the additional fees - please plan to apply early eg. 2-3 months ahead of your program start date. See Updates
PAY ONLINE (visa or MC)
Payment link: ubccpd.eventsair.com/ubc-cpd-accreditation/payment/Site/Register
UBC Activity | Non-UBC Activity | |||
Commercial Sponsorship | Commercial Sponsorship | |||
N | Y | N | Y | |
MOC Section 1 | $425 | $630 | $630 | $750 |
Mainpro+ | $515 | $735 | N/A | N/A |
Both | $865 | $1125 | N/A | N/A |
MOC Section 3 | $695 | $895 | $895 | $1100 |
Expedited (4 weeks) | $315 | $450 | $315 | $450 |
UBC Activity: Physician organization is within a UBC FoM department.
NOTE: UBC CPD cannot certify Non-UBC Activities for Mainpro+ credits. See Declarations.
Non-UBC Activity: Physician organization is outside UBC FoM. Eligible for MOC credits only.
Expedited Fee: Required if less than 4 weeks to program start date (less than 2 weeks not accepted).
Processing time
Regular processing time is 4–6 weeks after receiving a complete application package including all documentation and signatures. Please note that any missing elements will delay the process. Applicants should plan at least 3 months in advance to allow time for review and advertising CPD program credits.
Applications received 2–4 weeks before the activity are processed as “Expedited” with an additional expedited fee.
Applications received within 2 weeks (10 working days) or less of an activity start date will not be processed.
Accreditation vs Certification
The continuous learning process of CPD allows specialists and family physicians to maintain certification with the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada (RCPSC), and College of Family Physicians of Canada (CFPC), respectively. CPD credits contribute to physicians' ability to renew their provincial medical license each year.
The Royal College refers to the process of attaching CPD credits to a program as accreditation, and the CFPC calls it certification. Though the second term is technically correct, accreditation is still the more common term used.
Credit Types
UBC CPD can provide the following formal credit types (highlighted in pink):
• MOC Section 1 or Section 3
• Mainpro+
For all other CPD activities physicians may self-claim self-learning credits with their college.
CPD credits are for the learners on whom the needs assessment has been done.
Planners are not eligible to receive the same CPD credits that are attached to a formalized program (ie. one that has registration & certificates). Instead, planners, speakers, and facilitators can collect self-learning credits, which they can claim on their own.
Meetings that are 100% interactive, in which everyone has equal input, are not eligible for the credits that UBC CPD can provide. An activity that is a needs assessment/planning session is often the phase prior to arriving at the final program that could be eligible for CPD credits.
UBC CPD can only provide CPD credits for content that has been determined by a needs assessment.
There is no blanket accreditation for undecided or unknown content. Please see Credit Types, Frequency and Learning Formats.
Delivery Frequency
UBC CPD can only provide CPD credits for content that has been planned; there is no blanket accreditation for undecided or unknown content. The following options are available:
Single Program
Occurs once. An accredited program may be repeated throughout the accreditation period (eg. for audiences in different locations across BC). Annual programs require a new application each year.
Regularly Scheduled Series
Regularly scheduled series (RSS) sessions are pre-planned ahead of time, with the content, speakers and learning objectives for the series based on the learning gaps identified in the initial needs assessment. This is the most appropriate route for hosting regular CPD that is outside a hospital setting. UBC CPD can accredit RSS for both Mainpro+ and MOC under a single application, but only if the content to be presented is known at the time of application.
Modular programs
Same idea as a series, but non-sequential. UBC CPD can accredited a program consisting of several sessions up front, then sessions may be run as needed throughout the accreditation period.
Rounds
Rounds are a special subset of regularly scheduled activities in which the content is open to change each session. Because of the leeway in content, rounds required extra accountability. The term ‘rounds’ is reserved for a clinical setting and are required to be accountable to a hospital chief of staff. Credits for family physicians rounds are available through UBC CPD if criteria are met. Specialist rounds cannot be accredited through UBC CPD but can be self-accredited with the Royal College directly - please see the Royal College rounds self-approval.
During the Review
No reference to MOC or Mainpro+ credits may be made prior to the official approval. Until an application has been approved, it is not permissible to indicate in marketing and communications that credits have been granted, applied for, or pending. The statement "to be advised", or similar, is not permitted.
Post-Activity
The summary of yes/no responses to the industry bias question on the evaluations must be forwarded to UBC CPD within three months following the CPD Activity.