REPORTS FROM COUNCIL
Continuity of Care Policy Development Council had the opportunity to hear about work currently underway to develop new policies relating to continuity of care . Council was provided with an overview of key positions currently being drafted and Council provided feedback on these positions in order to inform the drafting process . The Policy Working Group is developing discrete draft policies relating to four key areas of continuity of care that are organized under an ‘ umbrella ’ policy . These areas are :
• Availability and Coverage ( e . g ., availability to patients and other health-care providers , after-hours and vacation coverage );
• Test Results Management ( e . g ., ordering , tracking , communicating results );
• Transitions in Care ( e . g ., hospital discharges , the consultation process ); and
• Walk-in Clinics ( e . g ., connection to primary care , managing unattached patients ).
The group is hoping to be able to bring draft versions of these policies to May Council for approval to consult with the profession and the public and other stakeholders on the drafts .
Governance Review Council has decided to proceed with a focused effort to review the College ' s governance structure . This initiative relates to the ongoing discussions about possible proposals relating to the modernization of the College model which may include : reduction in size of council , competency based appointments , equal public / physician composition and separation between council and statutory committees . While Council has discussed this issue on several occasions over the past few years , it is now of the view that a more focused review should begin , prior to any strategic planning process . The purpose of the review is to build on governance work completed by the College in 2017 . This includes building on Council support for greater independence of the Discipline Committee ( the recommendation that there be no overlap in membership between Council and the Discipline Committee ) and , support of a process and timeline to facilitate the election of a public member of Council as President . It is proposed that initial activity include the collection of information about existing governance models , best practices , and work being done by other organizations .
Fee Increase Approved Council has approved a $ 100 fee increase to renew an independent practice certificate . This increase brings the fee to $ 1725 . The proposed membership fee had been circulated to the membership following the December meeting of Council . The fee increase is required to ensure the College has the resources to fulfill our statutory obligations . The College continues to face an unprecedented volume of cases and significantly , an increase in the number of complex and time-consuming investigations . Over the last several years , the number of investigations has been steadily climbing – in the last year alone there was a 13 % increase in the total caseload , with a 45 % increase in the more complex Registrar ’ s Investigations . MD
ISSUE 1 , 2018 DIALOGUE 15