From the Practice Advisors
Some details have been changed to preserve anonymity in the following scenario.
A registrant reached out to the College to ask what was the best method in which physical therapists should acquire and maintain competency when considering advertising and using physical therapy treatments that include Clinical Pilates. The registrant had recently taken a course on Clinical Pilates and wanted to incorporate this new service into their website and signage.
This overarching concept of competency extends not only to the profession of physical therapy but also to all the other professions that the College of Health and Care Professionals of BC regulates, including audiologists, dietitians, hearing instrument practitioners, occupational therapists, opticians, optometrists, psychologists, and speech-language pathologists.
Ultimately, when considering whether or not to advertise and provide a specific treatment modality, remember that if there was ever a complaint about the services provided, the healthcare provider would have to show how they attained the necessary training, skills, and competencies to provide that form of treatment and if they possessed the registration class, if there are different registration classes in the profession, such as registered psychologists and school psychologists, that would have allowed them to perform the activity.
Competency and public safety
As with any treatment modality, a physical therapist is required to obtain the necessary training, skills, education, and competencies to safely and effectively provide the specific treatment. Although the method or mode of acquiring competencies may be varied (from formal courses to mentorship), the physical therapist would be required to determine which method is most appropriate based on a number of factors such as risk of the treatment, technicality of the treatment, and difficulty level in acquiring and performing the competency.
Additionally, if the physical therapist was contemplating marketing this technique, they would be required to be truthful, accurate, and verifiable in their description of their skill set. For example, if the physical therapist had taken a generalized fitness course for members of the public, they should not advertise that they have acquired the competencies to provide Clinical Pilates. Likewise, if the physical therapist had taken a general soft tissue course, they should not advertise that they have acquired a specific soft tissue release technique.
About the Practice Support service
CHCPBC has profession-specific Practice Advisors for each of the nine professions the College regulates. Questions that are sent by registrants will be answered by a Practice Advisor in the same profession as the registrant. Submissions are treated confidentially.
Our practice advisors provide guidance on how standards of practice, clinical policies, clinical practice guidelines and protocols, and related documents may be interpreted and can be implemented in practice. The goal is to assist registrants to find solutions to their practice issues given the complexity of health care delivery today.
Anyone – registrants or members of the public – with a question about CHCPBC’s expectations for safe, ethical and quality practice is welcome to contact our Practice Support team.
