Continuing Professional Development
Commencing April 1st, 2025, members are expected to complete at least 45 hours of continuing education activities over a three (3) year period to promote continuing competency among the membership and to enhance each member’s professional knowledge and skills.
The 3-year cycle encourages a shift in focus from merely "counting hours" for annual compliance to a more holistic approach. Instead of rushing to meet an annual quota, members can plan larger, more impactful learning opportunities (e.g., a multi-day conference, a full online course, an extensive clinical rotation) that might span more than one calendar year but fit perfectly within the 3-year cycle. Members are encouraged to complete hours on a regular and consistent basis to avoid rushing to meet the minimum requirements with unmeaningful activities.
To embrace the changes and ensure hours completed in the old cycle will be included, this year reporting includes January 1, 2025, to March 31, 2028. Please see “Professional Development Guidelines” for more details. When selecting continuing education activities, members should identify areas where they would like to enhance their knowledge, skills or judgement and participate in activities that strengthen those areas. The self assessment tool can assist with identifying possible deficiencies or weaker areas and is a great starting point in creating a learning plan.
Professional Development Guidelines
Activities completed as part of the Quality Assurance Program requirement for other regulatory colleges will not count toward CTCMPAO’s professional development hours.
Requirements for 3 year cycle:
- Complete 45 hours of Professional Development Activities
- Record them on your Professional Development Log (part of the Self- Assessment Form)
- Retain a copy of your Self-Assessment and Professional Development log (and supporting documentation) for three years after the end of the cycle.
NOTE: The College routinely selects a percentage of members at random to submit their forms. Members are not required to submit their forms unless they are randomly selected.
Members are encouraged to participate in a wide range of activities for their professional development hours; however, the activities chosen must meet certain requirements. For example, certain activities may have maximum allowable hours. This means that there is a limit on how many hours the member may claim towards their professional development. For a detailed guide, please see below:
Category "A" Activities
CATEGORY A are activities that are directly related to the Standards as defined by the College.
- Attending courses, seminars, workshops, presentations, conferences
- Participating in online webinars, internet courses, seminars, workshops or conferences
- Participating in correspondence courses that may be offered outside Canada
- Professional reading - reading informative books, texts, journals, articles and research papers
- Viewing, reading, listening to professional audio/ video/internet materials
- Reviewing CTCMPAO regulations, standards of practices, policies, guidelines, and other documents
- Researching, writing, editing or submitting professional publications
- Teaching related courses
- Preparing/presenting professional presentations
- Serving on CTCMPAO’s Committees
- Attending CTCMPAO Council meetings as an observer
- Serving as a Peer and Practice Assessor or as a Subject Matter Expert for the College
- Conferring with health care professionals regulated under the RHPA for the purpose of sharing relevant knowledge
Category A Subjects
- Relevant regulations such as the Professional Misconduct Regulation
- CTCMPAO Standard for Advertising, Advertising Guideline
- CTCMPAO Advertising webinar
- Activities focused on developing and maintaining effective interprofessional relationships
- Communication skills development, learning English/French
- Relevant legislation such as the Health Care Consent Act, 1996 and Personal Health Information Protection Act, 2004, and the CTCMPAO Standard for Consent
- TCM diagnosis and patient assessment methods (e.g., application of fundamentals of TCM theory in diagnosis and treatment, establishing and monitoring treatment plans based on TCM diagnosis)
- Acupuncture techniques
- TCM treatments such as Gua Sha, Tai Chi Cupping, Qigong, Moxibustion, Tui Na
- Knowledge of TCM foundations
- Herbal therapy and management
- Biomedical concepts
- Knowledge of Traditional Chinese Medicine illnesses
- Advancements in related technology or techniques
- Patient education and counselling (e.g., diet/nutrition)
- Relevant municipal, provincial and federal legislation standards (e.g., Occupational Health and Safety Act, 1990), and guidelines pertaining to health and safety
- Public Health Ontario, Infection Prevention and Control (IPAC) – Online Learning
- Risks, contraindications and potential side effects for acupuncture, moxibustion, and herbal treatment
- Infection control and communicable diseases
- Emergency response procedures e.g. First Aid, CPR, etc.
- Equipment safety, sterilization and handling techniques
- CTCMPAO Standard for Infection Control
- Safety Handbook
- The College’s Standards of Practice, regulations, code of ethics, College by-laws and/or policies
- Relevant legislation governing the practice of the profession [Regulated Health Professions Act, 1991 (RHPA), Traditional Chinese Medicine Act, 2006 (TCMA), Personal Health Information Protection Act, 2004 (PHIPA), Health Care Consent Act, 1996]
- Public consultation feedback
- Activities focused on ensuring appropriate boundaries between member and patient
- Documentation of the termination of a member/patient relationship
- CTCMPAO Jurisprudence Handbook
- CTCMPAO Standard for Maintaining Professional Boundaries
- Relevant legislation pertaining to the prevention of sexual abuse
- Mandatory duty to report
- Standard for Preventing Sexual Abuse
- Preventing Sexual Abuse webinar
- Relevant legislation pertaining to record-keeping (e.g., Health Care Consent Act, 1996 and Personal Health Information Protection Act, 2004 (PHIPA)), CTCMPAO Standard for Record Keeping, Record Keeping Guideline and webinar)
- Enhancing/upgrading patient records
- Organizational skills development
- Billing
- Reviewing record retention and destruction processes
- Reviewing equipment and supply records
- Safe storage of records
Category "B" Activities
CATEGORY B are activities that are complementary to TCM but not directly related to the Standards of Practice. Activities under “Category B Subjects” may count for a maximum of 15 hours towards the 45-hour requirement.
Category B Subjects
- Marketing, business and social media courses as it pertains to your practice
- Adjunctive techniques:
- Alexander Technique
- Aromatherapy
- Feldenkrais
- Electrical therapy techniques (not electro-acupuncture) including: IFC, TENS, Pulsed High Frequency, Low Intensity Laser Therapy (Infra-red laser, Helium Neon Laser and Cold Diode Laser)
- Learning or teaching Pilates
- Learning or teaching Yoga
- All other adjunctive techniques are subject to approval by the Quality Assurance Committee.
