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Physician Assessors

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The CPSO, through its various programs, may require a physician’s practice to be assessed for several reasons. For example:

  • The Registration Committee may direct an assessment of a physician's practice when a physician is missing registration requirements for an Independent Practice certificate of registration. 
  • To fulfill their CPSO Quality requirements, some registrants are required to engage in a peer assessment within the Quality Assurance (QA) program. QA peer assessments help registrants to  identify strengths and areas for improvement in order to maintain a standard level of practice. 
  • The Inquiries, Complaints and Reports Committee may request an assessment during the course of an investigation to determine whether a physician is meeting the standard of practice of the profession.
  • Physicians changing their scope of practice or re-entering clinical practice as outlined in the CPSO's  Ensuring Competence: Changing Scope of Practice and/or Re-entering Practice policy may require a College-directed assessment of their practice at the end of the process.

Assessors are retained independently by the CPSO to help determine if a physician is meeting the standard of practice. The CPSO endeavors to retain Assessors from the same scope of practice as the physician undergoing the assessment. 

What does being an assessor involve? 

Each assessment type has its own unique components. Generally, conducting assessments involves:

  • Reviewing patient charts.
  • Interviewing the physician being assessed.
  • In some cases, directly observing patient encounters or interviews with colleagues and staff.
  • Submitting a written report to the College answering specific questions about the standard of care. 

Requirements

Assessors typically have a minimum of five current and consecutive years of independent experience in the scope of practice being assessed and have adequate knowledge of the area in which they are assessing.  Additional assessor requirements include acceptable investigative history with the CPSO, sufficient time and resources necessary to carry out the assessment, as well as no real or perceived conflict of interest with the assessed physician or with the CPSO. Requirements may vary depending on the nature and specific needs of the assessment. 

Time commitment

The time commitment depends on the assessment being conducted.

If you are interested in becoming a College assessor, please email Peter Stovin-McDonald, Assessor Liaison at [email protected]. Please include a copy of your updated CV. Eligible assessors will be contacted on an as-needed basis. 

Thank you for your interest in this opportunity to participate in medical regulation and education.