CollegeS TA N DA RD

t heJuly 2003 • Volume 10 Issue 2

In this Issue

Privacy legislation update – What every massage therapist needs to know

Mutual RecognitionAgreement update

Certification examinationresults

Contributors This Issue

Rick Overeem, MT; RichardSteinecke; Deborah Worrad,BA, CAE

The College Standard is pub-lished quarterly by the Collegeof Massage Therapists ofOntario to inform its membershipabout issues related to the pro-fession as well as the activitiesand decisions of the College.The Standard also provides aforum for discussion of relatedissues and professional practice.The views expressed in the arti-cles are those of the author anddo not necessarily represent theofficial position of the College.

Letters to the editor and submis-sions on topics of interest to theprofession are welcome. Tobe considered for publicationall letters must be signed andprovide the writer’s daytime tele-phone number. Any unsolicitedmaterial cannot be returnedunless it is accompanied by aself-addressed, stamped enve-lope. No part of this publicationmay be reproduced withoutpermission from the College ofMassage Therapists of Ontario.

Council 2003

Executive Committee

Rick Overeem, MT, PresidentDistrict 6, Voice Mail #133

Lynda Murta, Vice President,Public MemberVoice Mail #137

Emily Farrell, MT, Executive MemberDistrict 3, Voice Mail #138

Council Members

Lynn Beyak, Public MemberVoice mail #132

Douglas Cressman, MTDistrict 1, Voice Mail #131

Daryl Christoff, MTDistrict 4, Voice Mail #136

Keith Flowers, Public MemberVoice Mail #130

Orreilia Kay Kirby, Public MemberVoice Mail #126

Jane Mederak, Public MemberVoice Mail #134

Alpa Patel, MTDistrict 2, Voice Mail #139

Vanessa Young, MTDistrict 5, Voice Mail #135

Registrar

Deborah Worrad, BA, CAEVoice Mail #111

The College of Massage Therapists of Ontario is dedicated to excellence in protectingthe public, serving its members, and promoting the highest possible quality of the practiceof massage therapy in a safe and ethical manner.

Subscription Rate: $15

College of Massage Therapists of Ontario

1867 Yonge Street, Suite 810Toronto, ON M4S 1Y5Phone: (416) 489-2626Toll Free: (800) 465-1933Fax: (416) 489-2625E-mail: cmto@cmto.comWeb Site: www.cmto.com

CollegeS TA N DA RD

t he

4 From the President

5 From the Registrar

7 The Bulletin Board

10 Requesting Acceptance of LessThan 500 Hours’ Practice When Renewing a GeneralCertificate

11 What Every Massage TherapistNeeds To Know About PrivacyLegislation

15 Certification ExaminationResults

15 Revocations – 2003

16 Calendar of Events

Special Insert: 2002 Annual Report

oft a b l e

C O N T E N T S

4

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P RE S I DE N T

ccreditation is the voluntary process throughwhich schools and/or programmes can be

evaluated against a series of standards by an inde-pendent accrediting organization. Generally the processfor accreditation is as follows: an eligible school submitsa self study report to the accrediting organization basedon the standards; the organization sends out a siteinspection team to confirm the contents of the self studyreport; and finally the Board of the accrediting organi-zation reviews the self study report and the site inspec-tion report and determines if the standards have beenmet and accreditation can be granted.

The meeting in British Columbia was hosted by theCanadian Council of Massage Therapy Schools andattendees included representatives of the College ofMassage Therapists of British Columbia, the

Newfoundland and LabradorMassage Therapists’ Board,the Canadian MassageTherapist Alliance and theAssociation of MassageTherapists and WholisticPractitioners.

A

Representatives from the Canadian Council of Schoolsguided the group through a dialogue on the accredita-tion model they were presenting for our considerationand provided information on other models they hadresearched for comparison. Further meetings will be taking place in the next few months – the first was in June – to move the discussions forward and create con-sensus on the appropriate accreditation model for mas-sage therapy schools/programmes.

While in British Columbia we took the opportunity to signthe revised Mutual Recognition Agreement. It has beenrevised to include the Newfoundland and LabradorMassage Therapists’ Board which now regulates mas-sage therapists in that jurisdiction. We look forward tomore provinces becoming regulated in the future.

Rick Overeem, MTPresident

In May I attended a meeting in

British Columbia, along with

the Registrar, to meet with colleagues

from across Canada to discuss

the accreditation of Canadian

massage therapy schools and

programmes.

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5The College Standard

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R E G I S T RA R

PRIVACYPersonal Information Protection andElectronic Documents Act (PIPEDA)

In the absence of provincial privacy legislation, thePersonal Information Protection and Electronic DocumentsAct (PIPEDA) will be implemented for the provincially reg-ulated private sector on January 1, 2004. The Act has

had staggered implementationwith federally regulated businessesenacted in 2001 and the federalhealth sector in 2002.

As Ontario has failed to enact itsown legislation that is substantiallysimilar, PIPEDA has some signifi-cant implications for the health sec-tor in Ontario. Although no spe-cific ruling has been provided bythe federal Privacy Commissioner,it seems likely that the College andits activities will be included underPIPEDA. The fact that PIPEDA wasnot tailored to meet the needs ofthe health sector and that oversightfor the legislation is to be left to thefederal Privacy Commissioner maycreate some particular challenges.

Health professionals will definitely be covered by the Actand the College’s members will be required to imple-ment all elements of the legislation with respect to theirpractices. (Please refer to the article by Richard Steineckeon page 11.)

We are operating in a changing landscape as govern-ment is focused on modernizing health care. There isgrowing pressure on limited health resources which arefaced with greater demand. The demographics of agingpopulations will stretch health care systems to the limit.

At the same time there is mounting pressureto use new technologies. Council hasalready been strategically responsive tothis latter driving force in moving toward Internet con-nectedness with members in an effort to improve andenrich communications, streamline operations and function with greater efficiency and reduced costs.

There are advantages and challenges to an electronicrecord keeping system. Advantages include improvedquality and lower costs; quick access to a wide rangeof data; better security through more effective access con-trols and audit trails; improved privacy protection by lim-iting access to need-to-know; and better data on mem-bers. The challenges include facilitation of data linkages;unauthorized access being more catastrophic due to vol-ume of records, quantity and quality of data; multipleusers and multiple access points raising accountabilityissues and increase of vulnerability; and longitudinalrecords more likely to contain sensitive and possibly out-dated data.

Massage therapists are just beginning to experiencethese challenges with electronic records as they are facedwith compulsory online billing and reporting for theWorkplace Safety and Insurance Board and insurancecompanies with respect to motor vehicle accident claims.Pressures to shift to electronic record keeping in grouppractices and availability of specialized software to meetthis end continue to drive the changes.

continued on page 6

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R E G I S T RA R c o n t i n u e d

PIPEDA brings a definition of information privacy anddata protection including freedom of choice and controlof information, informational self determination, and per-sonal control over the collection, use and disclosure ofany recorded information about an identifiable individual.The legislation is based on 10 fair information practices:• accountability • accuracy• identifying purposes • safeguards• consent • openness• limiting collection • individual access• limiting use, disclosure, • challenging compliance

retention

There are key rules for the fair information practices:1. Why are you asking?

Collection: purpose specifications2. How will the information be used?

Primary purpose: use limitation3. Any secondary uses?

Notice and consent: prohibition against unauthorized disclosure

4. Who will be able to see the information?Restricted access from unauthorized third parties

The College must be prepared on two fronts by the closeof the year – members must be fully briefed on theirrequirement to be fully compliant with PIPEDA in theirpractices for January 1, 2004 and the College itselfmust review current practices, identify any gaps andimplement all necessary changes and additions to meetPIPEDA requirements.

To assist members in meeting their requirements we areworking with the Privacy Working Group of theFederation, engaging legal counsel and attending work-shops and briefings to prepare a guide for the membersto be distributed in late summer or early autumn. As anearly preparatory move, we have included two articleson PIPEDA in this College Standard. As well, we will provide information for members in a workshopdesigned specifically for practising health professionals

to be offered in October through the joint auspices of theFederation and Steinecke, Martin, Macuira. The uniqueelement of this workshop is that it will be broadcast livefrom the Famous Players theatre on King Street in Torontoand sent by live feed to a number of theatres around theprovince. This will maximize the number of health pro-fessionals who can access the presentation and reducetheir costs in not needing to travel to Toronto.

From the perspective of College preparedness and com-pliance, staff are completing an operational review, fol-lowing strategic steps for implementing necessarychanges and additions, as well as documenting privacystandards and procedures for the College. There will bea strong focus on best practices to implement the 10 fairinformation principles embodied in the PIPEDA. The workinvolved in this process will be implemented by theCollege’s managers for each of the key program areas:Quality Assurance, Registration, Complaints, Disciplineand Client Relations.

By the November Council meeting a summary of the com-pleted compliance with PIPEDA will be ready and Councilwill receive an educational session on the legislation tosupplement their knowledge and understanding of theirrole in preserving privacy of College information.

Deborah Worrad

7The College Standard

bulletint h e

B OA R D

Nova Scotia Regulates Massage Therapy

The Massage Therapy Act to regulate the massage ther-apy profession in Nova Scotia received Royal Assent onMay 22, 2003.

There are now four provinces in Canada that regulatemassage therapy: British Columbia, Ontario,Newfoundland and Labrador, and Nova Scotia.Congratulations, Nova Scotia!

Reminder – CEU Course Listings Now Online

As announced in the March 2003 issue of the CollegeStandard, the entire listing of CEU approved courses(approximately 1,100 of them) can now be found onthe College’s website in a searchable database. The listof newly approved CEU courses is no longer beingprinted in the newsletter.

The link can be found in the CEU section of the QualityAssurance menu item of the site. The database allowsmembers to search for courses by modality, electoralregion, name or provider. We are now able to updatethe listings as soon as courses are approved, therebyproviding members with the most current information oncourses and course providers. In relation to CEU report-ing, members will also find the database useful to reviewwhat courses they attended.

The CEU database will always provide the most up-to-date course information to members – please refer to thenew database for courses that match your interests.

Council Meeting – April 25, 2003

The Council meeting scheduled for April 25 was can-celled due to SARS and re-scheduled for June 23.Highlights of the June meeting include the following:

• Council heard reports from each of the College’s com-mittees on their activities since the last meeting in February.

• Council received information about accreditation of massage therapy schools and agreed to support inprinciple the formation of a national alliance of mas-sage therapy regulatory organizations for the purposeof sharing matters of mutual interest.

• Council engaged in an interactive presentation anddiscussion about leadership.

Mutual Recognition Agreement Update

A revised Mutual Recognition Agreement was signed May9, 2003 to include the newly regulated Newfoundlandand Labrador Massage Therapists’ Board. This will facil-itate the movement of therapists among the regulatedprovinces in British Columbia, Newfoundland andLabrador, and Ontario. This is in accordance with theChapter 7 requirements of the Agreement on InternalTrade. The original agreement was signed between BCand Ontario effective July 1, 2001.

Back Row (L. to R.): Murray Schwabe, President CMTBC; Pamela Hodgson, Registrar NLMTB;Deborah Worrad, Registrar CMTO

Front Row (L. to R.): Doug McRae, Registrar CMTBC; Rick Overeem, President CMTO

8 The College Standard

bulletint h e

B OA R D c o n t i n u e d

What happened to the College Directory?

The March 2002 edition of the College Standardannounced that the College Directory would no longer beprinted. The directory is expensive to produce, can onlybe printed once a year and became outdated at the pointof printing due to the steady change of members’ loca-tion information. The insurance companies tend to usethe directory to verify members’ registrations for insur-ance coverage. There have been many reports from newmembers that their receipts were declined because theirnames were not in the directory.

The College has decided that the electronic solution of amember search system on its website would solve theseproblems since it saves the College money; informationon new members and any address changes can beupdated as soon as the College receives the informa-tion; and both the public and the insurance companieshave access to up-to-date information.

Information about General Certificate holders is nowavailable online at our website, www.cmto.com. Whenusing the online directory, please log-on first and thenclick on “Search for an MT” at the top of the page inorder to access the names of members holding bothGeneral and Inactive Certificates. Once the searchscreen opens, you may search for a therapist by name,place of employment, location (town/city or full/partialpostal code) and you may additionally specify the gen-der of the therapist.

If you wish to contact an Inactive Certificate holder, youmust contact the Registration Department at extension118 and a message to contact you will be passed onto the member. This is for the protection of the InactiveCertificate holders since they do not have a businessaddress or telephone number and their personal infor-mation is not part of the public register.

Notice - Self Assessment Tool

All members holding a General Certificate, registeredbetween November 1, 1998 and October 31, 1999were sent the Self-Assessment Tool on May 13, 2003.The deadline to submit the Target Level Submission Formwas July 16, 2003. If you have not yet submitted theform, please do so immediately.

Thank you to all members who sent in their Target LevelSubmission Form early.

Reminder – Job Analysis Survey

If you have been asked to participate in the Job AnalysisSurvey, please complete and submit the survey as soonas possible. Surveys must be completed in the month youreceived them. It is important that you complete the sur-veys because the information you provide forms the basisof the criteria by which future candidates will be admittedto the profession through the certification examination.

9The College Standard

Electronic Billing Deadline

In November 2002, the Program of Care for Acute LowBack Injuries was implemented across Ontario. Alongwith the new fee structure came a number of programrequirements, one of which was electronic billing.

Originally proposed for March 1, 2003, the electronicbilling registration deadline was postponed, pendingresolution of outstanding matters between the health pro-fessions and the payment processor, BCE Emergis.

Effective May 24, 2003, all invoices for the WorkplaceSafety and Insurance Board’s (WSIB’s) Program of Carefor Acute Low Back Injuries must be submitted electronically.

As of May 24, 2003, failure to bill electronically willresult in non-payment of Program of Care bills.

There is no charge to health professionals to register forelectronic billing or to submit WSIB bills electronically.Once set up to bill electronically for the Acute Low BackInjuries Program of Care, health professionals may billelectronically for all treatments provided to WSIB clientsusing the BCE Emergis system.

IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT FROM WSIBProgram of Care for Acute Low Back Injuries

Who do I contact about electronic billing?

To get more information, call BCE Emergis at 1-866-240-7492 or e-mail provider.registry@emergis.com.You will be sent a complete enrollment package.

What do I need to get started?

To submit invoices electronically, you will need Internetaccess, a 128-bit encryption browser, a WSIB ProviderID and an account with the WSIB’s payment processor,BCE Emergis.

If you have more questions about the Acute Low Back Injuries Program of Care, please call the WSIBHealth Professional Access Line at 1-800-569-7919 or 416-344-4526, or visit the WSIB Web site atwww.wsib.on.ca.

If you have questions about the electronic billing deadline, please contact:Ms. Carol LawOntario Massage Therapist AssociationPhone (416) 979-2010

Notice – Continuing Education Reporting

All members holding a General Certificate, registeredbefore October 17, 1998 and those registered betweenNovember 1, 1999 and October 31, 2000, will beending their CEU cycles on October 31, 2003. All willreceive a CEU reporting form in early November. Thisform is due in the office by December 31, 2003. Pleasenote that members will need to have completed 30 CEUsby the end of the cycle.

Announcement – Sun Life Financial

The College has been advised that Sun Life Financial hasreviewed and acknowledged the Ontario regulatory stan-dards for its massage therapy benefit. As of October 1,2003, Sun Life Financial will only reimburse massageexpenses in the province of Ontario when treatment hasbeen provided by a massage therapist registered withthe College of Massage Therapists of Ontario.

10 The College Standard

n December 2002 the Registration Committeereceived several requests from members to allow

them to renew a General Certificate even though theydid not quite meet the requirement to have 500 hours ofdirect client care within the previous three years. Theselast minute requests were difficult to deal with properlysince staff were extremely busy with registration renewalsand Registration Committee meetings are never sched-uled for December.

The Registration Committee is willing to consider suchrequests for the 2004 renewals on a case-by-casebasis, but has decided that all such requests must bereceived by November 15, 2003. A renewal formis not required to submit the request.

whenrenewing

I

Reques t ing Acceptance o f Les s Than 500 Hour s ’ Prac t ice

a G E N E RA L C E RT I F I CAT E

The Registration Committee asks that you submit the following information:

1. A written request giving the reason(s) you have beenunable to meet the requirement and a statement aboutwhether you expect to meet the requirement for thefollowing year.

2. A signed statement indicating how many hours ofdirect client care you have performed in each of theprevious years.

3. If you have been teaching in an approved massagetherapy program or in a massage-related program,ask your school to send a record of your teachinghours by subject taught for each of the previous threeyears, and to break down the hours for each yearbetween teaching of theory classes and clinicalpracticum classes. This information should be sent tothe attention of the Registration Manager.

4. You may also submit information about any other pro-fession-related activities: e.g., volunteering on aCollege Committee or performing any other College-related services; massage-related courses completed;or any other activity you consider relevant.

The Registration Committee will consider your requestand will respond to you in time for you to renew your reg-istration before the annual deadline of December 31.Any questions about this may be directed to MarjoryEmbree, Registration Manager, at extension 117 or bye-mail to marjory.embree@cmto.com.

11The College Standard

When does privacy legislationtake effect?

For almost all massage therapists, thefederal privacy act takes effect thiscoming January. On January 1, 2004,the Personal Information Protection andElectronic Documents Act comes fullyinto force. Ontario has circulated adraft Privacy of Personal InformationAct, but it is highly unlikely that it will be enacted beforethis January. Massage therapists covered by the federalprivacy act need to have their policies and proceduresin place by then.

Who does privacy legislation apply to?

The privacy act is intended to cover the entire privatesector. With very few exceptions, the privacy act appliesto anyone who carries on “commercial activities.” That willinclude most massage therapists. Even if the government(e.g., Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care) pays for

the goods or services, the pri-vacy act will likely apply. Only massage therapists employedby a government body or a non-profit agency (e.g., apublic hospital) that does not sell goods or services willbe exempt.

The privacy act applies to any collection, use or disclo-sure of personal information. “Personal information”means any information about an identifiable individualthat relates to their personal characteristics (e.g., gender,age, colour, ethnic background, education, family status); their health (e.g., health history, health conditions,health services received by them); or their activities and views (e.g., dealings with the massage therapist,opinions expressed by an individual, religion, politicalinvolvement, a massage therapist’s view or evaluationof an individual). Personal information is to be contrastedwith business information (e.g., an individual’s businessaddress and telephone number), which is not protectedby the privacy act.

continued on page 12

w h a t e ve r y m a s s a g e t h e r a p i s t n e e d s t o k n ow

Over the past few years, there has been a lot of

confusion about privacy legislation.Who does

it apply to? When is it really coming? How much

impact will it have? Busy massage therapists

need to know what privacy legislation means

for them.While there remains a fair degree

of uncertainty, the outline of what is going to

happen is now becoming clearer.

aboutPRIVACY LEGISLATION

B y R i c h a r d S t e i n e c k e

12 The College Standard

therapist can have his or her own privacy policy. Or,massage therapists working with others (e.g., in a multi-disciplinary clinic) can join together to form a broaderorganization with one privacy policy covering them all.It just depends on what is most convenient for everyone.Everyone within an organization has to agree to be mon-itored by the Information Officer. As well, organizationswill need special consent to disclose personal informationoutside of the organization.

What are the restrictions on the collection,use and disclosure of personal information?

As a general rule, massage therapists need to obtaininformed consent for the collection, use and disclosureof personal information. This consent is distinct from theconsent for treatment. Like any consent, it can beobtained in writing, verbally or by implied consent. Inthe traditional circumstance of a massage therapist col-lecting information directly from the client solely for thepurpose of providing services to the client, consent maybe implied. However, any departure from this simpleapproach creates some new obligations for obtaininginformed consent. In real life, the simple approach is notusually enough.

Areas in which some change may be required includethe following:

• Where the massage therapist collects informationabout other individuals (e.g., a family history).

• Where the massage therapist collects informationabout the client from other persons (e.g., from previous massage therapists for the client, from familymembers of the client).

• Where the massage therapist collects information tobe shared with others who are also advising or pro-viding services to the client (i.e., in a team treatmentapproach).

• Where there is the likelihood of an ongoing relationshipand the information will be used for ongoing services,especially if this is not obvious to the client (e.g., collecting a baseline assessment of a client’s health to ensure that one can provide broader treatment, ifnecessary, later on).

What has to be done?

Each organization must appoint an Information Officerand develop and publish its privacy policy. TheInformation Officer should be a senior person in theorganization. The Information Officer can be an outsiderhired by an organization to perform this role, but thatmay make it more difficult for the organization to developa privacy policy that fits its office or practice.

The Information Officer is responsible for overseeing anorganization’s compliance with its privacy obligations.This privacy policy would cover the following issues:

• reviewing the organization’s policies and practices forcollecting, using and disclosing personal information(including conducting an audit of the current personalinformation practices of the organization);

• implementing procedures to safeguard personal information;

• ensuring individuals (e.g., clients) have the right toaccess and correct any personal information aboutthemselves held by the organization;

• implementing a retention and destruction of informa-tion policy;

• training the organization’s staff;

• acting as a contact person for inquiries from the public or clients; and

• ensuring there is a process for handling complaintsmade about the organization’s information practices.

Massage therapists must also make sure that their organ-ization has privacy policies dealing with all of theseissues. These policies must be made available to the public. This public access obligation might be met byposting the policy on the organization’s website or in itsreception area. Alternatively, a copy can be providedto new clients on their first visit and to anyone else uponrequest. The policies have to be understandable.

Privacy policies apply on an “organizational” level. Oftenthe identity of the organization is obvious because thesole operator, partnership or corporation is well defined.However, where a group of people or entities worktogether in a loose affiliation, there may be more thanone way to define the organization. Massage therapistsand their business associates can then decide who theirorganization will be. For example, every massage

13The College Standard

• Where third parties will have access to the informa-tion (e.g., for legal, billing or financing purposes).

• Where the massage therapist will use the informationfor related purposes (e.g., for billing the client or athird party later).

• Where the massage therapist will use or disclose theinformation for secondary purposes (quality control bythe organization, regulatory accountability, research).

• Where the massage therapist might sell the practicelater on and will need to provide prospective pur-chasers with access to client information to help thepurchaser conduct a due diligence review.

In any of these circumstances, the massage therapistshould at a minimum explain the purposes for which theinformation is being collected and obtain some form of

consent. Often the consent processcan be a brief verbal discussion withthe client. Giving the client a hand-out setting out the massage thera-pist’s usual information practices andchecking with the client that he or sheunderstands the handout would oftenbe sufficient. Alternatively, obtaininga written consent at a client’s first visit may work in many circumstances.While the Information and PrivacyCommissioner is leery of obtainingblanket consents, it may be that, forthe usual private practice, this maybe appropriate and sufficient.

There are some exceptions that permit massage therapists to collectinformation without consent. Themost common example is where the

purpose is to investigate a breach of law or contract andobtaining consent would compromise the investigation(e.g., suspected insurance fraud by a client; helping aclient deal with a third party who injured the client).Certain emergency situations (e.g., medical crisis) maypermit the collection, use or disclosure of information with-out consent as well.

Massage therapists are also obliged to collect the leastamount of personal information that is consistent with thepurposes for which it was collected. For example, col-lecting an individual’s Social Insurance Number is usually

not necessary. One should not routinely collect a client’shome address (unless the client wants something to besent there). Massage therapists should not collect finan-cial information about a client who pays the full accountat the time of service.

What kinds of safeguards are needed?

Most massage therapists are already careful to preservetheir client’s confidentiality. However, when setting out thesafeguard policies in writing, massage therapists maywish to review some of their practices. For example, canpeople see confidential files or computer screens whenwalking through the office or clinic? Is all personal infor-mation shredded before being put in the recycling box?The Information and Privacy Commissioner strongly disapproves of sending personal information through reg-ular e-mail over the Internet.

What are access and correction rights?

A fundamental principle of the privacy act is that anyindividual has the right to request and see any personalinformation massage therapists hold about them. In fact,massage therapists are required to help individuals makesuch a request (e.g., explain the filing system so the per-son knows what to ask for) and to assist them in under-standing the information (e.g., explain abbreviations andtechnical terms). There are a few exceptions whereaccess can be restricted (e.g., where the disclosure willreveal personal information about another individual orwill reveal trade secrets), but these are narrow. Massagetherapists will also have to tell individuals to whom theorganization has sent or forwarded the personal infor-mation about them.

If the individual believes any of the personal informationis wrong, he or she can ask that it be corrected. Theorganization must correct any information it agrees iswrong. The organization must also notify any third partieswho received the wrong information of the correction.Where the client and the organization cannot agree thatan error has been made, the organization must recordthe disagreement and notify any third parties whoreceived the contested information. Disagreements aboutcorrections can be taken to the Information and PrivacyCommissioner who may review the situation.

continued on page 14

14 The College Standard

What should an internal complaint systemlook like?

Organizations must also have an internal complaints sys-tem to handle concerns about their privacy practices.The internal complaints system should have the followingfeatures:

• a designated individual in the organization (perhapsthe Information Officer) to receive and ensure theprompt investigation and response to all complaints;

• an easily accessible and simple to use complaints pro-cedure that at a minimum includes:

. acknowledging receipt of the complaint,

. investigating it, and

. providing a decision with reasons;

• a process for the organization to respond appropri-ately to complaints that are justified including makingchanges to its privacy policies; and

• notifying the public of external recourses including the massage therapist’s College and the federalInformation and Privacy Commissioner.

Who ensures compliance with the privacylegislation?

Massage therapists will be held accountable to both thefederal Information and Privacy Commissioner and, to alesser extent, their own College, in respect of their com-pliance with the privacy act.

The federal Information and Privacy Commissioner hasoversight of the privacy act and functions as an ombuds-man. The Commissioner has the following responsibilities:

• investigating complaints about an organization’s per-sonal information handling practices, including enter-ing the organization’s premises and summonsing doc-uments and witnesses;

• mediating and conciliating such complaints;

• auditing the personal information handling practicesof an organization;

• making a public report of poor personal informationpractices by an organization;

• seeking remedies for a breach of the privacy act in theFederal Court of Canada.

Once the Commissioner hasissued a report, either the com-plainant or the Commissionercan then apply to the FederalCourt of Canada for one ormore of the following remedies:

• an order for the organization to correct its personalinformation handling practices;

• an order for the organization to publish a notice of corrective action; or

• an award of damages for any humiliation of the complainant.

All indications are that the current Information and PrivacyCommissioner tends to be educational rather than puni-tive in his enforcement style. However, it is still better toavoid a complaint than to have to deal with one.

The College may also hold the massage therapistaccountable for his or her privacy practices. Where theconduct involves a breach of core professional values,the College will have an additional reason to take reg-ulatory action. Even where core professional values arenot breached, every massage therapist is generallyobliged to comply with the law, especially thosedesigned to protect the public or which reflect on themassage therapist’s suitability to be a member of the pro-fession. Many breaches of the privacy act by a massagetherapist may warrant some regulatory action.

Where to start?

The privacy act may seem like a lot of work. However, thekey is for massage therapists to develop a privacy policy.A privacy policy provides a process for massage thera-pists to review and revise their organization’s practicesand to obtain the consent from clients in the future. With afew adjustments to existing practices and informed consentfrom clients, most massage therapists will be ready forthe new privacy era.

Richard Steinecke will be a presenter at a Federation of Health Regulatory Collegesof Ontario seminar on getting ready for the new privacy legislation, to be held onOctober 8, 2003. The seminar will be broadcast live to seven locations throughoutthe province and will include a step-by-step workbook to assist massage therapists indeveloping and implementing privacy policies. See www.wdysevents.com/priva-cyseminar for registration details.

15The College Standard

Januar y 1 to Apr i l 30 , 2003 Multiple Choice Examination

examinationRE S U LT S

SCHOOL #OF # PASS % PASS # ELIG % ELIGCANDIDATES WRTN WRTN REG REG

Cdn College of Massage 1 1 100% 1 100%& Hydrotherapy

Cdn College of Massage 3 2 67% 1 33%& Hydrotherapy - Kitchener

Cdn College of Massage 3 1 33% 1 33%& Hydrotherapy - NorthYork

Canadian Therapeutic College 7 4 57% 4 100%Career Canada College - Thunder Bay 2 2 100 2 100%Centennial College 2 1 50% 1 100%Collège Boréal 1 1 100% 1 100%D’Arcy Lane Institute 2 2 100% 2 100%International Academy 10 6 60% 5 83%Kikawa College 6 3 50% 1 33%Non-standard Applicants 1 0 0% 0 0%Sutherland-Chan School 3 3 100% 3 100%Toronto School of Business - Thunder Bay 1 1 100% 1 100%

TOTAL 42 27 64% 23 85%

The Objectively Structured Clinical Evaluation (OSCE) statistical analysis is distributed to the schools following the appeals process at the end of each examination set (May/August/November).

Statistical analysis of the Multiple Choice Examination results is prepared three times a year covering the periodsJanuary 1 to April 30, May 1 to August 31, and September 1 to December 31. It also contains the number and percentage of candidates deemed eligible for registration.

c e r t i f i c a t i o n

revocations2 0 0 3Katherine AlexanderKristina BangmaStacey BarrettBrenda BeattieStephen BeattyPaul BenoitHeather BisikerLori BlaskavitchJudi BuckAlan BusseDarren ByerMary Carty

Sonya ChadhaJoanne Clement-BatesCheryl ComeauJohn CorbettJanice CornfieldAlex CsibiLaura DurhamJacqueline DwyerRobert EngelLauren ErtelMelanie EstevesMichael Fiasche

James FikisRobert FindlaterDonald ForbesAntoinette FrynsDavid GdanskiElzabeth GyulaySiobhan HanleyChristine HarmanJustin HartCydney HodderTimothy HymsonJames Johnston

Julie JonesTomasz JuzyszynLara LadretAnnette LangloisMichael LawrenceDale LeishmanSusy LevyJudy LupuliakDenise MacDonaldKevin MacdonaldTara MacIntoshTracy Mackie

Lidia MacLeanRobert MagriMarco MangoniAllison MarrietteLisa McKayDeborah McLachlanScott MillarCatherine MillerVictor MorinKrista MorrisMoira NoronhaLisa Ordell

Michelle PerrottoR. Ann PetersonShahrzad RaisiDeanne RobinsonRudolph RothSavitri SeegobinManoocher SharifiChristine SparlingJohn StassenTanya StegmeierGina StenrodKrista Teichroeb

James ThorpMatthew TomlinPamela TwiseltonRobin WakefieldJessica White-NurseAleck WongRussell Yoshida

College of Massage Therapists of Ontario1867 Yonge Street, Suite 810Toronto, ONM4S 1Y5

Exams (OSCE)August 11, 12, 13 & 14, 2003November 10, 11 & 12, 2003

Council MeetingsSeptember 22, 2003November 21, 2003

Making Ethical Decisions and MaintainingProfessional Boundaries WorkshopDistrict 3 – Newmarket – October 19 & 20, 2003District 2 – Ottawa – November 23 & 24, 2003

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