CE Submission Requirements to Resume for March 2021 Renewals and Onwards
After granting PDAP exemptions for registration renewals between March 2020 and February 2021, the College would like to remind registrants that beginning in March 2021 all registrants must once again complete their PDAP requirements prior to their registration renewal deadline.
The Importance of Continuing Education
While mandatory for all registered pharmacy professionals in order to renew their registration, registrants are reminded of the importance of Continuing Education (CE) for professional growth and the delivery of high-quality patient care.
Pharmacy practice is an ever-changing field, and the role of pharmacy professionals within our health system is constantly evolving. As some of the most accessible health professionals, BC’s pharmacists and pharmacy technicians provide crucial support in responding to new and developing public health issues. Continuing Education enables pharmacy professionals to stay up-to-date with emerging practice trends and treatment programs.
Undergraduate programs prepare new pharmacy professionals for entry to practice, however the expectations for maintaining competence throughout one’s professional career, require both practice-based experience and continual learning. Continuing Education equips pharmacy professionals with the knowledge, skills and best practices that are necessary to respond to future challenges and growing expectations.
Finding Accredited CE Programs
As BC continues to navigate and respond to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, many CE providers have now begun offering courses and programs, including those that are accredited, in virtual formats to enable pharmacy professionals to meet their continuing education requirements without the need for in-person sessions.
A minimum of 5 hours of continuing education must be accredited learning. Accredited learning activities have been reviewed using stringent criteria to ensure they are of high quality, unbiased, and clearly identify learning objectives for participants
The Canadian Council on Continuing Education in Pharmacy (CCCEP) is a national organization established to accredit continuing pharmacy education programs intended to be delivered to pharmacy professionals. CCCEP accreditation is recognized by the College of Pharmacists of BC, along with all other pharmacy regulatory bodies across Canada.
The College also recognizes learning activities from other accrediting bodies such as the University of British Columbia (UBC), the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE) and MainPro, among others.
Non-accredited hours are accumulated through informal learning. If you are doing self-study or on-the-job training, this will be classified as non-accredited hours.
Consider Indigenous Cultural Safety and Anti-Racism Continuing Education
The College encourages BC’s pharmacy professionals to include Indigenous cultural safety and humility and anti-racism related learning opportunities as part of their continuing education. As one of the most accessible health care professions, having BC’s pharmacy professionals acknowledge racism in health care and work toward improving the quality of health services for Black, Indigenous and People of Colour, is important in leading our provincial health system toward a more inclusive future.
There are various accredited and non-accredited learning opportunities for registrants to explore related to Indigenous cultural safety and humility and anti-racism.
QUESTIONS?
For questions related to PDAP, contact the College’s Professional Development department at [email protected] or visit the PDAP page on the College’s website.