B.C. health profession regulations updated: broader physio scope, expanded midwifery powers, and a terminology fix

Plain-language summary · AI-assisted

Three health-profession regulations under the Health Professions and Occupations Act have been amended. Physiotherapists (regulated under the Health and Care Professionals Regulation) have had a system-specific restriction removed from their scope of practice — they can now assess and advise on physical health broadly, not just the cardiorespiratory and neuromusculoskeletal systems. Midwives (under the Nurses and Midwives Regulation) now have explicit authority to prevent, treat and manage both physical and mental diseases and disorders in their patients and newborns, and a previous restriction in section 6(3)(a) has been removed. A spelling correction in the Regulated Health Practitioners Regulation changes 'installation' to 'instillation' in the restricted activities table, which may affect how certain eye or ear procedures are categorized. Regulatory bodies, practitioners, and employers in these professions should review the updated scope-of-practice language to ensure credentialing, supervision, and service-delivery arrangements reflect the changes.

Who this affects
physiotherapists · midwives · regulated health practitioners · health profession regulatory colleges · healthcare employers and clinics