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Promoting Regulatory Excellence 
Council on Licensure, Enforcement and Regulation

On-demand presentations

On-Demand presentations - Register and receive an e-mail with a link for immediate access to the presentation.  The presentation plays back on your computer and the audio plays through your speakers.  You can access and playback the presentation as many times as you'd like.

Upcoming events

  • Competency-Based Assessment for Internationally Educated Health Professionals

    • 06 Apr 2100
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    As a follow-up to a 2010 conference session, this presentation will provide information about two innovative approaches to the assessment of internationally educated health professionals. Competency based assessments are an enhanced method of assessing applicants for registration and provide information in addition to that obtained through a document review. The assessments employ a variety of tools including credential review, self-assessment, traditional paper tests, interviews, case studies and clinical exams to assess entry to practice competencies. These processes utilize rigorous, transparent and fair methods that inform the regulatory body and the applicant about any competency gaps and provide direction for additional education or other activities required to enable professional registration.  This webinar included time for Questions and Answers and follow-up from the conference session.

    Presenters:
    Melanie Journoud, Deputy Registrar, College of Dietitians of British Columbia
    Lynn Cairns, Advisor, Initial Registration, College of Registered Nurses of British Columbia
    Jean Farrar, Deputy Registrar, College and Association of Registered Nurses of Alberta
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  • Testing Accommodations for Examinees with Sensory Disabilities

    • 06 Apr 2100
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    This session will explore issues related to testing accommodations for individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing or who have visual impairments.  It will examine the legal landscape, including applicable legislative and regulatory language, as well as recent litigation, addressing the issue of what are "reasonable accommodations" for such individuals.  It will also include discussion of available assistive technologies and the benefits, burdens, and risks associated with them.  The goal is to encourage the exploration of assistive technologies and other accommodations that will meet the legally mandated rights of individuals with disabilities without impacting the validity or reliability of the measurement obtained and without unduly burdening the testing entity.

    Presenters:
    Janet D. Carson, Consultant to Testing and Certifying Entities
    Ruth Loew, Assistant Director, Office of Disability policy, Educational Testing Service
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  • Agency Recovery After a Data System Has Been Compromised

    • 06 Apr 2100
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    Cyber security crimes are a growing concern in corporate and governmental sectors.  In this On-Demand presentation, learn how the Virginia Department of Health Professions responded in 2009 when its entire computer system was taken off-line because one application, specifically its Prescription Monitoring Program, was accessed by an unauthorized user.  At stake was public confidence and the ability of the agency to perform many of its basic, core functions during the computer outage.

    Learning Objectives:
    Identify individuals and entities that may need to be involved in the assessment and evaluation of and the response to     a data security emergency; learn how an agency recovers and what processes are needed for that recovery; understand which elements are needed in a continuous business plan; discuss possible ways to reduce cyber compromises.


    Presenters:
    Mark D. Monson, Deputy Director for Administration, Virginia Department of Health Professions
    Ralph Orr, Program Director, Prescription Monitoring Program, Virginia Department of Health Professions
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  • Collaboration Between Regulators and an Oversight Agency to Promote Improvement in Registration

    • 06 Apr 2100
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    In Ontario, an independent agency, the Office of the Fairness Commissioner, is legally charged with making sure that regulatory bodies use licensing practices that are transparent, objective, impartial and fair. How is it actually implementing this challenging mandate?

    Starting in the spring of 2011, the Commissioner is assessing the regulators’ licensing practices. To do the assessments, she and her staff use two guides, one for health professions and the other for non-health professions.

    The guides, containing criteria based in law, were developed in collaboration with the regulatory bodies themselves. Twelve regulators and qualifications assessors came together in a working group to help the Office with drafting.

    The purpose of the guides and of the assessment process is continuous improvement.

    In this On-Demand presentation, you will hear the Commissioner and members of the working group discuss their innovative collaboration. They will speak about balancing competing views and finding common ground. 

    Presenters:
    Hon. Jean Augustine, Fairness Commissioner, Ontario
    Tony Jennings,     Registrar, Ontario Professional Foresters Association
    Jan Robinson, Registrar, College of Physiotherapists of Ontario
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  • Mobility Across the Atlantic - Québec-France Agreement on Professional Qualifications Recognition - The Case of the Medical Profession

    • 06 Apr 2100
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    Context
    In October 2008, the     Québec-France Agreement on professional qualifications recognition was signed between the government of Québec and the government of France. This agreement aims to facilitate and accelerate the acquisition of the right to practice a profession in the other territory.All of the regulatory bodies (professional orders) are front-line players in implementing the Agreement.

    To date, 25 professional orders of Quebec have signed a Mutual Recognition Arrangement (MRA) with their French counterpart - among them, the Collège des médecins du Québec which regulates the medical profession in both territories.

    Objectives
    The participants will gain:

    ·         a better understanding of the issues of professional qualification recognition in the context of global mobility, in regard to the protection of the public;

     ·         an increased knowledge of the challenges imparted in the process of negotiating and implementing this kind of agreement, considering the differences between actors and the levels of intervention involved;

     ·         through the case of the medical profession, a better understanding of the institutional and methodological issues at stake, notably in terms of assessment and compensatory measures.

    Content
    The speakers will describe the common procedure for recognizing professional competence imbedded in the Québec-France Agreement and will focus on both the institutional and methodological aspects of the procedure.

    They will highlight the MRAs already signed regarding the particularities of the professions involved.

    They give a special attention to the case of the medical profession, stressing the challenges and difficulties encountered by the regulators involved, notably in terms of assessment and compensatory measures for the candidates from the other territory.

    In their closing remarks, they will offer a prospective view of the the current negotiations between Canada and the European Community that aim at a Global Economic Accord, which should contain a chapter on professional qualifications recognition.

    Presenters:
    Jean-François Thuot, Executive Director, Conseil interprofessionnel du Québec
    Yves Robert, Secretary General, Collège des médecins du Québec

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  • Standard Setting: Practices that Set the Bar

    • 06 Apr 2100
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    At the heart of each jurisdiction's regulatory process is a set of standards and competencies a professional must meet, and uphold, in order to maintain their license or registration. Given their central importance, it is critical that these standards are objective, fair and defensible. Drawing on a wealth of examples from both health and non-health regulators and from across a variety of jurisdictions, this CLEAR Call webinar series will provide attendees with examples of best practice in the design, development, and maintenance of standards, approaches to standards setting employed by international certification bodies, and, moving beyond the regulatory world, consider those lessons that could, and should, be learned from the use of standards by other industries.


    If you're involved in setting standards in your organization, how do you know you have all the elements of a robust standard-setting process?  This three part series on the complex issue of developing and setting sound and rigorous standards/rules in the field of professional regulation will serve to:

     

    i.) discuss and explore the challenges of developing sound standards

    ii.) explore proposed elements connected to sound standard setting

    iii.) provide a model found in ISO to compare and contrast elements found in regulatory frameworks, and

    iv.) provide successful examples of robust standard/role setting from around the globe

    This final webinar in the series will explore those lessons that can be learned from standard setting process exemplars in place in regulatory organizations. Discussion will relate to the previous two webinars and to the implications for building public confidence.

    Presenters:

    Bronwyn Clark, CEO & Registrar, Pharmacy Council of New Zealand

    Joseph T. Cote, Executive Vice President, National Association of State Boards of Accountancy

    Rod Hamilton,  Associate Registrar, Policy, College of Physiotherapists of Ontario


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  • Data Banks NPDB/HIPDB Update

    • 06 Apr 2100
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    Section 1921 of the Social Security Act will expand reporting to the National Practitioner Data Bank by requiring each state to have in effect a system of reporting disciplinary licensure actions taken against all licensed healthcare practitioners and organizations. It also requires states to report any negative action or finding that a peer review organization, private accreditation entity, or a state has concluded against a healthcare practitioner or organization.

    Learning objectives: Learn the scope of section 1921, what is reportable within what timeframe and the sanctions for failure to report

    Presenters:
    Bill West     is a Compliance Coordinator in the Compliance Branch of the Division of Practitioner Data Banks, Bureau of Health Professions (BHPr), Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The Division of Practitioner Data Banks is responsible for the management of the National Practitioner Data Bank (NPDB) and the Healthcare Integrity and Protection Data Bank (HIPDB). 
    Prior to accepting his current position, Mr. West worked briefly in the Division of Medicine & Dentistry at HRSA.   He is a Masters prepared Registered Nurse with expertise in public health having worked for more than 6 years at a regional health system in Annapolis, Maryland developing and expanding their community and public health & wellness programming.     As a Coordinator, Mr. West is part of the team involved with initiatives related to compliance monitoring and technical assistance for the Division. He has held several health care administration positions in for profit and non-profit health systems in operations/ management.

    Regina Keegan     is a Policy Analyst at SRA International, Inc. SRA operates the National Practitioner Data Bank (NPDB) and the Healthcare Integrity and Protection Data Bank (HIPDB) under contract with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ (HHS) Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), Division of Practitioner Data Banks (DPDB).
    Ms. Keegan joined SRA in 2003 as a senior information specialist of the Data Banks Customer Service Center, after working a number of years in the private healthcare sector. Her experience with healthcare practitioners and administrators has given her a wide breadth of knowledge regarding Data Bank policies, regulations, and procedures.
    Ms. Keegan is an integral part of the Data Bank team, contributing her expertise in day-to-day Data Banks operations. As a Policy Analyst, she assists with operation issues, entity requirements, and regulation implementation. As a member of the Data Banks Policy Outreach team, Ms. Keegan provides guidance to the customer service team and communicates program policy to the user community.

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  • Standard Setting: The Real World

    • 06 Apr 2100
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    At the heart of each jurisdiction's regulatory process is a set of standards and competencies a professional must meet, and uphold, in order to maintain their license or registration. Given their central importance, it is critical that these standards are objective, fair and defensible. Drawing on a wealth of examples from both health and non-health regulators and from across a variety of jurisdictions, this CLEAR Call webinar series will provide attendees with examples of best practice in the design, development, and maintenance of standards, approaches to standards setting employed by international certification bodies, and, moving beyond the regulatory world, consider those lessons that could, and should, be learned from the use of standards by other industries.


    If you're involved in setting standards in your organization, how do you know you have all the elements of a robust standard-setting process?  This three part series on the complex issue of developing and setting sound and rigorous standards/rules in the field of professional regulation will serve to:

     

    i.) discuss and explore the challenges of developing sound standards

    ii.) explore proposed elements connected to sound standard setting

    iii.) provide a model found in ISO to compare and contrast elements found in regulatory frameworks, and

    iv.) provide successful examples of robust standard/role setting from around the globe

     

    Standard Setting: The Real World
    The series begins with presentations from a regulator and a lawyer exploring the challenges and pitfalls involved in standard setting, the steps necessary to develop a strong process, ways to promote acceptance and agreement from the Governing Body, and the appropriate role for consumer input.

    Speakers:

    Rod Hamilton, Associate Registrar, Policy, College of Physiotherapists of Ontario

    Richard Steinecke, Steinecke Maciura LeBlanc, Barristers & Solicitors



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  • Regulatory Change in Australia - a National Law Implemented by States and Territories

    • 06 Apr 2100
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    On 1 July 2010, the Health Practitioner Regulation National Law Act 2009 (the National Law) took effect in Australia. The National Law replaced more than 90 prior Acts and created National Boards for ten professions replacing over 80 State and Territory Boards. Although the legislation is called “the National Law”, it is not federal legislation and each State and Territory will continue to deal with notifications and investigations within the respective jurisdiction. In some States and Territories, this includes involvement of a Health Complaints Commissioner or similar public official. This session will provide an overview of changes in the regulation of ten health professions in Australia, including the role of the Health Complaints Commissioners.

    Presenter:
    Margaret Grant is Chief Executive Officer of the Australian Physiotherapy Council. Margaret holds degrees in physiotherapy, education and law. Margaret has more than a decade of experience in the development and implementation of standards and processes for accreditation of education programs, and has been involved in regulation of health professionals for over five years. Margaret has a particular interest in the nexus between health workforce issues, professional education and training, standards of practice and models of regulation.
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  • Best Practices for Disciplinary Processes

    • 06 Apr 2100
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    The West Virginia State Board of Examiners for Licensed Practical Nurses has devised a brochure for both the licensee and the complainant.The brochure devised for the licensee describes the process of investigating the complaint and the Board’s expectations along with an idea of actions that will occur during the process. The licensee is more cooperative if they know what to expect during the process. 

    Communication: Communication is the most important aspect of investigating any complaint.  Communication with the licensee is imperative to resolve the issue in a timely manner.

    Empowerment of the public: Any professional regulatory board must inform the public of their right to report wrong doings of a healthcare professional. The regulatory Board notifies the public of the reporting process and explains the possible outcomes.  The brochure developed by the WV LPN Board provides the public explanation of the disciplinary process.

    Decreasing Hearings: Communication among those involved in the disciplinary process has almost completely eliminated the need for hearings at the WV LPN Board.  Those being investigated are informed of the possible outcomes and explain the implications of each outcome.  The communication and explanation with the nurse helps decrease the need for hearings.

    Presenters:
    Lanette Anderson    , Executive Director, West Virginia State Board of Examiners for Licensed Practical Nurses

    Michelle Winters, Associate Executive Director, West Virginia State Board of Examiners for Licensed Practical Nurses
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  • Protecting Personal Information in an Online World

    • 06 Apr 2100
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    Everyone attending this webinar has provided volumes of personal information over the years to businesses, government and (with regard to this topic) test publishers and vendors. To some extent this requires an act of faith - we trust that our information will not be compromised, misused or fall into the hands of hackers and criminals. With recent failures to protect personal information gaining legislative attention both in the US and internationally, the spotlight is on organizations entrusted with this data to sustain, not erode, the rights of individuals. This webinar will provide guidelines and tools for building and maintaining a successful privacy management program, no matter how large or small your testing organization. Two leading privacy professionals, including a former Chief Privacy Officer of a Fortune 500 company, will provide an introduction to privacy principles and walk participants through the recommended steps for developing a mature privacy management framework.

    Learning objectives:
    * Provide an overview of data privacy principles and the evolving US and international frameworks for data privacy regulation.

    * Provide participants with guidelines, resources and core recommendations for building and maintaining a successful privacy management framework, regardless of organization size.

    * Use case studies in privacy management from within and outside the test publishing industry to illustrate key concepts.

    Presenters:
    Mark Poole     is     the Director of Test Security at Pearson VUE, where he oversees the development of Pearson VUE’s secure testing framework, including data forensics capabilities, identity management services and other security initiatives. He works closely with testing sponsors to support the planning, development and continuous improvement of their test security and data protection programs. Mark is an active participant in the ATP Security Initiative and previously chaired subcommittees on the Council for Secure Testing and the IT Certification Security Council. He has two decades’ experience in the information technology, security and testing businesses and holds board certifications in information security management and data privacy.

    Jay Cline is President of Minnesota Privacy Consultants, past chief privacy officer of Carlson Companies, and privacy columnist for Computerworld. In these capacities, Cline has assisted companies that are subject to privacy regulations spanning every region and major industry sector, including three of the ten largest corporations in the U.S. Cline is also inventor of the Privacy Maturity Model, which helps organizations benchmark their privacy status relative to others. In 2005, an international panel of data-protection commissioners gave Cline its top award for his proposal for an international privacy agreement.
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  • Labour Mobility: Experiences from Canada and the UK

    • 06 Apr 2100
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    The movement of professionals across international and regional borders is a global phenomenon.  From the perspective of regulators, balancing the need to provide a cost effective, fair and swift process whilst at the same time ensuring that all applicants meet their professionals standards is an every day challenge.  In addition, regulators must manage in an environment where the impact of incorrectly admitting an unsuitable individual to a register can lead to significant consequences for members of the public, and mistrust in the regulatory process.

    The webinar will provide an opportunity to learn about the practical experiences of two professional regulators.   The Ontario College of Pharmacists regulates 11,500 pharmacists in Ontario and is recently subject to legislation requiring labour mobility across Canada. The Health Professions Council regulates 15 different health professions in the UK and is subject to labour mobility across the European Union.  Participants will gain an insight into how both organisations manage their processes and other related developments in the area.

    Presenters:
    Della Croteau    ,     Deputy Registrar of the Ontario College of Pharmacists, holds a Bachelor’s degree in Pharmacy and a Master’s Degree in Continuing Education. She has experience in hospital and community pharmacy as well as government and poison and drug information. Since joining the College in 1994, she has been extensively involved in developing the structured practical training program, the quality assurance program and the University of Toronto’s international pharmacy graduate program. Her management experience includes faculty liaison, regulatory and legislative issues, professional practice, entry to practice and continuing competency of pharmacists, advancing the role of the pharmacist, and regulation of pharmacy technicians.

    Marc Seale has been the CEO and Registrar of the United Kingdom Health Professions Council (HPC) since 2001. The HPC is based in London, England and licenses 200,000 health professionals from 15 professions including physical therapists, podiatrists and psychologists. The organization is independent of Government and is self-funding. An active CLEAR member, Marc currently serves on the Board of Directors, International Relations Committee and Communication & Membership Committees. He has attended and presented at three CLEAR conferences and contributed to the planning of CLEAR’s International Congress in Dublin in July 2009, where he also presented a session.
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  • Best Practices in Drug Testing for Professional Health Monitoring Programs

    • 06 Apr 2100
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    Drug testing is an important component of a comprehensive monitoring program for healthcare practitioners with a history of substance abuse or dependence. The vast majority of drug tests in Professional Health Monitoring programs are urine drug screens.  Urine drug screening is very accurate, reliable and offers an extensive panel of drugs/substances that can be detected in the specimen.  The major disadvantage to using urine drug screening in these programs is the potential for program participants to manipulate the drug test outcome by specimen dilution, adulteration or substitution.  This presentation will explore “best practices” in urine specimen collections procedures, laboratory specimen validity testing, and review and interpretation of laboratory results that are designed to deter and detect program participants’ attempts to manipulate, defraud or compromise the integrity of urine drug screening.

    Appropriate confirmation and interpretation of laboratory results by a qualified Medical Review Officer is needed for the monitoring agency to respond appropriately to non-negative results, especially when the participant denies use of the substance(s) in question or if evidence of tampering with the specimen is present. Some of the conundrums encountered in monitoring programs include repeated dilute specimens; test positive for opioids accompanied by participant’s report of having a doctor’s prescription; positive test for EtG and EtS at low to moderate levels; positive test accompanied by an unacceptable explanation. This presentation will discuss these and other outcomes encountered frequently, with suggested responses including additional testing, requirement for the participant to refrain from practice, and clinical evaluation.

    Presenters:
    Dr. Donna Smith is the Regulatory Affairs Officer for FirstLab, Inc., one of the largest providers of substance abuse testing administration for physicians, lawyers, nurses, and other health care professionals’ monitoring programs. Dr. Smith provides consultation and assistance to state programs using substance abuse testing as a monitoring tool for recovery and relapse prevention. Dr. Smith conducts periodic training and education events for monitoring programs on topics related to program effectiveness and available technologies for improving testing outcomes. She has over 20 years experience in the substance abuse testing field, including extensive work in the development and implementation of testing programs for the US. Departments of Defense and Transportation, International Olympic sports, Australian Civil Aviation Safety Authority, and substance abuse residential treatment and aftercare facilities.   She is a principal author of the regulatory framework for drug and alcohol testing programs of Department of Army civilian employees and for implementation of the Omnibus Transportation Employee Testing Act in the aviation, public transit, railroad and trucking transportation industries.

    Penelope P. Ziegler, M.D. is Medical Director of the Virginia Health Practitioners’ Monitoring Program (HPMP), and Associate Clinical Professor, Department of Psychiatry, Virginia Commonwealth University. Dr. Ziegler is Board-certified in General and Addiction Psychiatry, Addiction Medicine, and is certified by and a Fellow of the American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM). She is on the Board of Directors of ASAM.  She is an AAMRO-certified Medical Review Officer, and serves on the Toxicology Committee of the Federation of State Physician Health Programs.
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  • Communication Skills

    • 06 Apr 2100
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    The ability to communicate effectively is a key component to being a successful investigator.  Effective communication involves conveying your thoughts and positions to others as clearly, concisely, and unambiguously as possible and in turn receiving information that others are providing to you with as little distortion and misunderstanding as possible. Good communication skills can serve to improve operational efficiency and productivity in the workplace and increase the confidence level of employees.  On the other hand, poor communication skills may cause message misinterpretation or misunderstanding and lead to roadblocks in getting desired information.

    This webinar offering will introduce participants to key components for effective communication including preparation and delivery techniques, use of language and physicality to get your point across, listening skills, and the use of presentation aids.

    Presenter:
    Amigo_Wade.jpgAmigo Wade is the Prinicipal Attorney for the Virginia Division of Legislative Services.  He serves as legal counsel to the committee on General Laws of the Virginia Senate and to the Committee on Appropriations of the Virginia House of Delegates.  Prior to this, Amigo served as Assistant Director for Investigations and Assistant Director for Adjudication for the Virginia Department of Professional and Occupational Regulation.  Amigo received his BA from Cornell University and his JD from Washington College of Law, American University.  He has been an instructor with CLEAR's NCIT program since 1992.

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  • Impaired Practitioner Programs

    • 06 Apr 2100
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    Alternative disciplinary programs, i.e., impaired practitioner programs, take many forms and approaches. Some are administered “in-house,” while others are handled by outside vendors. Some programs cover a broad range of professions, while others are limited to a single profession. Additionally, some programs focus on compliance with monitoring requirements, while others may expand into intervention and treatment. This webinar will provide insight regarding best practices in selecting and administering an alternative disciplinary program. Topics examined will include criteria to evaluate the need for an impaired practitioner program, suggested cost-benefit analysis when setting up or selecting a program, and models in selected states and provinces. The discussion will also focus on development of evidence-based measurement of the effectiveness of alternative disciplinary programs that may inform the future course of these types of programs. The model and criteria used by the Virginia Department of Health Professions’ Impaired Practitioner Program, as well as Colorado and North Carolina, will be explored.

    Presenters:
    Peggy Wood holds a BS in Education and has completed graduate work in public policy/planning and gereontology.  She has been the program manager of the Impaired Practitioner’s Monitoring Program at the Virginia Department of Health Professions for the past 6 years.  She previously held positions within DHP as an Investigator and Compliance Case Manager.  Additional experience includes serving as a licensing board executive and as an environmental compliance manager and analyst for a national real estate investment trust.

    Kay McMullan has been employed at the North Carolina Board of Nursing for over 20 years. Prior to that, she held various nursing positions including nursing instructor, medical-surgical staff nurse, Head Nurse Coronary Care Unit, and assistant director of nursing among others. Kay was the assigned staff member as the NC Board of Nursing explored the implementation of an Alternative to Discipline Chemical Dependency Program in the early 90s. In that role, she implemented the Program and has continued to be closely involved in its operation. Currently she is Associate Executive Director of Programs.

    Rebecca Heck obtained her Bachelors degree in Nursing and her Masters of Public Health from Johns Hopkins University. She has worked as a staff nurse in intensive care units, as well as working as the Women’s Wellness Program Coordinator at a community clinic in Baltimore, Maryland. Rebecca joined Peer Assistance Services in August 2008 as the Director of the Nursing Peer Health Assistance Program. Peer Assistance Services is a non-profit organization that is dedicated to quality accessible prevention and intervention services in workplaces and communities, focusing on substance abuse and related issues.
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  • Standards-Based Approach to Continued Competency and Portfolio Assessment

    • 06 Apr 2100
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    Learn about new research on continued competency, ways to measure and evaluate competence, portfolio assessment methods, and how you can apply the information to your profession or industry.

    Presenters: Shannon Carter, CEO of the Competency and Credentialing Institute and Linda Lytle, (retired) Registrar of the College of Pharmacists of British Columbia

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  • Document Management for Discipline

    • 06 Apr 2100
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    Follow a case study through the investigation/discipline process: determining what documents are needed and how to get them; presenting documents; managing documents during hearing; and retention and public access issues.

    Presenters: Dean Benard, President of Benard + Associates and Nancy Swetnam, Director of the Arizona Supreme Court, Certification and Licensing Division

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  • Sanctioning Reference Points

    • 06 Apr 2100
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    This session will provide participants with an overview of the Virginia Board of Health Professions Sanctions Reference Study, its impetus, methodology, findings, and results to date.

    Almost twenty years ago, criminal sentencing guidelines were developed to enable judges to make rationally consistent sentencing decisions apart from the influence of bias. Based heavily on those methods, sanctioning reference points (SRPs) have been developed which allow boards to sanction using a common set of empirically based factors. Once in use, SRPs can help eliminate the influence of inappropriate factors and help ensure similarly situated respondents are sanctioned the same. The Virginia Board of Medicine began using its system in 2004; the Virginia Board of Dentistry and Virginia Board of Nursing began this year. Feedback on the implementation experiences of each will be explored, as will discussion of additional public benefits and efficiencies gained.

    Presenters: Elizabeth Carter is the Executive Director for the Virginia Board of Health Professions and also serves as the Executive Director for the Virginia Board of Optometry and the Virginia Board of Veterinary Medicine. Her responsibilities include overseeing policy research and advising on issues pertaining to the regulation of health professions and on the operations of the Virginia Department of Health Professions as well as managing the licensure, disciplinary, and policymaking activities for the two health regulatory boards.

    Neal Kauder is the President of VisualResearch, Inc. located in Richmond, VA. He is nationally recognized for civil and criminal justice research, performance measurement, and health regulatory board policy analysis. He has been involved with developing and evaluating sentencing guidelines systems and has implemented empirically-based Sanction Reference Points (SRPs) for the Virginia Board of Health Professions. 
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  • Justice vs. Mercy: Punishment, Remediation, or Education

    • 06 Apr 2100
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    Protection of the public is the statutory mandate for regulatory boards. The session will begin by describing the theoretical goals of licensing board disciplinary actions, the competing concerns of the various interested parties, and the conflict between perceptions and reality in the way boards answer the "justice vs. mercy" question. Presenters will outline the legal framework for deciding the disciplinary action, the standards of review of board choices of disciplinary actions, and some of the pragmatic considerations that go into board decisions on sanctions. Presenters will then discuss practical considerations, what boards really do, what they should be doing, and the experience of board members making these decisions and the challenges they face.

    Can protection of the public be obtained without a punitive aspect to regulation? Is there ever a situation in which a non-punitive approach is warranted? Does the information explosion have implications for how boards discipline? Do actions by other entities influence regulatory board function? Should they? What is the meaning of fairness when applied to the regulatory process?

    Presenters:
    William Harp graduated from the University of Georgia and the Medical College of Georgia. He did his psychiatry residency at the Medical College of Virginia. Following a four-year stint in the Air Force, which included training as a flight surgeon, he returned to Richmond to pursue private practice. He assumed the post of Executive Director for the Virginia Board of Medicine in January 2000. During his tenure, the Board has addressed a number of issues including continuing education, physician profiling, investigation of malpractice reports, office-based anesthesia, laser hair removal, ethics, confidential consent agreements, confidential advisory letters, a change in the threshold for taking action in disciplinary matters, continuing competency and competency assessments. He is active with the Federation of State Medical Boards and has been active in professional organizations and patient advocacy groups. He has continued teaching activities with the MCV Department of Psychiatry.

    Jim Wilson has been a solo practitioner attorney in Durham, North Carolina for the last six years. He represents health care professionals, in obtaining a license, defending licensing board disciplinary investigations and charges, hospital privileges, HMO and other health insurance credentialing and deselection, DEA registration including show cause proceedings, Medicare exclusion, NBPD/HIBDB reporting, military medical credentialing, litigation regarding the requirement for a license, and advising clients regarding the requirement for a license in health care transactions. He also is the lawyer for the medical staff at Duke Health Raleigh Hospital and has served as a hearing officer in hospital privileges cases.

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  • Generational Issues and the Discipline Process

    • 06 Apr 2100
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    There are now four distinct generations in the workplace.  Each generation has its own characteristics for how they may respond to a given situation.  This session will explore how the different generations may respond to an investigation and the discipline process.

    Presenter:
    Donna Mooney is the Manager of Disciplinary Proceedings for the North Carolina Board of Nursing, where she has served since 1987.  Prior to joining the Board of Nursing, Ms. Mooney was with the NC Drug Commission for three years ands held various nursing positions.  She holds a B.S. in Nursing from Western Carolina University as well as an M.B.A. from Meredith College.  Ms. Mooney is a two-time CLEAR past president and has chaired or served on many CLEAR committees.  She is an active instructor for the CLEAR NCIT Basic and Specialized programs and has presented at numerous conferences and training programs for CLEAR and other organizations.

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  • Remediation as an Alternative to Discipline

    • 06 Apr 2100
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    This presentation will demonstrate how integrating remediation responses into regulatory processes can provide an effective alternative to disciplinary action, particularly when the root cause of the issue is competency based.  The presentation will demonstrate and expand upon the philosophy of competency assurance based solutions as a meaningful way to regulate in the public interest.  It will also demonstrate how collaboration between the member and the regulatory body builds trust within the relationship.  Participants will learn how to set up processes that allow for effective internal collaboration between the regulator’s continuing competence programs and the enforcement function.

    Presenters:
    Claudia Skolnik has been the Manager of Investigations and Resolutions at the Ontario College of Pharmacists since July of 2001. In this role, she oversees approximately 200 investigations a year. Claudia also directs the College’s Discipline program and oversees the College’s incapacity proceedings which deal with inquiries into the health of pharmacists who may be incapacitated and their monitoring in the workplace. She has developed various Alternative Resolution processes in all areas of the department activities.  Claudia obtained her Bachelors of Laws from the London School of Economics and Political Science in London, England in 1989 and from the Dalhousie Law School in Halifax, Nova Scotia in 1990. In November of 2001, Claudia obtained her Master of Laws, in Alternative Dispute Resolution.

    Sandra Winkelbauer has a Bachelor of Science in Pharmacy and a Certificate in Adult Training and Education.  She has experience as both a hospital and community pharmacist.  In addition, she has worked as a drug information pharmacist and as the Director of Education at the Ontario Pharmacists' Association.  Currently, she is the Manager, Continuing Competency Programs at the Ontario College of Pharmacists.

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  • Disaster Recovery and Business Continuity Planning

    • 06 Apr 2100
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    Advanced planning is absolutely necessary to ensure the continuity of critical functions and services for a regulatory or credentialing organization.  This session will focus on the practical considerations for developing Business Continuity Plans (BCP) based on best practices with emphasis on testing and assessment services and protecting the candidate’s credentialing experience.  The session presenter has worked closely with a number of credentialing agencies in developing their Continuity of Operations Plans (COOP). This presentation will include both general theory and lessons learned from a credentialing organization’s perspective in developing a COOP with regards to testing, assessment, and credentialing services.  Examples of topics that will be discussed are test administration and content, availability of records, temporary credentials or extension of existing credentials, developing a plan in collaboration with key resource and service providers, internal and external reporting procedures, and off-site storage and backup of data.

    Presenter:
    Don Hall is the Director of Business Continuity for Prometric.  Don has over 13 years of military experience and 20 years of technology and management experience.  He has been an employee of Prometric since May 1997 and has filled the roles of Lead Systems Engineer to Principle Architect for Infrastructure with responsibility for the planning, coordination, configuration, installation, and management of the Technology enterprise.  As Director, Business Continuity, Don is responsible for the planning, coordination, and maintenance of Prometric’s Business Continuity Management Program.  Don has over 8 years of disaster recovery planning experience and over 4 years of comprehensive Business Continuity Planning experience.

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  • Top Secrets of Cheaters and What to Do About It

    • 06 Apr 2100
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    This webinar will discuss contemporary issues and provide essential information related to the security of administering licensure and certification examinations, in particular, technological advancements that threaten high stakes examination programs and legal issues to protect such programs before and after adverse events. The webinar will have two speakers: Don Sorensen from Caveon Test Security will address the ways examination programs are threatened, including examples of technology devices that are being used to steal test content. The second speaker, attorney Dale Atkinson, will provide a legal analysis and citations to case law regarding attempts to protect examination programs both preventatively and after a triggering event.

    Presenters:
    Don Sorensen is Vice President of Marketing at Caveon Test Security where he directs the marketing and client development programs. Don is responsible for the "Cheating in the News" newsletter delivered to over 6,500 testing professionals and academics. Prior to his responsibilities at Caveon he held management positions at various traditional and interactive advertising agencies. He spent a number of years in high-tech marketing and was Director of Partner Marketing for Novell and director of Electronic Publishing & New Media Development at WordPerfect Corporation. Don was the Marketing Chair for the Association of Test Publishers and serves on various committees for NOCA and CLEAR.

    Dale Atkinson, who received his law degree from Northwestern School of Law, Portland, Oregon, is a partner in the Evanston, Illinois law firm of Atkinson & Atkinson which represents various associations of regulatory boards. Mr. Atkinson represents the associations in all matters relating to their operations as not for profit corporations, including regulatory activities, education and accreditation, disciplinary actions, model legislation and applications, and all phases of the development and administration of licensure examination programs, licensure transfer programs, licensure credentials verification and storage. He is a frequent speaker before these association clients as well as other regulatory groups and also produces numerous writings on these subjects for publications. Mr. Atkinson also serves as Executive Director of FARB.

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  • The Americans with Disabilities Act: Policy and Practice

    • 06 Apr 2100
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    What are the three principles of good ADA decision-making?

    What commonly-used practices frequently lead to ADA challenges?

    Who are your board's decision-makers for ADA and what do they know about disability documentation?

    If your answer to any of these questions is "I don't know," then this webinar is for you. Shelby Keiser, CLEAR member and ADA expert, will share important principles and best practices for ADA decision-making and answer your questions on ADA policies and procedures.

    Presenter:
    Shelby Keiser, President of Keiser Consulting, is a nationally recognized expert in Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) compliance and accommodations with over 20 years experience in federal disability law compliance. She helps higher education, businesses, testing, licensing and certification agencies develop ADA policies and procedures to ensure acceptable and cost-effective conformance with federal disability requirements. She also evaluates disability accommodation requests and disability discrimination claims for organizations to facilitate consistent, legally defensible decisions.  She is recognized for her skill in developing and implementing reasonable and cost-effective accommodations and in resolving disability related complaints.

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  • Perspectives on the Public Interest - Regulation and Governance

    • 06 Apr 2100
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    Professional regulatory bodies exist to “serve and protect the public interest”.  These words are often enshrined in the legislation that establishes the regulatory body.  But what exactly is "the public interest"?  Is it the same as public safety, public welfare and public health?  If not, what are the differences?  What does it mean to "serve" the public interest?  What does it mean to "protect" the public interest?

    This webinar will examine the public interest by looking at the fundamental elements of regulating the profession and governing the practitioners within a regulated profession.  These range from defining controlled acts, setting standards of qualification for entry into the profession, establishing a process for licensing, and taking action against unlicensed individuals, through to setting standards of practice and ethics, establishing continuing competency requirements, defining misconduct, establishing a process for dealing with complaints and meting out discipline when required.

    Presenters:
    James Collins is the Director of the Division of Professional Regulation for the Delaware Department of State. He is responsible for the oversight and coordination of activities related to the administrative, budgetary and investigative functions for the Division’s 33 boards and commissions. Previously, James worked in the private sector as a consultant whose clients included Pepsi Bottling Group, United States Marine Corp, and the Massachusetts Bay Transit Authority. James also served as Delaware’s Deputy Fleet Administrator and was in the United States Air Force for nearly nine years. An active CLEAR member, James is a CLEAR Board of Directors member and Co-chair of the Regulatory Board Administrators Committee.

    Bonni Ellis is an associate at the Steinecke Maciura LeBlanc law firm where she practices exclusively in the area of professional regulation. The firm represents over three dozen regulators and associations across many professions and in various roles including prosecutor, defence counsel and independent legal counsel at hearings.  Prior to this, Bonni was Manager of Prosecutions at the College of Nurses of Ontario and was responsible for all matters referred for hearings before the Discipline and Fitness to Practice Committees. Bonni is regularly sought out to be a speaker at conferences and seminars on topics relating to discipline and incapacity.

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  • CSI for Regulators: How Can Regulators Use Forensic Evidence?

    • 06 Apr 2100
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    The issue of forensic evidence is one that regulators must begin to consider. Regulatory investigators are now faced with the need to obtain evidence from electronic media such as computers and we are learning about the potential value of physical evidence and scientific analysis of evidence.

    This webinar will address these issues and identify sources of forensic evidence and methods for obtaining and utilizing this evidence. We will consider important issues like how we deal with this type of evidence, when we should be considering it, what expert assistance may be required and the implications of using this type of evidentiary material.

    Presenters:
    Dean Benard     founded Benard + Associates in 2004 with a vision to integrate his expertise in investigations and mediation and develop unique and effective approaches for all of his clients. This vision has been realized and Benard + Associates has grown providing high quality investigation and mediation services for over half of the health professional regulatory bodies in Ontario as well as several others across Canada. In addition Benard + Associates provide services for numerous clients in other regulatory fields, provincial governments and corporations in Ontario and across Canada. Dean is a Chartered Mediator with the Alternative Dispute Resolution Institute of Canada and a roster mediator with the Ontario Mandatory Mediation Program. As a registered nurse, former police officer, regulatory investigator and mediator Dean has blended his 18 years of experience to apply a balanced approach to all of his investigation and mediation work. In 2001, Dean was the recipient of the CLEAR Investigator of the Year Award. Dean received his Diploma in Nursing from Sir Sandford Fleming College in Peterborough, graduated magna cum laude from York University with a Bachelor of Arts in Health Administration and Ethics and holds a Master of Laws & Letters from Osgoode Hall Law School.

    Ernie Atkins is a thirty-seven year law enforcement veteran.  He began employment as a regulatory investigator with the Virginia Department of Commerce, now known as the Virginia Department of Professional and Occupational Regulation (DPOR), in August of 1983.  Working through various reorganizations and promotions, he is now assigned to the CID, Field Investigations Section, Southeast Region, for DPOR. Investigator Atkins holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in Business Administration.  He has attended over one hundred specialized courses relating to investigation, public administration, law enforcement, safety and business.  His law enforcement background traces to 1972 and includes sworn positions with the Hampton, Virginia, Police Department and the United States Department of Defense.  He holds certifications in the law enforcement, fraud, safety and security fields. Ernie has been recognized by local, state and federal government for his accomplishments and is the recipient of the Department of Defense Excellence Award, as well as having been named both an investigator of the quarter and investigator of the year while working with the Commonwealth of Virginia.  He was also honored by CLEAR as an Investigator of the Year.  Currently, he serves on CLEAR’s Board of Directors and is active with the NCIT Sub-committee, currently serving as a Co-chair.

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  • Investigating Allegations of Sexual Misconduct

    • 06 Apr 2100
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    In this webinar session, we will discuss sexual misconduct problems focusing specifically on types of issues regulators might encounter and possible courses of action.  Both criminal and administrative actions will be discussed and the regulator’s possible role in each.  Topics will include: criminal sexual conduct; fetishes regulators might encounter; child pornography; professional sexual misconduct; sexual harassment; victim interviews; suspect interviews including questioning techniques; unfounded cases; and testifying in court.

    Presenter:
    George Saxton was a detective with the Lafayette Police Department, Lafayette, Indiana.  He specialized in sex crime investigations, specifically child molesting investigations.  Saxton has attended numerous state and federal schools regarding sex crimes investigations and has been a speaker for several groups on the subject.  He is a senior instructor for CLEAR's National Certified Investigator/Inspector Training (NCIT) program, teaching mainly in the Specialized course.

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  • Continuing Competence: An Initiative to Measure and Inform

    • 06 Apr 2100
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    This session provides an overview of an ongoing national dialogue among interested stakeholders (including representatives from medical professional and academic communities, state licensing authorities, accrediting agencies, employers, providers, hospitals, and the public) addressing how the healthcare system will determine, measure, evaluate and assure the public about a physician’s competence throughout his or her professional career. 

    Following a brief introduction by the facilitator to the National Alliance for Physician Competence, three participants will provide perspectives on the importance and challenges of this initiative from professional, regulatory and public vantage points.  Sample topics to be covered include a shared definition and framework for physician competence (Good Medical Practice – USA: http://www.gmpusa.org/), the shifting notion of competence for the medical practitioner, and challenges in introducing cultures of transparency and lifelong learning and improvement.

    Presenters:
    Melanie B. Brim is the Director of the Bureau of Health Professions, Michigan Department of Community Health. Melanie has been with the Bureau of Health Professions since June 2000 serving first as the Licensing Division Director and as Director of the Bureau for the past 6 years.  As an umbrella agency, the Bureau is responsible for 25 health profession boards with approximately 400,000 licensees. Melanie has been involved in the implementation of a new continuous professional development model as an alternative to traditional continuing education activities and as well as other initiatives related to continuing competency.  She has been involved with the National Alliance for Physician Competency since its inception. Melanie is a graduate of Indiana University, Indianapolis, Indiana, where she received her B.S. in Medical Record Administration and her Master of Health Administration (MHA).

    Norman Kahn serves as Executive Vice-president and Chief Executive Officer of the Council of Medical Specialty Societies (CMSS). CMSS represents 32 medical specialty societies with an aggregate membership of over 500,000 physicians. He is Board Certified in Family Medicine and Geriatrics. Dr. Kahn has served on the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education, where he chaired the Task Force that revised the Standards for Commercial Support of CME. Dr. Kahn serves on the National Steering Committee, and Co-chairs the National Advisory Committee of the Improving Performance in Practice (IPIP) project, funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation to the American Board of Medical Specialties (ABMS). He also represents CMSS to the Physicians Consortium for Performance Improvement (PCPI), and to the National Quality Forum (NQF).

    Rosemary Gibson is a Senior Program Officer at the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.  She led a national strategy to improve end-of-life care and establish palliative care in mainstream health care.  Working with physician and nurse leaders, she was instrumental in launching faculty development programs in palliative care, revising medical and nursing textbooks, expanding palliative care-related content on the medical and nursing licensing exams, and initiating a series in JAMA, “Perspective on Care at the Close of Life.”  She worked with Bill Moyers and Public Affairs Television on the PBS documentary, “On Our Terms,” about how the health care system can better care for terminally ill patients.  Earlier in her career, Gibson served as a Senior Research Associate at the American Enterprise Institute, a Washington, DC-based public policy organization; as Vice President of the Economic and Social Research Institute, a policy think tank; and as a consultant to the Medical College of Virginia and the Virginia state legislature’s Commission on Health Care. She is a graduate of Georgetown University and has a master’s degree from The London School of Economics.

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  • Choosing Not To Go It Alone - Boards Sharing to Achieve Mutual Benefit

    • 06 Apr 2100
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    All regulatory boards are charged with the same mission: protection of the health, safety, and welfare of the public. These boards, particularly those with limited human and financial resources, face numerous challenges in working towards this mission. When regulatory boards within a jurisdiction, as well as other state agencies, are able and willing to work together, public protection can be enhanced and legislative mandates and other issues can be more effectively addressed. We invite you to come hear three different examples of how regulatory agencies/organizations have, through their collaborative models, shared resources and expertise to support each other in their roles.

    Presenters:
    Lanette L. Anderson has been licensed as a registered nurse since 1980, and completed a Masters in Nursing Administration in 2006.  Ms. Anderson graduated from law school at West Virginia University in 1992 and has been licensed as an attorney in the State of West Virginia since that time.  Ms. Anderson is the Executive Director of the West Virginia State Board of Examiners for Licensed Practical Nurses. She has been employed with the Board since 1992, and has been the ED since 2001.  She has served on a variety of committees with the National Council of State Boards of Nursing and the Council on Licensure, Enforcement, and Regulation.  Ms. Anderson is currently an adjunct faculty member in the Kaplan University School of Nursing. Ms. Anderson is also an adjunct faculty member in the LPN to BSN program at Mountain State University in West Virginia, teaching leadership, legal issues, ethics, and issues in health care.  Ms. Anderson frequently conducts presentations to nurses, students, employers, and nurse educators.

    Deanna Williams is the Registrar at the Ontario College of Pharmacists. After graduating as a pharmacist in 1976, she acquired practical experience in many pharmacy settings, including hospital, community and the Ministry of Health as Policy Coordinator with the Drug Programs Reform Secretariat. She joined the Ontario College of Pharmacists in 1994, holding the positions of Director of Programs, and Deputy Registrar before assuming the position of Registrar in 2000. In 2003-2004 Deanna served as the first Canadian President of the Council on Licensure, Enforcement and Regulation (CLEAR) and was President of the Federation of Health Regulatory Colleges of Ontario for the 2006/2007 term.

    Tom Gottlieb is a licensed Professional Engineer and is Vice President, Licensing Solutions Division at Versa Systems responsible for all aspects of Versa’s regulatory solutions practice. He has over 30 years of experience in the data processing industry with the last 17 years dedicated exclusively to government regulatory systems. Tom directed the company’s first Regulatory Boards System development project in 1991 and has focused on the regulatory field ever since. An active member of CLEAR, he has participated actively and co-chaired various program committees and is currently co-chair for the Communications and Membership Committee. He is an experienced speaker and has been a regular presenter at CLEAR annual conferences since 1992.

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  • Ensuring Fair Registration Practices

    • 06 Apr 2100
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    In this session participants explore how professional licensing in Ontario has changed since fair access laws came into effect in 2006. Regulatory bodies must have registration/licensing that is “transparent, objective, impartial and fair.” The regulators are making good progress, and the Commissioner describes what she has learned from their initial reports and compliance audits.

    A representative of Ontario Regulators for Access, a consortium of over 25 regulatory bodies, speaks about how the regulatory bodies have been sharing best registration practices over the past eight years and, in particular, its wide-ranging project on managing cultural differences.

    Presenters: Hon. Jean Augustine was appointed as the first fairness commissioner for the province of Ontario in March 2007. Ms. Augustine was born in Grenada and came to Canada in 1960. She attended the University of Toronto, where she earned bachelor of arts and master of education degrees. She was an elementary school principal with the Metropolitan Separate School Board in Toronto. From 1988 until 1993, she was chair of the Metro Toronto Housing Authority.

    Linda Gough     is the Registrar at the College of Medical Radiation Technologists of Ontario (CMRTO).  The College is the regulatory body for medical radiation technologists in Ontario. The mandate of the CMRTO is to protect the public interest through self-regulation of the profession of medical radiation technology. Linda’s current responsibilities include managing the affairs of the College in conformity with the legislated mandate and the goals established by the Council of the CMRTO. She acts as spokesperson for the College in response to changing values, public policies and legislation, as it affects the profession.

    Linda obtained her diploma in radiography from the Michener Institute for Applied Health Sciences in Toronto. In addition, Linda holds a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Waterloo and a Master’s Degree in Public Policy from Queen’s University in Kingston, Ontario.


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  • Drug Diversion Investigations

    • 06 Apr 2100
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    In order to conduct an effective drug diversion investigation one must have specialized knowledge and understanding of the accountability system for controlled substances. This session will discuss how one follows the trail to assure accountability in pharmacy audits, long-term care audits, acute care systems, and anesthesia records. We will look at accountability from automated dispensing systems to individual dosage units. The session will look at appropriate documentation for the licensee as well as how to write your report so the audit is understandable and clear.

    Presenter: Donna Mooney is the Manager of Disciplinary Proceedings for the North Carolina Board of Nursing, where she has served since 1987. Prior to joining the Board of Nursing, Ms. Mooney was with the NC Drug Commission for three years assigned to the State Bureau of Investigation performing criminal investigations for suspected drug diversion. Prior to that she held many clinical and administrative nursing positions. She holds a B.S. in Nursing from Western Carolina University as well as an M.B.A. from Meredith College. Ms. Mooney is a two-time CLEAR past president and has chaired or served on many CLEAR committees. She is an active instructor for the CLEAR NCIT Basic and Specialized programs and has presented at numerous conferences and training programs for CLEAR and other organizations.

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  • Fundamental Testing Assumptions Revisited: Examination Length and Number of Item Options

    • 06 Apr 2100
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    Maximizing professional credentialing examinations involves balancing several factors, including assessing the optimal examination length and determining an adequate number of options. This session will be broken down into two parts. The first part will review methods to determine the optimal number of items required by highlighting support for reducing the number of items. Data from a certification exam will be used to illustrate these findings.  The second part will include a review of the literature on the advantages and disadvantages of reducing the number of item options and will present empirical findings suggesting that 3-option items may be sufficient and advantageous.

    Presenter: Karine Georges joined Assessment Strategies Inc. (ASI), Canada’s Testing Company in 2004. Karine is the project lead on approximately 20 licensure or certification examinations, including the Canadian Nurses Association Nursing Specialty Certification Program, Travel Industry Council of Ontario and the Canadian Institute of Travel. She also works collaboratively on numerous other projects at ASI. Prior to coming to ASI, she worked for several years as a consultant in personnel selection and vocational assessments, human resource research, training, workshop facilitation, and employment counselling.

    Karine obtained a B.A in Psychology from the University of Ottawa, and a Masters of Science, Industrial/Organizational Psychology at the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, NY. She also completed Ph.D. level courses at Capella University, Minneapolis, MN.
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  • Fraudulent Credentials and False Information

    • 06 Apr 2100
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    Participants will gain practical information on:
    • deterring and detecting fraudulent information and credentials submitted by applicants for licensure or certification
    • deterring falsification of information and credentials provided to individuals
    • prosecuting offenders, administrative and criminal

    Presenters: Jim Guffey, Consultant, expertise in investigation and enforcement of administrative and criminal violations involving professional regulation

    Janet Carson, legal services consultant, National Board of Medical Examiners, expertise in legal issues related to testing and credentialing

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  • Governing Strategic and Operational Risk

    • 06 Apr 2100
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    The regulatory environment continues to evolve at revolutionary speeds and the public’s demand for increased transparency, accountability, and fairness grows more sophisticated and better articulated each year. Resource pressures are also having a growing impact on regulatory organizations in the face of demands for more service, more productivity, and more information.

    As each regulatory governing body contemplates ‘regulatory excellence’ it needs to consider both ‘strategic risk’ and ‘organizational/operational risk’, i.e. what are the key risks that can impede achievement of the desired outcomes of regulatory excellence and what are the organizational/operational risks that can thwart or derail excellence. This webinar will first address the ‘risk universe’ of regulatory bodies and provide a framework for discussion and development of the many subject areas related to risk that face regulatory organizations. This enterprise risk framework can serve as a tool for regulatory governing bodies to determine relevant strategic and operational risks and the extent to which the identified risks have been mitigated through governance action. Finally, the session will provide opportunity for dialogue around some proposed approaches that regulatory governing bodies along with their senior administrators can utilize to increase the opportunity of strategic success in achieving the regulatory mandate and in setting the risk tolerance boundaries around operations.

    This webinar will be very useful for governors (Council/Board Members) of regulatory boards and senior administration, who both play critical, yet unique roles, in addressing enterprise risk in a ‘risky’ environment.      

    Learning Objectives:
    • To understand why enterprise risk assessment should be considered as a critical component of effective governance and excellent regulatory practice.
    • To learn to identify the key components of a risk assessment relevant for the governing body of regulatory organizations.
    • To be familiar with strategies which can be employed by regulatory governing bodies to govern and mitigate risk.

    Presenters:
    Karen Fryday-Field, Consultant,     Meridian Edge Management & Governance Consulting
    Kathy Wilkie, Registrar and Executive Director, College of Medical Laboratory Technologists of Ontario

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  • Virginia's Sanctioning Reference Points: System Implementation and Evaluation Results

    • 06 Apr 2100
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    The webinar will provide an overview of the background, methodology, findings, and implementation strategies for the smaller boards, the evaluation of Sanctioning Reference Points (SRPs) for the earlier, larger regulatory boards, and the revisions made as a result.

    In 2006, the Virginia Board of Health Professions presented its first CLEAR Webinar introducing participants to the Sanctions Reference Point research program. SRPs provide regulatory boards with an empirically-based tool designed to help the boards standardize disciplinary actions when sanctions are considered as a result of professional misconduct. By using an established set of case and respondent factors and a numerical scoring system derived from analysis of prior case decisions and informed by board review and input, the Department of Health Professions boards are able to routinely make fair, consistent, and equitable sanctioning decisions. Further, the SRPs make the factors and processes transparent for board members and the public, alike. The Board of Health Professions constantly evaluates the efficacy of the process for each board. This dynamic process ensures the SRP remains current and addresses emerging professions and new methods of disciplinary processes.

    In 2011, the program was honored to receive the 2011 CLEAR’s Regulatory Excellence Award for expansion of the SRP research methodology to address the needs of the state’s smaller health regulatory boards (Counseling, Social Work, Psychology, Audiology & Speech-Language Pathology, Physical Therapy, and Long-Term Care Administrators) between 2007 and 2010. Based on the seminal work with Medicine, Nursing, and Dentistry, smaller boards were able to adapt appropriate SRP measures to better serve the public.

    Presenters:
    Elizabeth Carter, Executive Director, Virginia Board of Health Professions
    Neal Kauder, President, VisualResearch, Inc.

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  • Competency Assessment: Behavior-Based Interview

    • 06 Apr 2100
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    Performance-based assessments assess “on-the-job” skills and target competency at the highest level. Rather than assess knowledge and knowledge application in an artificial environment, they assess the professional’s “actions” in real-life situations. One performance-based assessment method that is frequently used to assess job performance is the behavior-based interview (BBI).  The BBI is a semi-structured interview method that reviews work-related materials that demonstrate evidence of practice, and is applied to such techniques as chart stimulated recalls, case-based questions, and situation-based questions.  This type of assessment provides an opportunity to assess broad on-the-job competence while taking into consideration the individual professional’s experience, expertise and specialty. In short, this tool can be applied to a large cross-section of professionals from a wide range of employment settings.

    This session will explore BBI methodology and its application in competency assessment tools.

    This webinar is the third in a multi-part series. 

    Presenter:  Leanne Worsfold, Director, Quality Programs, iComp Consultings
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  • Challenges to Anticipate when Preparing to Implement a Continuing Professional Development Program

    • 06 Apr 2100
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    This webinar will cover the following points concerning important elements of a Continuing Professional Development Program and a discussion of the associated challenges that organizations may face.

    1. Programs should meet the “APPLE” criteria (first articulated by the National Board of Professional Teaching Standards):

    • Administratively Feasible
    • Publicly Credible
    • Professionally Acceptable
    • Legally defensible
    • Economically Affordable

    2. Continuing Education (CE) is an important element incorporated into many if not most CPD programs, but it is NOT a surrogate for demonstrating current competence.

    3. Comprehensive CPD programs contain the following elements:

    • Periodic Assessment (sometimes self-assessment, sometimes third party assessment) the purpose of which is to identify knowledge and skills gaps.
    • An individualized plan to address and shore up those clinical practice areas or knowledge gaps identified in the assessment.
    • Implementation of the plan by methods acceptable to the agency imposing the CPD program as a condition of retaining one’s license or certification.
    • Documentation that the plan has indeed been implemented.
    • Periodic Demonstrations of current competence by methods acceptable to the licensing or credentialing body.

    4. Licensing boards and certification organizations face many challenges as they develop a CPD program.They include:

    • Preparing the practitioners for the new program, and overcoming what many believe to be the greatest challenge, namely practitioner resistance. Important to have a communication program developed and in place from the beginning.
    • Timing: how much lead time before the new program becomes operational?
    • Will a written test be included in the program? For assessment? Pass-fail? What method of feedback to test takers? If pass/fail, what consequences for failure?
    • What are the costs (a) to the organization and (b) to the practitioner? What new types of staffing will be necessary for the organization to hire to administer the program? Can volunteers be utilized, and if so, in what manner?
    • For licensing boards, is new authorizing legislation necessary?
    • How will existing mandatory CE requirements (if any) be incorporated into the new program?
    • Will current licensees/certificate holders be grandfathered? If so, what parameters?
    • What methods will be required/allowed for assessment? For implementing an improvement plan? For demonstrating current competence? Will they be evidence-based?
    • At the outset, will periodic demonstrations of current competence be included, or will that final step of a complete CPD program be put off until a later date?

    Presenter:
    David Swankin, President, Citizen Advocacy Center

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  • From Reporting to Resolution: What contributes to positive outcomes for the public and the individual undergoing the discipline process?

    • 06 Apr 2100
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    In this webinar, participants are presented with an approach to regulation that seeks to meet its primary mandate for protecting the public yet at the same time to guide and support its registrants to successfully return to competent, ethical practice. Participants are guided through key aspects of health care regulation with a special emphasis on the legislative ‘duty-to-report’ for incompetence, fitness problems, or ethical misconduct.

    Using a short lecture and case study format, the webinar facilitators share their experiences and insights into their respective roles in the disciplinary process for British Columbia nurses. Participants learn about the investigative process, how structures and processes are put into place to ensure accountability for an individual’s practice, and how selected registrants are engaged in a process of self reflection to learn how to better meet their standards of practice.

    This discussion raises ethical issues on how to balance legislative mandates, appropriate investigation, effective intervention, and strategies to support the affected registrant to successfully return to competent, ethical practice. The webinar facilitators share “lessons learned” and present data on the effectiveness of this regulatory approach.

    Learning Objectives:

      • Understand a Canadian perspective on regulating health professions.
      • Know the specific criteria for Canadian legislation on ‘duty-to-report’.
      • Compare and contrast various regulatory practices to illuminate their own areas of practice.
      • Describe ethical issues related to the participants’ areas of practice.

      Presenters:
      Spencer Wade, Nursing Practice Consultant, College of Registered Nurse of British Columbia
      Kathleen Graham, Professional Conduct Review Consultant, College of Registered Nurse of British Columbia

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    • Setting Standards for Post-Disciplinary Oversight

      • 06 Apr 2100
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      In a time of limited resources and expanding workloads, we are often tempted to think that the professional discipline process is complete once the final order or settlement agreement is signed. But providing effective oversight of practitioners after they have been disciplined is essential if professional regulation is to produce the desired result - improved licensee performance. How do we establish oversight systems which can provide us with meaningful information about licensee compliance and performance improvement? And how do we ensure that the information we get, whether from internal or external sources, is objective and reliable? Recent initiatives at both the federal and state levels in the United States offer some potentially useful guidance for promoting impartiality and effectiveness in post-disciplinary oversight mechanisms. This session will explore those initiatives and their potential value for regulatory authorities in both American and Canadian jurisdictions.

      Learning Objectives:

        • Learn about recent efforts to set standards to promote both impartiality and greater effectiveness in post-disciplinary oversight processes
        • Consider how such standards might be applied in both American and Canadian jurisdictions; and
        • Identify ways to maximize impartiality, objectivity and cost-effectiveness in the oversight process

          Presenter:
          Jim Anliot, Director of Healthcare Compliance Services. Affiliated Monitors, Inc.
          Jim Anliot is Director of Healthcare Compliance Services for Affiliated Monitors, a private healthcare consulting firm in Boston, Massachusetts which provides independent monitoring and compliance planning services for regulated professionals and businesses. Jim is responsible for developing internal compliance programs for the firm’s healthcare clients and overseeing the performance of the company’s independent monitoring and practice assessment services for health care practitioners. Jim has trained both clinical and non-clinical personnel on the implementation of compliance plans in various practice settings. Prior to becoming Director of Healthcare Compliance Services for Affiliated Monitors, Jim served for sixteen years as legal counsel to various licensing boards at the Massachusetts Division of Professional Licensure (DPL) which oversaw more than a dozen different health care disciplines. He is familiar with current regulatory requirements and prevailing standards of practice in a broad range of health care professions, and has consistently sought to develop and implement innovative oversight arrangements and internal regulatory compliance programs in order to assist regulatory agencies in accomplishing their public protection objectives.

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        • Increasing Regulatory Relevance through New Insights into "Public Welfare"

          • 06 Apr 2100
          • Virtual - at your desktop
          Register

          The Council of Landscape Architectural Registration Boards (CLARB) has recently commissioned groundbreaking research to define “public welfare,” a lesser understood - but significant - component of the “health, safety, and welfare” licensure standard used as the basis for licensure of the profession of landscape architecture in 50 U.S. states and three Canadian provinces as well as many other professions nationally and internationally.

          The study, conducted by Ontario, Canada based ERIN Research, offered a contemporary, global definition of public welfare and identified seven distinct, observable impacts that provide a practical, new framework for understanding the concept and how the practice of landscape architecture uniquely contributes to its advancement. The findings were also an important input to the development of the new Landscape Architect Registration Exam, to be introduced in fall 2012.

          These new findings, supplemented by input from regulatory boards, educators, and the profession, have opened an important new dialogue about the profession’s scope of practice and form the basis for a new effort to educate national and local officials about the broader significance of professional regulation. Already the study has been an object of discussion among the registration/professional community in America, Canada, China, Germany, Hong Kong, India, Mexico, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom.

          Attendees will gain a greater understanding of the purposes and objectives of the study, its results, impacts on the regulatory community, and how the findings are being utilized to promote effective regulation.

          Learning Objectives:
          • Learn a practical, new and defensible definition of public welfare.
          • Understand how this definition (and a profession’s impact on it) may serve to strengthen scope of practice, understanding, and regulatory relevance.
          • Gain insights into how landscape architecture regulatory boards are utilizing the research to further their goals.
          • Generate new ideas for leveraging this landmark research through workshop dialogue.

          Presenters:
          Joel Albizo, Executive Director, Council of Landscape Architectural Registration Boards
          Veronica Meadows,           Director of Communications, Council of Landscape Architectural Registration Boards

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        • The Continuing Competence Ecosystem: A Framework for Managing Your Credential

          • 06 Apr 2100
          • Virtual - at your desktop
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          This session will illustrate a conceptual model of the relationship between the regulatory authority, licensees, and education providers  as they pertain to continuing competence initiatives. Using this framework will give you a sense of the dimensions regulatory authorities can control as they seek to improve the meaningfulness of the credential. This framework gives new programs an opportunity to define immediate organizational objectives. For existing or mature programs, it illustrates dimensions programs can use to evaluate ongoing initiatives to improve effectiveness and accountability.

          Learning Objectives:

          • Achieve a visual model for the relationships to harness in rolling out a continuing competence program
          • Achieve a structural understanding of the components to support continuing competence
          • Establish a framework to evaluate stakeholder relationships and criteria of value

          This webinar is the first in a multi-part series.  Details will follow soon about the upcoming offerings.

          Presenter:
          Christopher Butcher, principal/CTO, Heuristic Solutions
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        • Exam Integrity 101: Part III - Enforcement

          • 06 Apr 2100
          • Virtual - at your desktop
          Register

          “Exam Integrity 101, How to Develop and Implement an Effective Exam Integrity Program.”

          This three-part webinar series will focus on the essential framework for publishers and sponsors of secure, high-stakes examinations to develop and utilize an effective exam integrity program, including legal, investigative, organizational and practical considerations.

          Part III: Enforcement

          This webinar recording will describe the remedial and enforcement options available to the test sponsor following the detection of an exam integrity breach and identification of the culprit(s).

          • What is the range of options available to the test sponsor based on the available evidence and applicable laws and regulations?
          • Administrative, regulatory or board Sanctions?
          • Cancellation of scores?
          • Civil Legal Action?
          • Referral for Criminal Prosecution?
          • How to initiate a criminal investigation.
          • Risk (to organization and integrity of program) of action vs. inaction
          • What are the organization's goals?

          1. Stopping infringement?

          2. Education and deterrence?

          3. Individual Punishment?

          4. Recovery of damages?

          5. Considerations of potential publicity?

          Presenters:
          Ben Mannes          , Director, Test Security, American Board of Internal Medicine
          Marc Weinstein          , Attorney, Dilworth Paxson LLP


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        • Exam Integrity 101: Part II - Investigation

          • 06 Apr 2100
          • Virtual - at your desktop
          Register

          “Exam Integrity 101, How to Develop and Implement an Effective Exam Integrity Program.”

          This three-part webinar series will focus on the essential framework for publishers and sponsors of secure, high-stakes examinations to develop and utilize an effective exam integrity program, including legal, investigative, organizational and practical considerations.

          Part II: Investigation

          This webinar recording will outline the steps your organization can take to detect inappropriate activity that could affect the integrity of your exams.

          These include:

          • Responding to testing incidents (reports of cheating and/or incidents observed in-progress).
          • Web surveillance techniques.
          • Detecting aberrance through psychometrics and/or data forensics.
          • Investigating copyright infringement/thefts of trade secrets.
          • Interviewing witnesses and subjects.
          • Linking and exposing collusion between candidates and/or educators.
          • Internal audit and/evaluation.
          • Vendor audits and breach testing

          Presenters:
          Ben Mannes          , Director, Test Security, American Board of Internal Medicine
          Marc Weinstein          , Attorney, Dilworth Paxson LLP


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        • Exam Integrity 101: Part I - Prevention

          • 06 Apr 2100
          • Virtual - at your desktop
          Register

          “Exam Integrity 101, How to Develop and Implement an Effective Exam Integrity Program.”

          This three-part webinar series will focus on the essential framework for publishers and sponsors of secure, high-stakes examinations to develop and utilize an effective exam integrity program, including legal, investigative, organizational and practical considerations.

          Part I: Prevention

          This webinar will describe the preventative steps necessary to establish a solid foundation for future exam integrity issues.

          These include:

          • Solid legal agreements with employees, Subject Matter Experts, vendors, contractors, and candidates.
          • Requirement of cooperation by examinee and/or licensee in all investigations.
          • Incorporating security policies and procedures to exam development, registration, and psychometric activities.
          • Assessments of your physical, data, and operational security.
          • Copyrighting.
          • Communicating your policies.
          • Employee roles and responsibilities regarding security.
          • Contingency planning for security breaches, responding to exam integrity incidents, enforcement/sanctions, and reporting to stakeholders.
          • Employee and SME/Consultant Training.

          Presenters:
          Ben Mannes          , Director, Test Security, American Board of Internal Medicine
          Marc Weinstein          , Attorney, Dilworth Paxson LLP


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        • Setting Precedents: Top Ten Cases You Need to Know About

          • 06 Apr 2100
          • Virtual - at your desktop
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          In order for regulators to achieve excellence, they must be aware of the legal framework in which they operate. While part of that legal framework is statutory, part of it is also judge-made law. In this webinar, we will summarize and analyze the most interesting recent Canadian and American cases in regulatory law, pulling together themes and highlighting inconsistencies. Attendees will learn how these cases affect them and will be provided with tips for managing and applying these decisions in the regulatory setting.

          Learning objectives: Get up to date on the most recent cases of interest to regulators and learn how to apply the principles from these cases to your organization's practices.

          Presenters:
          Julie Maciura          , Attorney, Steinecke Maciura LeBlanc, Barristers & Solicitors
          Amigo Wade          , Senior Attorney, Principal, Virginia Division of Legislative Services
          Bernard LeBlanc          , Attorney, Steinecke Maciura LeBlanc, Barristers & Solicitors

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        • ISO/IEC 17024: Conformity Assessment

          • 06 Apr 2100
          • Virtual - at your desktop
          Register
          ISO/IEC 17024 is a standard that defines the general requirements for bodies operating certification programs of persons (Personnel Certification Body). ISO/IEC 17024 defines how a certification body should develop, implement, and maintain a certification program and provides a global benchmark for certification schemes to ensure that they operate in a consistent, comparable, and reliable manner worldwide, thus establishing an environment for the mutual recognition of schemes and facilitating the global mobility of personnel. It was updated and republished in July of 2012. ISO CASCO Working Group 30 (the working group rewriting 17024) had the following as the goals for revision: repair/rewrite areas of the standard that need clarification or have been confusing; eliminate the International Accreditation Forum (IAF) Guidance Document (GD24) by incorporating all appropriate guidance into the standard; further expound on some areas; and make the standard “look” like the other ISO standards. This webinar will talk about the standard, including the purpose and use of the standard, major changes in the 2012 version, and applicability for regulators.  The presenter, Dr. Cynthia Woodley, is the chair of the ISO committee that updated the standard.

           Presenter:
          Cynthia Woodley          , Psychometrician, Vice President and Chief Operations Officer Professional Testing Inc.


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