The Alliance of Canadian Dietetic Regulatory Bodies is made up of ten equal and independent dietetic regulatory bodies. Authority to regulate dietitians in the ten provinces is set out in provincial legislation. The purpose of professional regulation is public protection. Regulatory bodies are responsible for ensuring the regulatory framework reflects the current dietetic practice environment.

In exercising their regulatory role in the public interest, the ten dietetic regulatory bodies have legislative authority and responsibility to perform the following functions:

• Interpret dietetic scopes of practice, including reserved/restricted activities
• Establish, maintain, and enforce standards for: ethics, conduct, entry to practice, continuing competence, professional practice and reserved/restricted activities.
• Assess and register qualified applicants in their provincial jurisdictions
• Ensure dietetic education and training programs meet requirements for registration
• Protect the professional titles and designations to differentiate regulated from unregulated nutrition practitioners and take action on unauthorized dietetic practice
• Investigate and resolve complaints about a dietitian's practice, conduct and fitness to practice.
  

THE ALLIANCE OF CANADIAN DIETETIC REGULATORY BODIES

The Alliance addresses common dietetic regulatory issues on a national level to advance dietetic regulation in Canada. The Alliance develops principles and frameworks to support consistent standards of public protection and dietetic practice in Canada.

The objectives of the Alliance are to:

• Develop common frameworks to establish standards for entry to practice, continuing competency, professional practice and conduct
• Share tools and resources to carry out regulatory responsibilities
• Facilitate labour mobility for dietitians
• Communicate with external groups on matters related to the regulation of dietitians in Canada
• Administer the Canadian Dietetic Registration Examination

Alliance members regulate over 8,500 Registered Dietitians in Canada

Strategic Priorities 2006 (Three - Five Years)

• Registered Dietitians and other stakeholders understand the roles and responsibilities of the regulatory bodies.
  
• The entry to practice competencies are aligned with current dietetic practice in Canada.
  
• The education and training programs are aligned with the validated competencies for entry to practice.
• A validated competency based assessment model is used for registration.
• Quebec is a signatory to the Mutual Recognition Agreement for labour mobility of dietitians in Canada.

Responsibilities of Regulatory Bodies for Dietitians in Canada

Regulatory Bodies for Dietitians exist to protect the public. This is done by ensuring that Registered Dietitians deliver high quality client centered services to the public. The regulation of health professionals in Canada is authorized in provincial law and therefore it differs slightly from province to province. In each province, a regulatory body for dietitians is authorized to protect the public by regulating dietitians. (Link to Canadian Regulators of Dietitians)

What does it mean to be a Regulated Health Profession?

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There are several features of health regulation including but not limited to the following:

• Registration Procedures : Each provincial regulatory body for dietitians sets policy for registering dietitians. The education and practical training qualifications for registration are standardized across Canada and are defined in the Mutual Recognition Agreement (MRA) between Dietetic Regulators in Canada . All provinces (excluding Quebec) also require successful writing of the CDRE.  (Link to Qualifying as a Dietitian in Canada ) (Link to Mutual Recognition Agreement)
  
• Education Program Approval : Each provincial regulatory body for dietitians is authorized to govern the approval of education programs for dietitians as well as the conditions for continued approval.
  
• Title Protection : In all provinces titles for dietitians are protected by legislation. Having a protected title means that only a registrant in the provincial regulatory body for dietitians can use the title. The following are some examples of titles protected by legislation: "Registered Dietitian, Professional Dietitian" or "Nutritionist." The scope of practice is defined in some provinces meaning only registrants can deliver a defined service. In other provinces, Controlled or Reserved Acts are defined and regulatory bodies make application for their registrants to deliver a defined service.
  
• Code of Ethics : Most provinces have a defined Code of Ethics for dietitians which set out the ideals which dietitians strive to achieve. Some provincial codes of ethics define professional misconduct and incompetence. Other provincial regulatory bodies have separate legislation to define professional misconduct and incompetence.
  
• Standards of Practice : Each province sets out the standards of practice for Dietitians which define the minimum performance expectations for dietetic practice. They are defined in order to ensure the public receives competent dietetic services.
  
• Mandatory Continuing Competence : The continuing competence of registrants is monitored by each provincial regulatory body for dietitians. Although the programs vary from province to province, registrants must make an annual continuing competency report which is monitored by their regulatory body. In each province, there are consequences for non-compliance with the continuing competency program which can lead to the cancellation of registration.
  
• Complaint Investigation : Regulatory bodies for dietitians are mandated to hear and investigate complaints from the public related to the delivery of services by dietitians. Expectations outlined in the Code of Ethics, Standards of Practice or other legislation authorized in the province will be compared to the service provided by the dietitian.
  
• Discipline : Regulatory bodies for dietitians are authorized to make orders to registrants based on the findings of the investigation/disciplinary process.

What is a Regulated Profession?

Where the public may be vulnerable to harm as a result of inappropriate conduct on the part of a professional, some mechanism must exist to protect the public interest.

For many health professionals the government has delegated the responsibility of regulating the profession to the profession itself - self-regulation.

This means that the health profession establishes its governing structure which sets out the standards by which the organization operates to protect the public.   The organization elects or appoints health professionals and public representatives to carry out the government's mandate.

To increase the accountability to the public and also provide a public point of view, most regulatory bodies have public appointees on their board or council and committees.

In Canada the regulation of health professions is the jurisdiction of the provinces and territories, therefore variations in how the professions are regulated exist across the country.

For information specific to how dietitians are regulated in a province, visit the websites provided.

What is the Mutual Recognition Agreement?

The Mutual Recognition Agreement is an agreement between provincial regulatory bodies for dietitians in Canada based on common academic, practical training, and examination requirements for the registration of Registered Dietitians. All provincial dietetic regulatory bodies are signatories to the Agreement with the exception of the regulatory body in Quebec, where the Canadian Dietetic Registration Examination (CDRE) is not a requirement for registration.

The Mutual Recognition Agreement was written to facilitate labour mobility for Registered Dietitians in Canada under the Agreement on Internal Trade (AIT), Chapter 7 Labour Mobility. The first Mutual Recognition Agreement for the dietetics profession was signed in October of 1998.

The Agreement facilitates the application/ assessment process for Registered Dietitians who move to another province as they will be eligible for registration in the new province based on documents provided by their current Regulatory Body that indicate they meet the requirements for recognition of qualifications under the Agreement. Registered Dietitians who are not eligible for recognition under the terms of the Agreement may be eligible for registration with another Regulatory Body, but further assessment of qualifications may be required.

Under the Agreement, Regulatory Bodies may have additional registration requirements that must be met by Registered Dietitians transferring into the province such as criminal record checks or proof of liability insurance.

For further information on the Mutual Recognition Agreement and registration requirements please contact the regulatory body in your province. (Link to Canadian Regulators of Dietitians)

Canadian Regulators of Dietitians