Dialogue Volume 14 Issue 3 2018 | Page 11

REPORTS FROM COUNCIL New Registrar sets out priorities Changes coming to the way that complaints are handled by the College I n her first report to Coun- cil, Dr. Nancy Whitmore, Registrar and CEO, discussed two high priority areas for the College – the handling of com- plaints, and the enhancement and modernization of our communica- tion platform. Complaints An overview of the discussions and decisions made at the September Council meeting. The College receives approximately 2700 public complaints annually. These are of varying complexity. The Inquiries, Complaints and Reports Committee (ICRC), on average, takes no action in 65% of cases they review. The current complaints process will be changed to stream more low risk matters to early resolution and enable ICRC panels to focus on more serious matters. Refocusing on early resolu- tion where possible should also of- fer faster service, increase complain- ant and physician satisfaction, and reduce overall time to resolution. Staff has already begun to work on: revitalizing the Intake area to respond to complaints within two business days; initiating an alterna- tive dispute resolution process; and introducing a Medical Complaints Director to review all written com- plaints for assessment and stream- ing to resolution or investigation using defined criteria. An article about these changes is this issue’s cover story. Communications Planning A new approach to communication is underway to support CPSO’s transformational changes to in- vestigations and other core regula- tory processes, and to modernize and enhance our communications products and activities. In particu- lar, the focus of our plan in 2018/19 is on enhancing and modernizing the website and Dialogue, including ISSUE 3, 2018 DIALOGUE 11