What is Health & Practice Conditions Monitoring?
The Health & Practice Conditions Monitoring (HPCM) program includes:
Health monitoring: A regulated member’s health condition—including diagnosis, treatment and whether the health condition adversely impacts the member’s ability to practise—may be objectively determined through an independent medical examination (IME). Arrangements for an IME or health monitoring is arranged through HPCM. Find out more about health monitoring.
Practice conditions monitoring: Under the Health Professions Act (HPA), CPSA can place conditions on a physician’s practice permit as a protective measure, to ensure patients are receiving safe medical care. Practice conditions monitoring is coordinated through HPCM. Learn more about practice conditions.
Reporting a health condition
Under CPSA’s standards of practice, regulated members are required to notify CPSA if they presently have a physical, cognitive, mental and/or emotional condition that negatively impacts, or is likely to negatively impact, the regulated member’s work.
Regulated members also have a responsibility to notify CPSA if they have reasonable grounds to believe a colleague presently has a physical, cognitive, mental and/or emotional condition that negatively impacts, or is likely to negatively impact, the regulated member’s work.
| Regulated members include health professionals who are registered with CPSA: physicians, surgeons, physician assistants, osteopaths, residents and medical students. |
What is a health condition?
A health condition is a physical, cognitive, mental and/or emotional condition that negatively impacts, or is likely to negatively impact, the regulated member’s work. Conditions include (but are not limited to):
- Blood-borne viral infections (for those performing exposure-prone procedures)
- Conditions affecting primary senses (such as vision, hearing, etc.)
- Neurological conditions affecting cognition, motor or sensory function (such as a seizure disorder or Parkinson’s Disease)
- Psychiatric conditions
- Substance use disorder
- Physical disability
- Metabolic conditions
How to let us know about a health condition
Health conditions can be reported to CPSA and HPCM in a number of ways:
- A health condition can be disclosed during annual practice permit renewal.
- A regulated member can self-report their condition.
- A concern can be reported by a colleague or other concerned third party.
Once HPCM becomes aware of a regulated member’s health condition, a member of the Health & Practice Conditions Monitoring team will reach out for more information and to discuss next steps.
What to expect when you have a health condition
1. We become aware of your health condition.
HPCM can learn about your health condition in a number of ways: when you first register with CPSA, renew your practice permit or if you self-report. We may also receive notification from one of your colleagues.
2. We contact you confidentially for more information.
HPCM will confidentially contact you for more information and to discuss next steps. Our discussion will focus on your fitness to practise, guided by our mandate to protect Albertans. We will not ask you to share any personal or health information.
3. If required, you may be asked to arrange for an independent medical examination.
- If an independent medical examination (IME) is required, HPCM will provide contact information for independent medical examiners.
- After your IME, the independent medical examiner will provide HPCM with a report—your personal or health information will not be included and you will not be asked to share these details with CPSA.
- HPCM will contact you to discuss the report and any recommendations made.
- Any costs associated with the IME will be your responsibility.
- We encourage you to contact the Alberta Medical Association’s Physician and Family Support Program at 1-877-767-4637, and legal counsel through the Canadian Medical Protective Association at 1-800-267-6522.
4. The IME will determine whether modifications, limitations, restrictions or monitoring of your health condition is required.
Possible recommendations from the IME report include:
- Fit to practise with no restrictions, limitations or monitoring needed. Your HPCM file is closed with no further action required.
- Fit to practise with restrictions, limitations or monitoring. HPCM will provide you with a list of external service providers to implement ongoing monitoring. Any costs associated with monitoring will be your responsibility. Restrictions or limitations to your practice will be discussed with you directly.
- Not fit to practise. You will be asked to withdraw from practice until HPCM is advised you can resume practice safely as confirmed by a subsequent IME.
5. You may be asked to enroll with a third-party service provider for monitoring.
- If your practice requires monitoring based on the IME report, HPCM will provide you with contact information for third-party, independent service providers who provide health and biological monitoring. These providers are not employed by CPSA but act as agents of CPSA. It is their obligation to adhere to the highest standards of ethical conduct and avoid of conflicts of interest.
- Upon enrollment with the service provider, you will enter into a monitoring agreement and the service provider will arrange for any health, practice or biological monitoring that is required.
- The service provider will provide HPCM with reports on your compliance with monitoring and your ongoing fitness to practise.
- The length of your monitoring will be determined by the service provider, based on practice guidelines for physician health programs.
- The cost of ongoing monitoring and other related expenses will be your responsibility.
Service providers
Health monitoring and biological monitoring
| Provider | Address | Contact information |
Aceso Monitoring
|
Unit 101, 12315 Stony Plain Road Edmonton, AB T5N 3Y8 |
Central Intake: 587-401-5629 healthmonitoring@acesomedical.com acesomedical.ca/medicalmonitoring |
Biological monitoring only
| Provider | Address | Contact information |
| Precision Medical Monitoring (register here) | Suite 200 – 14888 104 Ave Surrey, BC V3R 1M4 |
Dr. Alan Brookstone, Program Administrator Tel: 778-927-5826 Fax: 604-312-0073 info@precisionmonitor.com precisionmonitor.com |
6. When you’ve completed your monitoring agreement, your file may be closed.
Upon approval from the Assistant Registrar, Continuing Competence, your file may be closed once you have completed your monitoring agreement with the service provider.
Taking health leave
If you have reported a physical, cognitive, mental and/or emotional condition to HPCM that negatively impacts, or is likely to negatively impact your work, and would like to take a leave from practice to attend to your health matters, you can change your registration status with CPSA to Active-Withdrawn from Practice. This reflects that you are still an active member of CPSA but are not currently in practice.
During your medical leave, your license will no longer be active for the practice of medicine, which includes research, educational and administrative activities, in addition to direct and indirect patient care.
Medical records
Regulated members on health leave are responsible for taking reasonable steps to place their patients with alternative care providers and ensure patients still have access to their medical records. Please review our Closing or Leaving a Medical Practice and Patient Record Retention standards of practice for more information.
Waiving annual renewal fees
Regulated members who withdraw from practice for health reasons may be eligible for a partial refund or waiver of annual renewal fees. Please discuss this directly with HPCM.
Returning to work
Please contact HPCM at least two months before your anticipated return date to discuss next steps. You may be required to undergo an independent medical examination before returning to work.
Practice permit conditions monitoring
Under the HPA, CPSA can place conditions on a physician’s practice permit as a protective measure, to ensure patients are receiving safe medical care. Conditions can be applied by CPSA’s Registration, Professional Conduct and Continuing Competence departments, depending on the situation.
Monitoring is coordinated by HPCM and performed in a timely and comprehensive way, using a number of verification methods. Practice condition categories include:
- A requirement to have a chaperone in attendance for patient encounters
- Restrictions on a physician’s scope of practice (e.g. family medicine only)
- Prescribing restrictions
- Types of patients (e.g. patients over age 18 only)
- The number of hours permitted to work
- Practice configuration restrictions (e.g. can only work in a group setting)
HPCM Resources
To see more resources about HPCM, click on All Resources and filter by "Health and Practice Conditions Monitoring"
All ResourcesDuty to Report Self
CPSA Standard of Practice Click to view filesDuty to Report a Colleague
CPSA Standard of Practice Click to view filesDuty to Report a Colleague/Self
CPSA Advice to the Profession Click to view filesPhysician and Family Support Program (PFSP)
Alberta Medical Association (AMA) Click to view filesCanadian Medical Protective Association (CMPA)
Canadian Medical Protective Association (CMPA) Click to view filesHPCM FAQs
To see more FAQs about HPCM, click on All FAQs and filter by "Health and Practice Conditions Monitoring"
All FAQsWhat supports are available for physicians managing a health condition?
Dealing with a regulatory body such as CPSA can be stressful, so we encourage physicians to contact all available resources, including:
Is participation in Health & Practice Conditions Monitoring voluntary?
It is CPSA’s responsibility to ensure patients receive safe care. Under the Continuing Competence standard of practice, a regulated member must participate in a competence assessment when directed to do so (which in this case refers to participation in health and/or biological monitoring). Failure or refusal to comply with Continuing Competence program requirements is considered unprofessional conduct and may result in a referral to Professional Conduct under the Health Professions Act (HPA).
If my health condition requires assessment and monitoring, how much will it cost? Who is responsible for the costs?
Any costs associated with independent medical examinations, health and/or biological monitoring are set by the third-party service providers, CPSA is not involved in the determination of fees. The Alberta Medical Association has a guideline for uninsured services fees.
As per the Continuing Competence standard of practice (clause 16), these costs are the responsibility of the regulated member.
Why did CPSA change its Physician Health Monitoring Program (PHMP)?
Historically, CPSA operated PHMP primarily in-house. Starting in late 2023, CPSA began transitioning health assessments, fitness-to-practise assessments and biological monitoring functions to external service providers. The program is now called Health & Practice Conditions Monitoring (HPCM).
In addition to ensuring compliance with updates to legislation, these changes align with available and prevailing approaches to physician health programs in North America, and best practices in safety-sensitive industries.
Now diagnosis, treatment and whether a regulated member’s health condition adversely impacts their ability to practise will be objectively determined by independent, experienced and trusted service providers.
Moving these functions to providers independent of CPSA supports regulated members in feeling more comfortable self-reporting, and more inclined to seek support when they need it.
Privacy has always been an important part of our work, and this new process will further safeguard the confidentiality of a regulated member’s personal and health information.
Find out more about HPCM.
Questions?
Confidential inquiries: 780-969-5021
Confidential fax: 780-441-1616
Confidential email: PhysicianHealth@cpsa.ab.ca
Toll-free: 1-800-320-8624 (in Canada)