CPSA seeks service providers/teams to provide independent medical examinations, health monitoring and biological monitoring

If a physician currently has  a physical, cognitive, mental and/or emotional health condition that is negatively impacting or is likely to negatively impact their practice, CPSA’s Health & Practice Conditions Monitoring Program (HPCMP) (formerly the Physician Health Monitoring Program) works to ensure physicians can continue to offer patients safe, high-quality care.

CPSA has started transitioning fitness-to-practise assessments, health monitoring and biological monitoring services to independent third-party service providers or teams. To learn more about these changes, see our announcement in the September issue of The Messenger newsletter.

Who can be a service provider?

There are two separate lists of service providers:

• Independent medical examination (IME) service providers
• Monitoring service providers
  • It is the responsibility of the individual physician service provider to identify and mitigate any dual agency concerns. The regulated member undergoing an assessment and/or monitoring, in consultation with legal counsel or PFSP, should make the decision on their choice for the most appropriate IME and/or monitoring provider. For example: The individual physician service provider conducting the IME should not be the same individual physician service provider subsequently performing health monitoring, and vice versa. The individual physician service provider can provide either an IME or monitoring services, but not both services for the same regulated member.
• Individual physicians with experience in conducting guideline-driven IMEs, are experienced in evidence-based health and/or biological monitoring, and meet CPSA’s criteria and competencies for either of these categories of service providers
• Organizations (with at least one regulated member) that specialize in IMEs or health and/or biological monitoring, and meet CPSA’s criteria and competencies for either of these categories of service providers

CPSA will only accept fitness-to-practise assessments and/or health and/or biological monitoring services from service providers that meet the established and outlined criteria for evidence-based practice. Interested organizations and/or individuals who can provide these services are encouraged to review the established criteria.

If you meet the outlined expectations linked below or have any questions, please reach out to us via email with your contact information and details about your interest in conducting assessments or monitoring.

• Service providers for IMEs
• Service providers for health monitoring: criteria, competencies and duties
• Service providers for biological monitoring (including health monitoring): criteria, competencies and duties

Contact us at physicianhealth@cpsa.ab.ca. We look forward to hearing from you.

This post was originally published on Oct. 10, 2023 and has been updated to reflect the most current information.