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College of Midwives of Ontario

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Home Midwives Maintaining Your Registration Professional Development Portfolio

Professional Development Portfolio

Supporting midwives in maintaining professional competence

The Portfolio Program

Midwives will develop a personalized Learning Plan to update or expand professional skills or areas of knowledge they want to improve. These unique plans will guide you as you engage in ongoing self-assessment, complete professional development activities, and take part in case reviews in group settings.

This innovative, evidence-based program replaces the College’s previous Quality Assurance Program requirements.

The new Professional Development Portfolio has four components:

  1. Self-assessment. This will assist you in developing your learning goals for the three years of the program.
  2. Leaning Plan. Each midwife will complete three learning goals over the three-year reporting period.
  3. Case reviews. All registrants in the general and supervised classes of registration will have to complete case reviews. The number of case reviews required depends on the amount of time the registrant is in the general class.
  4. Declaration. All registrants are required to declare their professional development activities every three years. Midwives will be able to submit their declaration in the Registrant Portal. More information on when you will be required to report is found below.

A midwife registered in the general class may apply the following learning plan for the Professional Development Program.

Three years of the learning plan. Year one to set short- and long-term goals and identify activities to achieve goals. In years one, two, and three, midwives are expected to participate in identified activities, complete their learning goals, and reflect and document their progress.
Portfolio summary

The self-assessment built into the Professional Development Portfolio is designed to assist you as you identify your learning needs and can serve as the foundation for creating your Learning Plan.

Unlike other components of the Professional Development Portfolio (e.g., case review reports), the self-assessment is for your use only and won’t be accessible to, or reviewed by, the College.

Midwives are required to complete and report on the completion of their self-assessment every three years. However, we recommend annual completion to continually assess your knowledge and skills related to the standards of midwifery.

Midwives are welcome to use the Canadian Midwifery Regulators Council self-assessment tool, or any other, to meet the self-assessment requirement in the Portfolio.

(Outil d’auto-évaluation de la pratique sage-femme du CCOSF)

Every three years, you’ll identify learning goals through the self-assessment process, issues brought up during a peer case review, challenges during a client interaction, or a breakdown in communication with another health care provider. Any area of your professional life that requires extra attention can be included as a learning goal in your Learning Plan.

You should aim to meet a minimum of one learning goal per year. You’ll select one short-term goal to be met in the first year of your reporting cycle and two long-term goals to be met in years two and three.

The College does not specify the types of learning goals required. However, midwives are encouraged to choose goals that include both technical skills and non-technical skills.

Case reviews are formal gatherings to discuss specific clinical cases with the goal of learning. The College does not specify the details of how to conduct a case review. However, case reviews should be conducted in accordance with a framework that is agreed upon by all participants.

Additionally, case reviews must be held with at least two midwifery practice groups or among a group of interprofessional colleagues.
Midwives who are registered in the general, supervised practice, or transitional class for 12 months or more are required to attend four case reviews per year of registration, for a total of 12 case reviews attended over the three-year cycle.

Midwives who are registered in the general, supervised practice, or transitional class for less than 12 months of the reporting period are not required to participate in, or obtain evidence of, attendance at case reviews.

Table: required number of case reviews per months in general case

Months in the general class Number of case reviews required
36 or more 12
24-35 8
12-23 4
0-11 0

 

 

All midwives—including those in the inactive class—will be required to submit a declaration of completion to the College via the Registrant Portal by the reporting deadline.

We can make accommodations for midwives who experience barriers to participating in, or reporting on, their Professional Development Portfolio.

You must submit your first declaration of completion three years after you become registered with the College, as shown below:

Registration Date Initial Reporting Deadline
On or before October 1, 2021 October 1, 2024
Between October 2, 2021 – October 1, 2022 October 1, 2025
Between October 2, 2022 – October 1, 2023 October 1, 2026
Between October 2, 2023 – October 1, 2024 October 1, 2027
Between October 2, 2024 – October 1, 2025 October 1, 2028

After your initial reporting deadline, your Portfolio life cycle will start over, and you’ll be required to submit every three years thereafter.

Each year, 20% of reporting midwives will be selected by the College to have their Portfolio reviewed for completion. Selected midwives will then have 30 days to submit their Portfolio and any supporting documentation such as certificates, diplomas, conference proceedings, or other materials that demonstrate their participation in learning activities.

Midwives who submit their declaration of completion and are not randomly selected for review are considered compliant with the Professional Development Portfolio requirements.

Midwives who submit their declaration of completion and are randomly selected for review and submit complete records by the assigned deadline are considered compliant with the Professional Development Portfolio.

Midwives who are considered compliant will receive a notice of compliance.

Non-compliance

Midwives who do not submit a declaration of completion or who are selected for review and do not submit a completed Professional Development Portfolio will receive a notice of non-compliance and must pay an administrative fee. See Fees and Remuneration By-Law.

Midwives marked non-compliant may make a written submission regarding their non-compliance to the Quality Assurance Committee (QAC) within 30 days of receiving the notice. Submissions will be reviewed by a panel of the QAC.

Exemptions

If you are unable to meet your Professional Development Portfolio requirements due to exceptional circumstances such as illness, parental leave, or disability leave, you can be granted an exemption from any, or all, of the program requirements.

  • A full exemption means you would have no reporting obligations for the entire three-year Professional Development Portfolio cycle for which the exemption was requested.
  • A partial exemption means you would still be required to complete some, though not all, of the Professional Development Portfolio requirements for the three-year reporting cycle.

Midwives must apply for an exemption at least 15 business days prior to their reporting deadline by submitting an Exemption Request form.

If the exemption is not warranted, the midwife will be considered non-compliant with the Professional Development Portfolio if they remain unable to meet the requirements.

 

If you are unable to meet your Professional Development Portfolio requirements due to exceptional circumstances such as illness, parental leave, or disability leave, you can be granted an exemption from any, or all, of the program requirements.

  • A full exemption means you would have no reporting obligations for the entire three-year Professional Development Portfolio cycle for which the exemption was requested.
  • A partial exemption means you would still be required to complete some, though not all, of the Professional Development Portfolio requirements for the three-year reporting cycle.

Midwives must apply for an exemption at least 15 business days prior to their reporting deadline by submitting an Exemption Request form.

If the exemption is not warranted, the midwife will be considered non-compliant with the Professional Development Portfolio if they remain unable to meet the requirements.

 

Tools and Resources for Completing the Professional Development Portfolio

Professional Development Program Overview
Step 1: Self Assessment
Step 2: Learning Plan
Guide for Setting SMART Learning Goals
Step 3: Case Review Form

The College is here to support you in understanding these changes. Please contact qap@cmo.on.ca with any questions about the new Professional Development Portfolio.

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M4T 1L9
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