Board highlights are an unofficial summary of the open portion of CDSBC Board meetings. Official records can be found in the minutes, which are posted after they are approved at the following Board meeting.

2012 Award Winners

The Board approved the Nominations Committee’s recommendations for 2012 CDSBC Award Recipients as follows:

Honoured Member
Dr. David Sweet, O.C.

Distinguished Service Award
Dr. John Carpendale
Dr. William Liang
Ms. Betty Richardson

Award of Merit
Dr. Christine Eckel
Dr. Lonny Legault
Dr. Gail Landsberger
Dr. Ian Leitch

Note: This motion was passed via electronic voting prior to the Board meeting.

The Awards Ceremony will take place on Thursday, March 8, 2012 at 6pm in conjunction with the Pacific Dental Conference. It will be held at the Pan Pacific Hotel.

Governance

The Board attended a governance workshop last fall to review best practices in effective governance in the context of a self-regulating profession. The workshop was led by Elizabeth Watson, LL.B, of Watson Advisors. Ms. Watson advises boards, committees and CEOs from all sectors on governance and board recruitment issues.

The Board intends to move forward with the recommendations from the October workshop. The objectives of this project are: to develop a comprehensive set of Board policies; to conduct a process review of CDSBC’s various governance functions, and revise them accordingly; and to implement recommendations for activities that will further good governance.

Strategic Plan: Mission, Vision and Values Approved

The Strategic Plan Working Group presented a draft mission, vision and values for the organization. This was the next step in the development of a new strategic plan for CDSBC.

The Board gave approval in principle for the mission, vision and values as presented:

Mission
The College of Dental Surgeons of British Columbia regulates dentists and certified dental assistants in the public interest. It does so by establishing, monitoring, and enforcing the competent and ethical practice of dentistry, in a fair and transparent manner.

Vision
The College of Dental Surgeons of British Columbia is a leading healthcare regulator, promoting and supporting optimal health through excellence in dentistry.

Values
The College of Dental Surgeons of British Columbia is trusted because:
• We act ethically, fairly and with integrity
• We are communicative and transparent
• We are objective and impartial
• We are accountable

The Values were developed by CDSBC and key stakeholders at a strategic planning/focus group session held in February 2011.

The four strategic goals were approved by the Board at the October meeting.

The Mandate Statements will be drafted by the Acting Registrar and Strategic Plan Working Group, to be approved at the May 2012 Board meeting.

Patient Relations

The Board discussed the feedback from registrants on the topic of dentists not being permitted to treat their spouses, in accordance with the Health Professions Act and CDSBC Bylaws. The Board recognizes the importance of this issue, and wishes to provide additional clarity and direction to registrants.

As part of this process, the Board will attend a Patient Relations workshop in September, to be led by Drs. Glen Gabbard and Maureen Piercey. Dr. Gabbard is an expert on the topic of professional boundaries, sexual misconduct and professionalism. Dr. Piercey is a former Deputy Registrar of the College of Physicians and Surgeons of BC, where she was responsible for matters relating to sexual misconduct and boundary violations by physicians.

CDRAF Update

The Canadian Dental Regulatory Authorities Federation (CDRAF) is the collective group of provincial regulators in Canada. The President reported that its bylaws require that the CDRAF president must have served on the Board for two years. The Board discussed the history of CDSBC representation at the CDRAF.

Terms of Reference for Audit and Finance Committees – Update

The Board has raised the question of whether CDSBC should have a Finance Committee in addition to an Audit Committee. This will be addressed through the Governance Project (see above).

Acting Registrar Update

Health Professions Review Board

Ms. Carmel Wiseman shared a recent decision from the Health Professions Review Board (HPRB) indicating that CDSBC’s investigation of a complaint was adequate and the Inquiry Committee’s disposition was reasonable. As part of the Governance project, the College intends to provide the Board with more reports of this nature.

Media Clippings

Staff distributed material from media sources and other documents relating to professional regulation and the regulation of dentistry in particular. Staff perform this type of environmental scanning in order to keep up to date on issues and trends in regulation. The Board indicated its preference to continue to receive this information on a monthly basis.

Staffing changes

Ms. Betty Richardson, Director of Operations, will retire at the end of April after more than 19 years at CDSBC. The incoming Director of Operations is Ms. Sandra Harvey, who currently holds the position of Manager of Regulation. Ms. Sonia Visconti, formerly Administrative Assistant to the Registrar, has moved to the position of Communications Assistant. Ms. Elmira Jasarevic, Complaints Officer, will be moving to the new position of Committee and Sedation Program Officer. The College is currently recruiting for a new Complaint Officer.