The College has various committees that support the work of the Board and College. Statutory committees are required by law. There are also non-statutory committees and advisory committees that support various initiatives and projects.
As of April 2024, the College has changed the structure of its Committees to support efficiency and enhanced decision-making. This change reduces the overlap in membership between the Board of Directors and statutory committees. The change allows the Board to focus on strategic decision-making and provides additional opportunities for registrant involvement at the Committee level.
Get involved with College committees
Occupational therapists can get involved with governance and health regulation at the College by becoming a Professional Committee Appointee.
Professional Committee Appointees at registered occupational therapists who serve on our College Committees and not on the Board. They are engaged professionals who make valuable contributions and help regulate occupational therapy in Ontario.
Calls for Professional Committee Appointees are shared through the College newsletter. Registrants are encourage to apply. The College's Committee Competency Framework is used to match appointees with vacancies.
Committee Competency Framework
The Committee Competency Framework builds upon the idea of the Board Competency Framework. In addition to ensuring representation of the optimal skills, expertise, and experiences, committees need to reflect the diverse populations that use occupational therapy services in Ontario. This diversity includes culture, gender, race, age, geographical setting, and practice setting.
View the Committee Competency Framework.
List of College committees
Statutory committees
These are committees that the law requires the College have to support the core regulatory functions of the Board. Each committee includes a mix of elected and public Directors, and Professional Committee Appointees.
As part of governance modernization, COTO has reduced the overlap in membership between elected Directors in the following committees:
- Inquiries, Complaints & Reports Committee
- Patient Relations
- Quality Assurance
- Registration
These changes allow Board Directors to focus on governance and oversight, while committee members can focus on the mandate of their committees. Increasing Professional Committee Appointees through our competency and needs-based recruitment also provides more diverse perspectives and expertise on committees.
Executive Committee
For matters that need to be dealt with right away, the Executive Committee has all the powers of the Board between Board meetings. However, the Executive Committee cannot make, amend, or revoke a regulation or bylaw.
- Number of meetings per year: 4 - 6
- Preparation time per meeting: 1 - 3 hours
Discipline Committee
The Discipline Committee holds hearings when cases are referred to it that allege an occupational therapist is guilty of professional misconduct or incompetence.
- Number of meetings per year: As required.
Fitness to Practise Committee
The Fitness to Practise Committee holds hearings to decide if an occupational therapist has physical or mental problems that make them unfit to practise.
- Number of meetings per year: As required.
Inquiries, Complaints & Reports Committee
This Committee reviews concerns about an occupational therapist’s practice that have been brought to the attention of the College.
- Number of meetings per year: 6 - 8
- Preparation time per meeting: 5 - 7 hours
Patient Relations Committee
This Committee develops and oversees the Patient Relations Program. Core elements of the program include:
development of standards of practice for registrants.
educating the profession, Board and staff about sexual abuse, conflict of interest, and professional boundaries.
informing the public about these issues.
administering the Sexual Abuse Therapy and Counselling Fund.
- Number of meetings per year: 4 - 5
- Preparation time per meeting: 1 - 3 hours
Quality Assurance Committee
This committee develops Quality Assurance policies and educational programs. This is to ensure occupational therapists who are registered with the College continue to be competent and keep abreast of developments in their field.
- Number of meetings per year: 4 - 6
- Preparation time per meeting: 1 - 3 hours
Registration Committee
The Registration Committee establishes and maintains the rules for registering with the College. It creates new policies for registration and reviews and revises existing policies. The Registration Committee also reviews applications referred by the Registrar. The committee gives written decisions with reasons on how the application will be treated.
- Number of meetings per year: 6 - 8
- Preparation time per meeting: 1 - 3 hours
Non-statutory committees
Non-statutory committees support the work of the Board and help carry out its responsibilities. These committees effectively address the diverse areas of its public protection mandate. Each committee is composed of a mix or combination of Board Directors, Professional and Community Appointees who focus on a particular area and bring forward recommendations to the Board.
Finance and Audit Committee
The Finance and Audit Committee assists the Board of the College of Occupational Therapists of Ontario in fulfilling its obligations and oversight responsibilities relating to financial planning and reporting, external audit, internal control systems, investments, and risk management.
Number of meetings per year: 4 - 6
Preparation time per meeting: 1 - 3 hours
Governance Committee
The Governance Committee is responsible for overseeing governance reform to enhance the quality of the Board of the College of Occupational Therapists of Ontario’s work through best governance practices.
Number of meetings per year: 4 - 6
Preparation time per meeting: 1 - 3 hours
Nominations Committee
The Nominations Committee assists the College in ensuring the Board and committees have members with the necessary competencies and attributes to enable them to fulfill their roles and public protection mandate. They are responsible for screening applicants seeking election to the Board and for recommending candidates for appointment to committees.
Practice Subcommittee
The Practice Subcommittee explores and provides recommendations on current occupational therapy practice issues.
- Number of meetings per year: 4 - 5
- Preparation time per meeting: 2 - 4 hours
Quality Assurance Subcommittee
The Quality Assurance Subcommittee's primary function is to provide recommendations to the Quality Assurance Committee on the ongoing development, implementation, and evaluation of the components of the Quality Assurance Program.
- Number of meetings per year: 4 - 5
- Preparation time per meeting: 1 - 3 hours
Advisory committees
Advisory committees are committees of the Board established to bring specific perspectives.
Equity Perspectives Advisory Committee
The Committee explores, discusses, and provides recommendations on current occupational therapy practice issues relevant to Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI).
Number of meetings per year: as required
Indigenous Insights Advisory Committee
The Committee explores, discusses, and provides recommendations on current occupational therapy practice issues relevant to Indigenous Peoples.
Number of meetings per year: as required
Policies
Code of Conduct
Conflict of Interest Policy
Policy to Approve Agents of the College
Confidentiality Policy
To learn more about the College's committees, please contact:
Elinor Larney, Registrar & Chief Executive Officer (CEO): [email protected]
Andjelina Stanier, Executive Assistant - Executive Office: [email protected]