January 2023 Newsletter
Decolonizing Complaints | Standard 12 | Board Appreciation | Creating and maintaining a safer complaints system for Indigenous peoples | On September 30, 2022, COBC adopted Standard 4: Indigenous Cultural Safety, Cultural Humility, and Anti-Racism. To support the fulfillment of this new standard—and increase Indigenous Anti-Racism in COBC spaces, services, and systems—we have engaged in a meaningful project that will make Indigenous Anti-Racism a foundational part of our complaints and inquiry system. This important work will create and maintain systems, services, and spaces in the complaints and inquiry process that will be more accessible, relevant, and safe for Indigenous peoples. COBC holds paramount Indigenous ways of knowing, being, and doing in all of this important work, while including essential Indigenous voices, perspectives, and worldviews of truth, justice, and conflict resolution and healing. Consultations with Indigenous legal experts, Indigenous members of the public, and Indigenous opticians is crucial. While there is a vast diversity of Indigenous peoples, histories, communities, languages, and laws across the lands and waters now commonly called British Columbia, the COBC complaints system will be adaptable to the specific cultural safety needs of each Indigenous person who accesses our services. This meaningful project creates and maintains the room for different Indigenous cultural safety needs to be supported in an accessible and relevant way. | Important terms for opticians to know | Indigenous-specific racism
“The unique nature of stereotyping, bias and prejudice about Indigenous peoples in Canada that is rooted in the history of settler colonialism. It is the ongoing race-based discrimination, negative stereotyping, and injustice experienced by Indigenous peoples in Canada that perpetuates power imbalances, systemic discrimination and inequitable outcomes stemming from the colonial policies and practices.”
(In Plain Sight, 2020, p. 214). | Colonialism
“Colonizers are groups of people or countries that come to a new place or country and steal the land and resources from Indigenous peoples, and develop a set of laws and public processes that are designed to violate the human rights of the Indigenous peoples, violently suppress the governance, legal, social, and cultural structures of Indigenous peoples, and force Indigenous peoples to conform with the structures of the colonial state.” (In Plain Sight, 2020, p. 212) | | Anti-racism
“Anti-racism is the practice of actively identifying, challenging, preventing, eliminating and changing the values, structures, policies, programs, practices and behaviours that perpetuate racism. It is more than just being ‘not racist’ but involves taking action to create conditions of greater inclusion, equality and justice.”
(In Plain Sight, 2020, p. 212) | Decolonization
“In Canada, decolonization is usually discussed in terms of the relationship between Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples, and particularly associated with the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada’s final report and Calls to Action. It is related to Indigenous resurgence (Indigenous people reclaiming and restoring their culture, land, language, relationships, health, etc., both independent of and with the support of non-Indigenous people). Decolonization is also associated with other relationships between groups of people within Canada and in other countries and contexts around the world, and for some, is linked to broader principles of inclusion and equity.”
(Queen’s University, n.d.) | | The COBC office stands in Coast Salish territory. For thousands of years prior to colonization on these lands, Coast Salish peoples codified and symbolized their values, laws, stories, histories, and more within a unique style of visual art (In Plain Sight, p. 124, 2020). As COBC embarked on the journey of decolonizing our complaints system, we recognized the power that Coast Salish visual art could have in guiding our discussions and decision making. COBC collaborated with Margaret August, Two-Spirit visual artist of the Shíshálh Nation in Coast Salish territory, to interpret the values of this project in a visual and culturally relevant way, based on meaningful discussions amongst our staff, Board, and Inquiry Committee. Below is this artwork. | Illumination
created by Margaret August
for the College of Opticians of British Columbia
2022 | Renewal ahead! The annual licence renewal period will begin on February 16 and run through March 31. During this time, all opticians in the province must renew their licensure—regardless of when they first became licensed. Opticians who fail to renew will be suspended at the end of the renewal period. Watch for our Renewal Guide in the February newsletter, along with everything you'll need to know for a quick and easy renewal. | | Spotlight on Standard 12
Privacy and Confidentiality Standard 12 describes how an optician respects clients' rights to the privacy and confidentiality of their personal and health information and complies with applicable legislation at all times.
Case Study #1
Reporting a privacy breach You are a Licensed Optician and the manager of an optical store. The store’s receptionist reports to you that the computer system and client records have suddenly become inaccessible due to what appears to be a cyber security breach. | | A cyber security breach is considered a privacy breach. In the event of such a breach, you must take steps to ensure that risk is managed. You review the Office of the Information & Privacy Commissioner’s Privacy Breach Checklist. The checklist helps you to identify whether you are required to report the breach to the Office of the Information & Privacy Commissioner in order to comply with the COBC Standard’s of Practice. Additionally, the checklist helps you to: - Complete a risk evaluation.
- Identify who must be notified of the breach.
- Determine how you can prevent further risk of harm.
You determine that a large number of client records containing personal information have been compromised and that some of the personal information is sensitive. Therefore, you determine that you must report the breach to the Office of the Information & Privacy Commissioner and request their assistance. You review information on reporting a privacy breach and complete the Online Privacy Breach Report Form. You use the information you’ve collected to complete the Privacy Breach Checklist and file your report.
What criteria from Standard 12: Privacy and Confidentiality were considered in Case Study #1?
12.1 Adhere to all relevant privacy and confidentiality legislation and regulatory requirements. 12.8 Report privacy breaches to the Office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner for British Columbia (OIPC) to ensure management and mitigation of risk.
Case Study #2
Considerations for retiring or sale of a business You are a Licensed Optician who is planning on selling your optical business. You review what responsibilities you have regarding your business’s client records and make an action plan for how to manage them. Through your review of the Personal Information Protection Act (PIPA), you determine that you may disclose personal information without consent in the sale of your business, as long as the following conditions are met: - The new business owner will maintain the store as an optical business and provide opticianry services to the public. (The personal information on file may only be used or disclosed for the purposes for which it was collected.)
- All clients whose personal information will be disclosed must be notified that the optical business will have a new owner and that their records will be transferred to a new optician.
Your hope is that your store will remain an optical business, but you make a back-up plan detailing what you would do with client files if the new owner chose to take the business in a different direction. In that case, you would need to transfer the files to another optician or securely store the files. You decide that you would transfer the files to an optician who works at an optical store a block away from your business. (Your clients’ personal information can be transferred to another optical business if that business will be providing opticianry services on behalf of your business after the sale of your business is completed.) The applicable clients would need to be notified of the transfer and of where their records were going. A client could also choose to collect their record to provide to a new optician of their choosing, instead of having their file transferred. Your action plan also details what to do with older or “inactive” client records. COBC requires you to keep client records for a minimum of three years and recommends you keep them for seven. This is counted from the date of the last entry in the record or the date when the client was last seen by you. You will have to sort through your client files to determine which ones should stay/be transferred and which ones must be destroyed. Section 20 of PIPA dictates the requirements for disclosing personal information in a business transaction. This section is the best place to start when creating an action plan related to the sale of your business to another optician or to a person who intends to maintain the business as an optical store. Additionally, you may wish to refer to A Guide to BC's Personal Information Protection Act for Businesses and Organizations, prepared by the Office of the Information & Privacy Commissioner. Guideline 7 contains a detailed outline, explanation, and tips for best practices in a business transaction, while Guideline 10 contains rules for protection and retention of personal information. Section 18(2) of PIPA allows for the disclosure of personal information to another organization if that organization will use the information for the purpose for which it was originally collected and will assist in carrying out work on behalf of the original organization. Section 18(2) provides guidance for selling your business to a non-optician or a person who does not intend to use the space as an optical store.
What criteria from Standard 12: Privacy and Confidentiality were considered in Case Study #2?
12.1 Adhere to all relevant privacy and confidentiality legislation and regulatory requirements. 12.4 Store, transfer, and dispose of client records in a manner that protects client confidentiality, except in circumstances specified by law. | Additionally, what criteria from Standard 14: Record Keeping and Billing were considered? 14.9 Retain all client records for a mandatory minimum of three years and a recommended maximum of seven years from date of last entry. 14.10 Destroy records containing personal or health information in a secure manner. 14.11 Upon retirement, sale of the practice, or extended closure of the practice, notify COBC of the change, and ensure that files are not abandoned and are securely transferred in accordance with applicable privacy legislation. 14.12 During an extended closure, take reasonable steps to ensure that clients can access their records.
Want more case studies? Privacy and confidentiality factor into every aspect of opticianry practice. Explore some other angles in this month's additional case studies.
| We want to hear from you Are you finding these case studies useful? Are there other formats or types of information you would like to see as we spotlight other Standards? Do you have specific questions about the Standards that you'd like to see answered? Take our 3-minute survey | New COBC Bylaws COBC's new bylaws are in effect as of January 9, 2023. To ensure you understand your professional obligations, it is highly recommended that you review the bylaws and contact COBC with any questions your may have. Review the bylaws | | Board meeting The COBC Board will hold its first meeting of 2023 on Thursday, January 26. The meeting will take place in person at COBC's offices at 200 Granville Street in Vancouver, beginning at 9:00 AM. As always, registrants are welcome to attend and observe the meeting. To RSVP, please contact Christopher at cdodge@cobc.ca. | | Accreditation Canada seeking Surveyors for EQual Program Every accredited optician education program in Canada goes through a rigorous third-party assessment process on a scheduled basis. This is how the accrediting body—Accreditation Canada—ensures that all programs meet the same high standards. Accreditation Canada's EQual Program relies on volunteer surveyors with profession-specific knowledge and expertise to assist in the review process. The program has immediate need for one optician educator and one optician practitioner. | | If you are interested in making a unique contribution to the field of opticianry by participating in the accreditation of optician education programs across Canada, follow the links below to learn more and apply! | Board appreciation:
Peter Luongo & Barbara Larkin At the end of January, the COBC Board and staff will bid a fond farewell to two board members who have dedicated countless volunteer hours to COBC in tireless pursuit of safer vision care for the BC public. | | As public appointees, Peter and Barb have each brought a unique perspective to the COBC Board—applying their own experience of professional regulation to opticianry and contributing powerfully to the governance of the organization. With an impressive background in both education administration and business, Peter has been consistently community-minded and meticulous in his approach. Barb, as a Registered Social Worker and strong community advocate, has grounded the board in its commitment to equity. For three of his eight years on the Board, Peter has served as Board Chair. He has also served on COBC's Inquiry, Patient Relations, and Registration Committees, and has been instrumental in the formation of the Governance Working Group. Over her four years on the Board, Barb has sat on the Discipline, Patient Relations, and Registration Committees. While we will miss them at the Board table, we are pleased to share that Peter and Barb will remain on the Inquiry Committee and Registration Committee, respectively. We are immensely grateful to both of them for their hard work and commitment to COBC. | Do you know whose land you live on? Madeline Neufeld grew up on the traditional territory of the Siksikaitsitapi, or Blackfoot Confederacy, surrounded by the Piikani, Kainai, and Siksika Nations. It was her honour to study the Blackfoot language as a student at Iniskim (the University of Lethbridge). She moved to the traditional, ancestral, and unceded territory of the kʷikʷəƛ̓əm (Kwikwetlem) Nation in 2016, before joining COBC as Manager of Registration in 2020. She now lives and works on the traditional, ancestral, and unceded Coast Salish territories of the Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish), səl̓ílwətaʔɬ (Tsleil-Waututh), and xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam) Nations. | College of Opticians of BC operates on the traditional, ancestral and unceded Coast Salish territories of the Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish), səl̓ílwətaʔɬ (Tsleil-Waututh) and xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam) Nations. | Unsubscribing from this email will revoke your consent to receive email correspondence from us as outlined in Canada’s Anti-Spam Legislation (CASL). We will no longer be able to send you important reminders pertaining to your licence, which may affect your registration with the College of Opticians of BC. Please contact us if you have any questions. | | | | |
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