The Quebec Association of Physiotherapy (AQP), the Federation of Quebec Physiotherapy Clinics (FCPQ) and the Professional Order of Physiotherapy of Quebec (OPPQ) protest against the direct repercussions that a regulatory amendment will have on the access to care and services for people benefiting from rehabilitation interventions following an industrial accident or an occupational injury.
The new provisions of the Regulation on medical assistance (RMRAT), which entered into force on June 29, provide for the withdrawal of physiotherapy technologists, when they exclusively monitor rehabilitation interventions covered by the Standards Commission , equity, occupational health and safety (CNESST), the responsibility to produce and sign the resulting reports. However, physiotherapy technologists currently carry out a large part of the rehabilitation treatments offered to people injured at work.
Requiring from now on that a physiotherapist or other health professionals (doctor or specialized nurse practitioner) become responsible for the file, sign and transmit the progress reports will lead to substantial administrative delays, which will slow down the follow-ups and reduce the accessibility of care and services for the Quebec population. In addition, the rehabilitation process will include delays inherent in the regular reassessment of the worker by a professional other than the physiotherapy technologist.
These provisions violate the autonomy of physiotherapy technologists, who are physiotherapy professionals in their own right.
Their code of ethics as well as several standards of practice already determine the levels of responsibility that fall to them and clearly indicate which cases must be re-evaluated by a physiotherapist or other health professionals.
Our three organizations deplore this calling into question of the professional autonomy of physiotherapy technologists and their ability to monitor patients. No information provided during a meeting with the CNESST on June 28 justifies such a modification. These new provisions will induce additional costs in the services provided to clients with work injuries. They also mark a step backwards for the profession, interference by the CNESST in the supervision of the profession as well as inconsistency in the context of the reform of the Quebec health system, which aims for a judicious use of resources .