The Ministry of Health recently announced significant changes to the BC Care Aide Registry, and the registration process for Canadian-trained HCAs. As outlined in the Ministry of Health’s news release, the province is initiating the following reforms:
- Health care assistants living in other provinces will no longer need a B.C. address to apply to the BC Care Aide and Community Health Worker Registry.
- Eligible applicants will not be required to take the Nursing Community Assessment Service (NCAS) and pay the $800 fee.
- After qualifying for the new faster pathway, out-of-province Canadian-trained health care assistants will be enrolled in a standardized orientation program. This new pathway is expected to take effect on January 15th, 2020.
In order to communicate the details of this new policy, the Ministry of Health has agreed to hold a teleconference. Hosted by Joanne Maclaren, ED of the Nursing Policy Secretariat, this call will provide information on the new standardized orientation program, as well as the responsibilities of workers and employers.
The teleconference is scheduled for December 18th from 1 p.m. to 2 p.m. To register for this teleconference, please contact Lara Croll at lara@bccare.ca. Teleconference details will be emailed to you.
