Preceptor Criteria - Registered Pharmacy Student/Intern
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SPT Preceptor Criteria - Registered Pharmacy Students/Interns

The registration regulation that covers registration as a pharmacist is Regulation 202/94, as amended. It requires that every student or intern must have successfully completed in-service training under a preceptor acceptable to the Registration Committee. A pharmacist cannot act as a preceptor until the application has been confirmed by the College, and a certificate of registration has been issued to the student or intern. This policy outlines who is eligible to be a preceptor and how a preceptor is expected to function. The policy is not to be applied where the result might be to discriminate against a pharmacist who is disabled as that term is defined by the Ontario Human Rights Code. If that issue arises, the pharmacist’s application to be a preceptor shall be referred to the Registration Committee.

POLICY

1. Eligibility

a) A preceptor must be a pharmacist who practises in Ontario for at least 18 hours a week, and has been licensed and practising direct patient care in a Canadian jurisdiction for at least one year.

b) A preceptor must not undertake the in-service training of more than one registered student or intern for the purposes of fulfilling the requirements of the College’s Structured Practical Training (SPT) Program at any one time unless otherwise authorized by a panel of the Registration Committee.

c) A preceptor must not:

  1. have any terms, conditions or limitations on his/her certificate of registration other than those applicable to all members of the pharmacist class unless otherwise authorized by a panel of the Registration Committee;
  2. have been found to have committed an act of professional misconduct or to be incompetent by the Discipline Committee within the last six years unless otherwise authorized by a panel of the Registration Committee;
  3. have been found to be incapacitated by the Fitness to Practice Committee within the last six years unless otherwise authorized by a panel of the Registration Committee;
  4. have been the subject of allegations of professional misconduct or incompetence that have been referred to, but not yet decided upon by, the Discipline Committee; or
  5. have been the subject of allegations of incapacity that have been referred to, but not yet decided upon by, the Fitness to Practice Committee.
d) The preceptor must have met the training requirements of the College by either completing the College’s Preceptor Orientation Workshop or meeting the requirements to be a preceptor for the structured practical experiential program (SPEP) in the curriculum of the Leslie Dan Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Toronto.

e) To continue to be eligible to serve as a preceptor, the preceptor must have served as a preceptor and meet the additional educational requirements for preceptors as determined by the Registration Programs staff (currently required every three years).

f) The preceptor must practise in a pharmacy that meets the SPT Practice Site Criteria unless otherwise authorized by a panel of the Registration Committee. Click here to view the Practice Site criteria.

2. Conflict of Interest

Preceptors must not have or be perceived by the College to have a conflict of interest or bias in respect of the student or intern unless otherwise authorized by a panel of the Registration Committee. The existence of any factor which would be perceived as potentially compromising an objective, candid and fair assessment of the student or intern’s competency (eg. familial relationships [direct and indirect], financial or business connections) must be disclosed on the initial application if known at that time or as soon as the potential conflict or bias is identified. The disclosure requirement is applicable to both the applicant and the preceptor. Disclosure of the potential conflict of interest or bias will not necessarily preclude the preceptorship. Failure to disclose a potential conflict of interest may result in a referral to a panel of the Registration Committee that may determine that the student or intern will have to redo the SPT under a preceptor acceptable to the Registration Committee and could also result in the Registration Committee refusing to allow the pharmacist to act as a preceptor in the future.

3. Supervision and Assessment

a) The preceptor must take primary responsibility for supervising and assessing the student or intern for a minimum of 18 hours a week. The preceptor may delegate a portion of the supervision and assessment to other pharmacists or health care professionals as appropriate, and must delegate responsibility for direct supervision of the registered pharmacy student to a pharmacist while in a pharmacy when the preceptor is not available.

b) The preceptor must complete all required assessments of performance and submit the final assessment to the College within seven days of completion of training.

c) If the training is terminated for any reason by either party, the preceptor must complete and return an assessment to the College within seven days of that termination.

Policy Approved by Registration Committee: February 4, 2009