Save the Date for AMED 2023!
The College’s Annual Meeting and Education Day (AMED) will take place on Tuesday, June 13th. This year’s theme is Making the Connection: Professionalism, Accountability and Public Protection. The keynote speaker, Zelda La Grange, will present on her two decades of working closely with Nelson Mandela in post-Apartheid South Africa, reflecting on the connection to Canada’s journey towards reconciliation and inclusion. There will also be four educational sessions that will take place throughout the day.
We encourage registrants to join us for this engaging virtual event. Registration for this year’s event will open at the beginning of May. Please stay tuned for more information on how to register.
2023 Council Election
The 2023 Council Election will take place in Electoral District No. 3 on Thursday, May 25th. All College registrants who practise in District No. 3 are encouraged to participate in this important process.
Registrants can access further information about Council elections, including the voting process, by visiting the College website or by contacting elections@ocswssw.org.
Standards of Practice Review
Over the past two years, the College has been conducting a comprehensive review of its Standards of Practice. Once approved by Council, the revised Standards of Practice will impact every social worker and social service worker in Ontario, regardless of their area of practice. The proposed updates are intended to reflect societal changes and current practice in the professions of social work and social service work.
The Phase 2 stakeholder consultation has concluded, and further draft revisions will be made to the Standards of Practice. For more information on the Standards of Practice review, registrants can contact practice@ocswssw.org.
Governance Review Update
The College continues to work on implementing approved recommendations as set out in the Governance Report. This work will continue over the next year. Recommendations that have already been implemented include:
- Use of the term “registrant” instead of “member.”
- Change in title, from Council “President” to “Council Chair.”
- Creation of the new Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee.
- Establishment of term limits which prevent Council members from seeking a further term once they have served ten years.
A full list of the approved recommendations and action plan can be found on the College website. For questions related to the governance review, registrants may contact the Office of the Registrar at oor@ocswssw.org.
Public Awareness Campaign Update
As a result of its ongoing public awareness campaign, the College continues to see growth in visits to the Online Register of social workers and social service workers. Last year, the successful campaign – called “What’s in a name? Protection for you” – led to an 82% increase in visits to the College’s Online Register compared to 2021. The campaign includes advertising on digital media, in medical offices across Ontario, and on CP24, and in the future will include advertising on Spotify.
For further information about the public awareness campaign, registrants can contact communications@ocswssw.org.
Have You Checked? Unregulated Practitioners Webpage
In Ontario, only College registrants are permitted to use the titles “social worker/ registered social worker” and “social service worker/ registered social service worker,” their acronyms and French equivalents. Using any of the protected titles without being registered with the College is illegal.
To help inform Ontarians of unregulated practitioners, the College maintains a webpage which lists those individuals who are using the protected titles illegally. We will communicate with registrants about any changes and additions to the Unregulated Practitioners webpage, including the addition of individuals, in future issues of Perspective. In the meantime, registrants who become aware of any individual who is illegally using a protected title and/or holding themselves out as a social worker or social service worker, may report this information to the College at titleprotection@ocswssw.org.