Proposed changes to registration regulation to register sonographers (Consultation Closed)

My suggestion to CMRTO is that , once we registered with CMRTO ,  than this should be a governing body for sonographer NOT   ARDMS or   sonography canada  moreover  the employer in ontario , before hiring they have to ask for only CMRTO registration .In this way  we don't have to pay , multiple dues .

CMRTO  should be  flexible for existing sonographer , during grandfather period.  Their judgement should be fair . The reason Iam  saying this   is that ,  90 %  of the sonographer is ontario are  international medical graduate , and in their o wn country only doctor is allowed to do ultrasound , It means the sonographer who were doctor in their home country are way more experienced .

may I suggest the a name for the college: Medical Imaging college of Ontario MICO)

The college of medical imaging of Ontario (CMI) to satisfy all modalities.

It is an excellent move on part of the college to house all imaging modalities under one umbrella and one set of guidelines and rules

"Applicants must meet all of the requirements for registration in the same area of practice within diagnostic medical sonography (general sonography, cardiac sonography or vascular sonography each being considered an area of practice) in order to be registered in the specialty of diagnostic medical sonography."  - this means that we will have to pass a licence( board exam ) to  be register in the speciality we work? In my case I hold ARDMS for adult echo- is this gone be enough  to be register for "cardiac sonography"?. I  also have a membership with Sonography canada in good standing but without any credentials just because Sonography was never recognized before by the ministry of health to be on charge of Sonographers. I work for the last 15 years in a teaching hospital and my ARDMS was good enough to teach many Cardiology residents.  I am asking you in the name of a group of experienced Sonographers   to get a straight answer regarding this. Will be ARDMS  credential enough or we will have to go and pass Sonography exam?  

CMRTO response: The requirement that an applicant must meet all requirements for registration in the same area of practice within diagnostic medical sonography is an element of the on-going registration requirements that apply to all individuals wishing to practise diagnostic medical sonography in Ontario after the grandparenting period.

Initially, there will be a one-year grandparenting period starting in January 2018 to permit those individuals working competently in diagnostic medical sonography currently or within the last three years to apply for registration as a DMS. These individuals may not have completed an approved educational program or approved examination.

You can find out more about the grandparenting period on the CMRTO website at www.cmrto.org. We will send out regular ‘DMS Updates’ as the regulations proceed.

Hello, I am currently a practicing MRT(R), CRGS & RVT. 

My concerns moving forward with licensing under CMRTO is in regard to echocardiography and vascular technology.  Currently all I have read is to do with just general ultrasound and does not go into details for echo and vascular.  Currently, if we hold a certification from an accredited general ultrasound school we have the ability to train on the job and work towards our echo and vascular certification.  This is essential in rural Ontario, especially in the North, as it is very difficult to recruit echo technologists to the region as there is already such a shortage of echo techs.  I feel the quality of the scanning is still very high, especially now that sonographers have to go test at cardiac centres after completing their Sonography Canada licensing exam to ensure they are scanning at the highest quality. I hope that moving forward with CMRTO they take into consideration the need for on the job training of accredited ultrasound technologists to ensure we continue to be able to serve our rural communities in all aspects of ultrasound.

Thank you

!.We can not be under CMRTO it will confuse patient .We are doing ultrasound not any test related to radiation.

2. All credentials should be recognized RVT,RDSC etc

3.It will not improve any patient care

4.It should be up to Employer to make sure all sonographers are register

5. .Ministry should only paying  for test done by register sonographers

6.It is insulting for sonographer to pay exrta money to CMRTO to be accepted to their organization. 

hi 

I have a question from   CMRTO  .  Once we are regulated by them. is there will be criteria for pay scale  because there are many employer , who are just using sonographers  and give them lower  salary . when we ask for raised they said "  this is what you can have  and you should be thankfull that you are working "  

please make a strict rule for these kind of employer .who are abusing  sonographer . and make pay scale  according to the level of seniority . 

thanks 

I'm sorry but it is an absolute joke that individuals will be able to perform sonography who have not completed a proper training course under the "Grandparenting" policy. If I thought I was handy with electrical work from watching youtube videos it doesn't mean I should be allowed to wire a house.

good change 

The regulation of sonographers has been a long process and I am pleased sonographers will now be recognized as a profession and that the public accessing medical diagnostic ultrasound services in Ontario will have protection from potential risk of harm. The  set standards for  the practice for sonography will provide assurance that there will be uniform practice of sonography across Ontario.

The year for grand parenting is positive, allowing sonographers practicing competently in the various areas of expertise(general, vascular and echocardiography) to continue to practice with out additional examination with supporting documentation of competent practice.

The proposed registration requirements moving forward are fair and equitable.  

Hopefully with my "new" credentials I can ask for a raise to pay for that annual fee.

Dear CMRTO

As a sonographer registered with ARDMS and Sonography Canada if I wish to move to Ontario after the grandfathering time, would I need to take a course and write exams or would my ARDMS and Sonography Canada credentials be accepted by CMRTO to obtain DMS in Ontario.

Regards

I think regulate the practice of medical diagnostic sonography will serve the best interest of canadian medical sonographers by protecting the profession, and set a national standard for entry level ,.and join the safety of being recognized as a regulated profession.

I have worked steadily in the ultrasound field  for over 20 years, initially in a busy downtown hospital and then in private diagnostic imaging centres. Recently I decided to change my place of employ  and had visited various clinics to interview. I looked at everything when I was considering a job because I really care about what I do. I was fortunate to be credentialed in many specialties and to possess a lot of  clinical experience but it took time for me to find a good place to work. It was far from easy.

It surprised me to see some equipment in clinics with such poor quality images. Endovaginal ultrasound transducers were being soaked in the ultrasound room with the patient and sonographer present , where there was  lack of ventilation .  Fixed Examination tables were being used instead of Stretchers that could be raised or lowered for the ease of the patient.  The fixed tables also required the sonographer to stand with their arm in an awkward position for a long period of time.  One such clinic had just passed an inspection by the CPSO ( College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario) . I was a little shocked.

The most disturbing trend in most clinics is the short booking times for all examinations.   Exams are being booked in some places for various specialties  in  15 -20 min booking slots . The pressure to be faster and produce more volume is a requirement for the sonographer hired in most places to offset the reduction in the service fees outlined by the Ministry of Health

The fact is:  Shortened examination times result in many cases with pathology being missed. This in NO way protects the public and in fact puts sonographers in a high risk situation. Who is ultimately responsible if a sonographer misses something when there is inadequate time given for the examination??? or Subpar equipment?? A sonographer is required to bring the patient into the room, take a history, perform the examination, write up a technical report and review and document prior imaging measurements of pathology for the radiologist if the patient is here for followup. The Sonographer today is sometimes required to add billing and scan all technical reports for the radiologist. The Sonographer today is required to teach in the clinical setting but given inadequate time to do a thorough job with inadequate or no extra pay .There  can also be subtle  adverse employment  actions that make it difficult to remain at your job if you voice your opinion therefore for a lot of sonographers it is better not to voice your opinion at all.

Jobs are scarce therefore  sonographers have to make due with what is out there but there is little in place to protect a sonographer when an injury occurs due to repetitive strain . The cause in most cases is due to the pressure to perform. Be faster , Complete more cases in your allotted shorter booking  times. The use of of Improper chairs. Improper tables. I have had many colleagues and friends in this profession that have eventually had to leave our field because of repetitive strain injuries.

Financially sonographers also have to survive too.  We have bills to pay. Cost of living increases but the pay of the sonographer decreases to offset the service fee cut backs . How fair is that ?  I am making less pay now than when I worked in the hospital  over 10 years ago. Short booking times for certain examinations is very unfair to the sonographer and extremely unfair to the patient. A life can be lost . A malignant lesion missed when there is time for treatment . Fetal loss  because something was missed on a biophysical profile obstetrical examination. These are devastating outcomes.

There must be a system in place to regulate the times for examinations. Knowledgeable people with the credentials and clinical experience need to evaluate clinics and hospitals to take a deeper look at what is really going on.

 I hope the CMRTO becomes the voice of the sonographer. In the end , we strive to do the best we can for the patient and the Mandate of the CMRTO is to protect the public. We need to also protect the sonographer in the workplace and by doing so this will also protect the public. These two  go hand in hand.

I don’t feel I should become part of a professional organization with the word “radiation “ in it.  Never have nor ever will administer radiation.  

I believe that there are still concerns that should be addressed before setting a timeline with grandfathering, etc.  The diverse specialties being labelled as DMS is not specific to the public as to what the sonographer is qualified to perform. There needs to be more time given to have these concerns reviewed and accepted by the majority of the Ontario Sonographers involved in this process.

Diagnostic sonographers need to be competent and qualified, however, this regulatory board has not given me enough information to understand WHAT they will be doing to ensure this. The annual fees should be broken down to explain what they are contributing to the diagnostic sonography profession.