January 29, 2025

2024: A Year of Milestones for Evaluation Services Re-envisioned

Canadian Alliance of Physiotherapy Regulators. Alliance canadienne des organismes de réglementation de la physiothérapie.

Welcome to 2025!

This year marks a pivotal time for CAPR as we continue to implement our Evaluation Services Re-envisioned (ESR) initiative: a two-year project that focuses on improving and modernizing the entry-to-practice competency assessment model to prepare Canadian and internationally educated physiotherapists (CEPTs/IEPTs) for licensure in Canada. The year 2024 laid the foundation for this important work and was filled with milestones that brought us to where we are today.

The ESR project was officially launched in February 2024, with the overarching goals of creating one new entry-to-practice exam that will replace the two-exam model, updating the credentialling program, and enhancing supports for IEPTs seeking licensure in Canada.

Examinations Program

In early 2024, CAPR began developing the new physiotherapy entry-to-practice examination (referred to in this blog as the “new exam”). CAPR assembled an Exam Program Advisory Committee (EPAC) composed of representatives from accredited physiotherapy programs and physiotherapy regulatory bodies, as well as physiotherapists from various practice settings and educational backgrounds. The EPAC was created to provide guidance and input into the structure of the new exam. CAPR also retained consultants from Meazure Learning to facilitate the development of the blueprint for the new exam. To inform the work of the EPAC, CAPR sent out a survey in May 2024 to all physiotherapy regulators. This survey gathered feedback on critical areas for assessment at entry-to-practice, categories of complaints, and priorities for the new exam. In June 2024, the EPAC extensively reviewed the entry-to-practice milestones in the Competency Profile for Physiotherapists in Canada (2017) and identified a preliminary subset of milestones to be assessed on the new exam. This marked a significant step in the new exam’s blueprint development. In September 2024, the milestones were validated through a survey sent to practicing physiotherapists across Canada. In December 2024, the new blueprint was approved by the CAPR Board.

The new exam will focus on critical competencies (both clinical and non-clinical) that are required to perform safely, effectively, and independently at entry-to-practice. Moreover, it will test these competencies using assessment methods that are best suited for measuring the intended constructs, including traditional multiple-choice questions, enhanced multiple-choice questions using multimedia (images, videos, and/or audio clips), and oral questions.

The content/item development process for the new exam will take place throughout 2025.  If you are interested in getting involved with CAPR and making a meaningful contribution to physiotherapy assessment in Canada, we invite you to visit the ‘Get Involved’ section on our website.  

Credentialling Program

In spring 2024, CAPR also began the development of a new credentialling program that will evaluate an IEPTs education, knowledge, and skills to determine if they are substantially different from those of CEPTs. In recent years, CAPR has received a significant increase in the number of credentialling applications (more than 1,900 in 2024), and we expect this number to continue to grow. The new credentialling program will provide more feedback and support for IEPTs seeking licensure in Canada. CAPR retained Construct Measures to lead the development of this program. The year 2024 also saw the creation of the Credentialling Program Advisory Committee (CPAC), which informed the new credentialling program’s development. Similar to the EPAC, the CPAC is comprised of subject matter experts from across Canada, including from physiotherapy bridging programs and physiotherapy regulatory bodies, as well as physiotherapists from various practice areas and educational backgrounds.  With support from the CPAC, new assessment pathways and tools have been identified. We are excited to share more details about the program in the coming months. If you are an IEPT and interested in getting involved in this project, please sign up online.

Pre-Approved Credentialling Pathway

The year 2024 also marked the development of the ESR’s Pre-Approved Credentialling Pathway for IEPTs. With funding secured from the British Columbia Ministry of Health (BCMOH), CAPR contracted with the Accessing Centre for Expertise (ACE) to assess how the physiotherapy practice and training contexts of other countries and jurisdictions align with Canadian standards. ACE developed a detailed comparative case analysis of physiotherapy systems, and a rubric to guide the selection of countries and jurisdictions for a new pathway. This research provided CAPR with an objective, evidence-informed framework to evaluate physiotherapy practice and training contexts from different jurisdictions against Canadian standards. In late 2024, CAPR announced that it would be introducing a new Pre-Approved Credentialling Pathway (PACP) to the Physiotherapy Competency Examination (PCE). IEPTs Applicants who are educated in, and are either registered to practise or are eligible to be registered to practise without restriction in Australia, Hong Kong, Ireland, New Zealand, South Africa, the United Kingdom, and the USA will qualify for this new pathway.  This new approach will decrease the credentialling timelines for all IEPTs wishing to practise in Canada by simplifying applications for IEPTs educated in certain jurisdictions and allowing CAPR to focus its time and resources on applicants who require more individualized assessment. The implementation of the PACP was officially announced in January 2025. Learn more about this exciting initiative.

We sincerely thank our clients and system partners for their support and collaborations that made these achievements possible in 2024. We look forward to continuing this important work together. 

Please stay connected with CAPR online for the latest updates (Facebook, LinkedIn and X).

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