Town Hall Meetings on Access and Scope of Practice

This fall the OPA will be holding Town Hall Meetings in several districts across Ontario.

The purpose of a Town Hall is to provide information about the current environment as well as association activities to address these issues. Even more importantly, it allows OPA’s Board of Directors and staff to seek input from the membership to help us respond to specific issues or situations as they arise and to develop the services and resources members need.

The focus of this year’s Town Halls will be access to physiotherapy services and the status of the scope of practice review and current legislation, Bill 179, currently in the legislative process. If you have ever wondered about any of the following questions we welcome you to attend one of the town halls and join in the discussion.

• Do Ontarians in your region have barriers to accessing the physiotherapy they need?
• What is the role of the public health system in ensuring access to physiotherapy services in your area?
• What is the role of the Association as well as individual physiotherapists in helping to protect publicly funded physiotherapy?
• What does Bill 179 and the changes to scope of practice for physiotherapists mean to you as a physiotherapist in Ontario?
• What are the next steps? When can we start seeing changes if the legislation passes?

These meetings will be facilitated by OPA staff and at least one member of the Board of Directors. They will focus specifically on the topics of both access to physiotherapy services and changes to scope of practice.

Dates and Locations:

October 23rd, 7:00 – 9:00 pm
Thunder Bay Sports Dome - Conference Room
(141 Northern Avenue - behind Silver City)
Board Member: Christopher Winn

October 28th, 6:30 – 9:00 pm
Kingston Brewing Company (upstairs)
34 Clarence St., Kingston
Board Member: Michael Major

November 3rd, 6:30 – 9:00 pm
Grand River Sports Medicine Centre
700 Strasburg Rd., Kitchener
Board Members: Stephen Patton, Mark Beadle

November 4th, 6:30 – 9:00 pm
Days Inn
960 Sixth St. East, Owen Sound
Board Member: Mark Beadle

November 9th, 6:30 – 9:00 pm
University of Toronto
500 University Ave, Room 140
Board Member: Mark Beadle

November 12th, 6:30 – 9:00 pm
Four Points Sheraton St. Catharines
3530 Schmon Parkway, Thorold
Board Member: Karen Tausendfreund, Mark Beadle

While attendance is free, we require that you register for this event, in order to help us plan for food and seating. Any member interested in attending a meeting should R.S.V.P. to physiomail@opa.on.ca. Questions or concerns can also be fielded here.

We recognize that these topics will be of interest to many of our members across the province so, in addition to these meeting dates, we plan on holding a web conference which will cover the same information as the Town Hall meetings. Further information will follow by email.