Health Professions Database
Our healthcare system relies on a range of health professionals, each with unique expertise, to meet the health needs of Ontarians. However, we know very little about the 40% of the regulated health workforce in Ontario who provide valuable services in areas such as diagnostics, mental health, obstetrics, oral and vision care, rehabilitation and therapeutics.
Database Needed for Sound Health Human Resources Planning
Staff at the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care is working with 19 health regulatory Colleges of Ontario to address this gap by creating a database that will provide the evidence we need for sound health human resources planning about this important group of health professionals. The database is an initiative of the HealthForceOntario health human resources strategy.
Database Development
Over the summer, the Ministry and 19 health regulatory Colleges worked diligently to develop a minimum data set for the Health Professions Database. Once populated, the database will provide standardized, consistent and comparable demographic, geographic, educational, and employment information on all of the regulated allied health professionals in Ontario.
Over the next two years, the Colleges will be expanding their registration and renewal forms to collect additional information from their members. The process is supported by a recent amendment to the Regulated Health Professions Act that requires the regulatory Colleges to collect information from their members and provide it to the Ministry for health human resources planning.
Database to be Available in 2010 
The Colleges will begin to submit the data they collected in January 2009. Aggregate data and analytical reports from the database will be available on www.healthforceontario.ca in 2010.
Frequently Asked Questions
The Health Professions Database: Questions and Answers
Resources
PUBLIC NOTICE OF DATA COLLECTION 1. Collection of data for the Health Professions Database
19 health regulatory Colleges will be expanding their collection of personal information about their members, including basic demographic, geographic, education and employment information, and providing this information to the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care in anonymized form, for health human resources planning. 2. Authority for the collection of data for the Health Professions Database
Under section 36.1 of the Regulated Health Professions Act, 1991 (RHPA), the Ministry can request that regulatory colleges collect information, including personal information, from their members, and that this information be provided to the Ministry of Health and Long - Term Care. The RHPA provisions authorize the Ministry to collect this information from the Colleges, and use and disclose it, only for the purpose of health human resources planning, which means ensuring the sufficiency and appropriate distribution of health providers. If you have any questions about the collection, you can contact the Ministry's Health Professions Database Project Lead at forecasting@healthforceontario.ca or your regulatory College. |