Accreditation & Certification

OPDES is responsible for overseeing the development and implementation of all CME/CHE activities, whether live or web-based, that are approved for credits related to the College of Family Physicians of Canada (CFPC) and the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada (RCPSC).

Application Process

Renewal of Applications for Accreditation:

It is the responsibility of the program director (or delegate) to request CPD for an application for renewal. Renewal is possible if the program is run on an annual basis. Please contact CPD (cpd.che@queensu.ca) or FD (fac.dev@queensu.ca) for renewal of this event a minimum 6 weeks ahead of the start date of the next program.

Initiating the Application Process:

If you have not submitted an accreditation application before please consult with this guide for ease of reference. You will want to review the documentation content below before starting the application.

When you’ve familiarized yourself with the documentation you’ll be needing, please choose from one of the below application forms and you’ll be able to submit the form.

Continuing Professional Development Application Form (for programs that enhance healthcare prowess or knowledge)
Faculty Development Application Form (for programs that enhance teaching and learning within the health professions)

Earning and Redeeming Credits

For information on how to claim credits or credit requirements please visit the following links to your respective college below.

College of Family Physicians of Canada Mainpro+

Note: The College of Family Physicians of Canada launched the new MAINPRO+® on December 16th, 2024. For more information, please click here.

The Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada

Maintenance of Certification

Most Royal College Specialist participants have a five-year MOC cycle. If participating in a five-year MOC cycle, you must complete

a minimum of 250 credits over a 5-year cycle,
a minimum of 25 credits annually,
a minimum of 25 credits at the end of the five-year cycle in Section 3 (including one “Feedback Received” activity).

The annual deadline is January 31st of the following year to report your previous year activities. Click here for more details directly from the Royal College.

Glossary of Terms

“Mode of interactivity” refers to how the program, if group learning will have interactive components embedded. For group learning this needs to compose at least 25% of the accredited learning time in the agenda
“Didactic” refers to a style of learning whereby the instructor has primacy and delivers the learning in lectures or lecture like formats. It is characterized by limited interactivity for learners and must be explicitly supported with distinct engagement and interactive sections such as question and answer, group-work, and other active learning
“CME”- Continuing Medical Education- an older term that refers to continuing education efforts to improve the medical expertise of physicians. Considered an aspect of CPD
“CHE”- Continuing Health Education- an older term that adds in the health expertise of other health providers
“FD”- Faculty Development- refers to professional development programming in the health sciences that aims to augment teaching and learning skills and outcomes. Although it is up for debate, FD in health professions education is considered by Queen’s to be a crucial component of CPD, that has a specific purpose and expertise required for success.
“CPD”- Continuing Professional Development- an all-encompassing term for any continuing education in the health sciences.
“Asynchronous”- refers to learning designs where learning occurs on-demand and not at a defined time. For example, a lecture recording or online learning unit, where learners complete the program at their own pace on their own time.
“Synchronous”- refers to learning designs where learning occurs at a set time. For example, a live or virtual class held at 2pm where folks are all learning at the same time.

Accreditation Appendices

Required Appendices: Templates and Exemplars

COI disclosures from each speaker and planning committee member and the overall program disclosure slide: how this program mitigates bias
- AppendixA_Disclosures_ProgramName
Items used in the needs assessment/summary of findings (Previous program evaluations, objective mapping to needs assessment and CanMEDs, references, etc)
- AppendixB_NeedsAssessment_ProgramName
Program agenda, with the interactive components highlighted
- AppendixC_Agenda_ProgramName
Budget and All Sponsorship Agreements (including identifying sources of revenue, and disbursement of expenses)
- AppendixD_Budget_ProgramName
Post-Program Evaluation (including mandated questions above)
- AppendixE_Evaluation_ProgramName
Proposed program announcement/invitation, if applicable
- Invitation Example
Speaker Communication Template
- please upload adapted Queen's template if using
Planning Committee Meeting Minutes/Notes
- Appendix F_PlanningCommitteeActivity
Certificate template to be used which includes scientific planning committee chair's signature (If not using Queen's certificate template)
- AppendixG_CertificateTemplate