Continuing Education (CE) Requirements

The continuing education (CE) requirement exists to ensure that naturopathic physicians in practice continually maintain their competency in all related areas necessary to the practice of naturopathic medicine in British Columbia. This enables naturopathic physicians to provide their patients with current professional naturopathic healthcare, and also serves to protect the public. It is also mandated under the College’s Bylaws.

Evidence-based measurement should be used where possible to assure desired competencies have been assimilated. This is consistent with the direction of health professions across North America focusing on Continuous Quality Improvement initiatives.

Registrants must complete a minimum of 40 hours of continuing education over each two-year CE period. The current CE period is January 1, 2022 to December 31, 2023. All registrants should complete a minimum of 5 hours in Category A, 12 hours in Category B, and 3 approved hours in Category G. Registrants who hold College certifications must complete 2 hours in Category E per certification. Registrants who hold certification in Prescriptive Authority must complete 10 hours of approved Category F (See Category F below for more details). The remaining hours may be completed through any category.

How to report and calculate your CE hours

New registrants: For those whose registration came into effect after the start of the CE period, your continuing education requirements will be prorated based off your initial registration date.

Q: What are my CE requirements? Your individual category requirements can be found on the Registrant Online Self Service system (ROSS). Once logged in, proceed to the “Continuing Education” tab, and then select the “Activities” tab. Here you will see a summary of your required category hours, and the hours you have submitted.

Q: Can I claim hours for my CPR/BLS, or NALS?  Yes, life support training and advanced life support training can be claimed under Category C: Other Educational Conferences, Courses or Seminars

See below for details regarding each of the categories.

Category A – Annual General Meetings

A required minimum of five (5) CE hours by attending the following meetings:

Registrants can claim Category A for time attended. Supporting documentation/proof of attendance is not required for the CNPBC Annual General Meetings.

Category B – Approved Regulated Jurisdiction Conferences

A required minimum of 12 CE hours from a conference or seminar offered directly by an official provincial or state association in a regulated jurisdiction, such as the British Columbia Naturopathic Doctors (BCND), the Ontario Association of Naturopathic Doctors (OAND), or one of the following national naturopathic organizations: the Canadian Association of Naturopathic Doctors (CAND), American Association of Naturopathic Physicians (AANP) or the North West Naturopathic Physicians Association (NWNPA).

Conferences or seminars provided by other naturopathic organizations may qualify for Category C CE hours but do not qualify for Category B. Similarly, conferences or seminars approved or recognized by provincial or state naturopathic associations may qualify for Category C CE hours but do not qualify for Category B.

Category C – Other Educational Conferences, Courses or Seminars

Additional CE hours are available by attending the following conferences, courses, or seminars. Submissions do not require pre-approval from the College. Registrants are expected to use their best professional judgment when determining if the entry meets one of the criteria listed below:

  • Seminars sponsored by any other medical and professional organizations such as chiropractic, medical, nursing, psychology, acupuncture, etcetera;
  • Nutriceutical and pharmaceutical company sponsored educational seminars; and
  • Teleconference, web-conference, video and audio recordings of seminars, computer-based learning programs and all other distant-learning programs.

Registrants may claim Category C CE hours for these conferences, courses or seminars provided they meet the following requirements:

– No commercial bias or product placement;

– Every product mentioned is referred to in a similar manner throughout the presentation;

– Generic names are used in presentations whenever possible for all devices, laboratory tests, natural health products, etcetera;

– If a brand name is used, it is to appear after the generic name (e.g. in parenthesis).

Certificate of course completion should include: name of provider; name of course, conference or seminar; name of participant; total number of hours attended; date of successful completion; and, if there is room, name of course instructor(s).

Category D – Education, Service & Professional Development

The College accepts up to a maximum of 10 hours per CE period for the following Category D activities. Unless otherwise noted, hours are granted on the basis of one (1) hour for each two (2) hours of activity. When uploading these CE hours in the Registrant Online Self-Service (ROSS) system, registrants should submit a summary of the activity.

  • Teaching: Offering courses or workshops to either the public or other professionals. (Summary should include details regarding the course name, date, and location.)
  • Service: Serving on Committees or Boards of the College or the BCNA. (Summary should include details regarding which Committee or Board.)
  • Professional Development:  Attending courses related to personal and professional development including accounting, business, communication skills, financial management, leadership development, office management, public speaking, and related topics. (Summary should include details regarding the course name, date, and location.)
  • Preceptoring and Mentoring:  Includes offering preceptorship for a student or supervising another registrant as part of a mentorship program. Review the College’s Continuing Education (CE) Policy: Supervised practice/Preceptorship for important information regarding these arrangements and the allocation of CE hours for both the mentor/preceptor and mentee/preceptee. (Summary should include details regarding dates and timing, the general nature of the supervision or practice observation, and the names of both the mentor/preceptor and mentee/preceptee.)

Category E – Certifications

For each CNPBC certification, registrants must successfully complete at least two (2) hours, per two (2) year CE period, of relevant CE in the specified aspect of practice covered by the certification. If you have obtained a new certification after the start of the CE period, the two (2) hour requirement will automatically be prorated for you on the ROSS.

Category E CE hours may be obtained through:

  • Courses, or conferences relevant to the specified aspect of practice;

Certificate of course completion should include the name of provider; name of course, conference or seminar; name of participant; total number of hours attended; date of successful completion; and, if there is room, name of course instructor(s).

  • Currency: Registrants may be exempt from the above-noted CE requirements upon providing evidence of currency in a specified aspect of practice. Two (2) hours of continuing education in Category E may be claimed for every fifty (50) treatments performed as a practising registrant who is certified in the aspect of practice. To claim these hours, proceed to the Registrant Online Self Service system (ROSS) to download a Certification Tracking Log under the Forms & Resources tab > Continuing Education.

*Certification in Prescriptive Authority does not apply to the Category E requirements. For more information, see Category F (Prescriptive Authority), below.

Category F – Prescribing Authority  

Registrants who hold CNPBC certification in Prescriptive Authority, are required to obtain ten (10) hours in approved courses per two-year CE period. Registrants taking the ten (10) hours in a single prescribing topic (e.g. bioidentical hormones) may only use that topic once and need to take other topics in the future. It is permissible to take the same topic again if it is part of a multi-topic prescribing review.

Category F hours can only be claimed from hours that the Quality Assurance Committee has reviewed and received the Board’s approval. A list of the approved Category F course options can be found on the Registrant Online Self-Service (ROSS) system, under the Forms & Resources tab > Continuing Education.

Q: I just obtained Certification in Prescriptive Authority; do I need to complete all ten (10) approved hours by the end of the CE period? Registrants who have obtained Certification in Prescriptive Authority between January 2022 and December 2023, are not required to meet the ten (10) hour requirement until the end of the following two (2) year CE period (2024-2025).

Category G – Ethics, Professionalism & Cultural Safety

The College has established this category to encourage professional development in the areas of cultural safety, cultural humility, ethics, and jurisprudence. Registrants are required to complete three (3) hours in approved courses per two-year CE period.

Category G hours can only be claimed from hours that the Quality Assurance Committee has reviewed and received the Board’s approval. A list of the approved Category G options can be found on the Registrant Online Self-Service (ROSS) system, under the Forms & Resources tab > Continuing Education.

Prior Approval of Category F and G CE Hours

The Quality Assurance Committee is responsible for reviewing submissions and making recommendations to the Board regarding the approval of content that satisfies the requirements for Continuing Education. Typically, requests are submitted by the providers of the course, conference, or seminar, and registrants may want to contact the provider to obtain the required information. Please note that, depending on the meeting schedules of the Quality Assurance Committee and the Board, the approval process may take some time. Once approved, courses will be added to the list of approved courses posted in the Registrant Online Self-Service (ROSS) system in the Forms & Resources folder. Course providers may fill out and submit the following application form to the College to have their content considered for approval for CE hours: Course Application Form.