Considerations When Establishing an
Independent RT Community Practice
Although the majority of RTs who work in the community are employed by home care companies or community care clinics, RTs are able to set up their own independent practice. This requires the RT to establish processes for securing client’s health records, set fees for their services, ensure they have the required level of professional liability insurance and that they attain optimal business ethics.
How this Guide Links to the Professional Misconduct Regulation
1. BUSINESS PRACTICES
19. Submitting an account or charge for services that a member knows is false or misleading.
20. Charging a fee that is excessive in relation to the service rendered.
21. Failing to disclose the fee schedule or payment structure prior to delivery of services or failing to provide the patient or patient with sufficient time to refuse the treatment and arrange for alternative services.
22. Failing to itemize an account for fees charged by the member for professional services rendered,
i. if requested to do so by the patient or patient or the person or agency who is to pay, in whole or in part, for the services, or
ii. if the account includes a commercial laboratory fee.
23. Selling any debt owed to the member for professional services; this does not include the use of credit cards to pay for professional services.
i How changing patient expectations will impact your practice. http://practicemanagement.dentalproductsrepoRT.com/aRTicle/how-changing-patient-expectations-will-impact-your-practice?page=0,1 (July, 2018)
ii CRTO Standards of Practice, Standard 1 – Business Practices
iii Ibid.
How this Guide Links to the Advertising Regulation
(1) In this Part, an advertisement with respect to a member’s practice includes an advertisement for gases used for medical purposes, equipment, supplies or services that includes a reference to the member’s name.
(2) An advertisement with respect to a member’s practice must not contain,
(a) anything that is false or misleading;
(b) anything that, because of its nature, cannot be verified;
(c) a claim of expertise in any area of practice, or with respect to any procedure or treatment, unless the advertisement discloses the basis of the expertise;
(d) an endorsement other than an endorsement by an organization that is known to have expertise relevant to the subject-matter of the endorsement;
(e) a testimonial by a patient or patient or former patient or patient or by a friend or relative of a patient or patient or former patient or patient; or
(f) anything that promotes or is likely to promote excessive or unnecessary use of services.
(3) An advertisement must be readily comprehensible to the persons to whom it is directed.
(4) A member must not permit his or her name to be used in an advertisement that contravenes subsection (2) or (3).
(5) A member must not advertise by initiating contact, or causing or allowing any person to initiate contact, with potential patients or patients or their personal representatives either in person or by telephone, in an attempt to solicit business.
(6) Despite subsection (5), a member may advertise by initiating contact with a potential patient or a personal representative of a potential patient if the potential patient does not personally use or consume the gases, equipment, supplies or services that are the subject of the advertisement.
(7) A member must not appear in, or permit the use of his or her name in, an advertisement that implies, or could reasonably be interpreted to imply, that the professional expertise of the member is relevant to the subject-matter of the advertisement if it is not relevant. O. Reg. 596/94, s. 23.