Our Mission
OPENetwork’s accredited programs are designed to deepen healthcare professionals' understanding and confidence regarding the diagnosis and treatment of mental and physical illnesses, which will strengthen their alliance with patients and drive better health outcomes.
Governance
OPENetwork is governed by a board of specialists and family physicians committed to practicing patient-centred, evidence-based healthcare, which is informed by clinical experience and empathy for patients and their families. Click here to view our Board of Directors.
Our Purpose
To uncover and address the educational needs of healthcare professionals through practitioner-focused program development and delivery.
To develop enriching and engaging programs that adult learners will experience as highly relevant, valuable, and ultimately, practice-changing.
To effectively impart competencies and skills, by engaging Canadian healthcare providers from all areas of practice, to improve the delivery of health care and thus, health outcomes.
Compliance in Continuing Medical Education/Continuing Professional Development (CME/CPD)
At OPENetwork, we believe that Continuing Medical Education/Continuing Professional Development (CME/CPD) is the responsibility of all health care providers – both as educators and as learners. We acknowledge that relationships with pharmaceutical and health supply industries provide valuable resources to patients and physicians, including funding for research and educational activities that would not otherwise be possible. However, the interests of such organizations that directly fund the development and delivery of CME/CPD activities cannot be assumed to be primarily concerned with addressing the educational needs of the medical profession. Therefore, it is imperative that health care professionals and physician organizations operate with the utmost integrity where industry-associated CME/CPD activities are concerned.
In January 2018, Canada established national compliance standards for accreditation bodies in order to minimize the potential for bias in learning where industry-associated CME/CPD activities are concerned. Physicians are expected to follow ethical guidelines for interactions with industry set by the Canadian Medical Association to avoid conflicts of interest and ensure collaborative efforts keep within their primary obligation to patients and society.
To safeguard the integrity of CME/CPD activities, OPENetwork operates within a framework (1) of strict compliance standards set out by The Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada, The College of Family Physicians of Canada and Collège des Médecins Du Québec.
We are committed to addressing the educational needs of the medical profession and improving patient care through high quality CME/CPD events. To ensure that pharmaceutical companies remain at arms reach from the invitation and recruitment process, and that physicians participate within national compliance frameworks, we recruit speakers for CME/CPD projects, invite individuals, and compensate physician speakers using funds requested from industry that are held in trust by OPENetwork.
For more information or to work with OPENetwork to develop your next CME/CPD or community educational project, contact us here.
To become a member, please click here.