News

With the passing of the Financial Measures Act, the government now has authority to make regulations requiring physicians to disclose all health records to the Minister.

The Minister has authority to access this personal health information for system planning and improvement. The government sees this authority as needed to empower patients and to inform the management of the healthcare system with data. The College supports the importance of these goals.

When I appeared before the Law Amendments Committee, I advanced the position that the Minister’s access to personal health information should be restricted to only aggregate, de-identified data.

The College of Physicians and Surgeons of Nova Scotia (the College) serves the public by regulating the province’s medical profession in accordance with the Nova Scotia Medical Act and its regulations.  Among other responsibilities, the College licenses physicians to practise medicine, supports high standards of medical practice, and investigates complaints about physicians.

The College celebrates International Transgender Visibility Day on March 31. This day is dedicated to celebrating and honouring transgender people with the aim of increasing the visibility and awareness of the transgender community.

The government is moving forward with changes to the Personal Health Information Act (PHIA).  Once enacted, physicians (and all other health professionals) will be required to disclose their patient medical records to the Minister of Health. The parameters of the Minister’s access to patient records and the specifics of the data governance have not yet been defined.

In the view of the College, this new legislation will have a profound effect on medical practice and on the nature of the patient-doctor relationship which is based on trust and confidentiality.

The SignPost newsletter provides updates and resources to participants who are engaged with the Welcome Collaborative. The Welcome Collaborative is an orientation program designed to support physicians who have trained outside of Canada, have been issued a licence, and are new to practising in Nova Scotia.

The provincial government has amended the regulations to the Medical Act, conferring upon the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Nova Scotia the responsibility and authority to regulate podiatry within the province, effective April 1, 2024.

The College applauds the advocacy and administrative work done by the Nova Scotia Podiatry Association (NSPA) to bring the profession into regulation. The College is grateful to members of the Division of Orthopedic Surgery for their collaboration in this work…

The provincial government has amended the Medical Act Regulations conferring upon the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Nova Scotia the responsibility and authority to regulate physician assistants within the province, effective April 1, 2024.  

The College recognizes the valuable contribution physician assistants can and are making to healthcare in Nova Scotia and welcomes them as registrants…

The College celebrates International Women’s Day recognizing the tremendous contribution and leadership of women physicians in Nova Scotia.

International Women’s Day on March 8 celebrates the achievements of women while raising awareness about discrimination and inviting us to action to realize gender equality.