Council Position Statements and Key Messages

Council Position

Patient safety and the public interest are cornerstones of professional regulation. Every regulatory initiative the College undertakes must contribute to public protection.

Key Messages

• Safe patient care is non-negotiable, and compliance with minimum standards is a baseline professional obligation.
• The regulator’s public-interest role extends beyond individual complaints, and includes prevention and quality assurance.
• Prevention and enforcement are equally important aspects of professional accountability, applied by the College based on the specific context of a situation, in the public interest.
• Supportive programs, such as the Practice Visit Program, emphasize prevention and improvement in a positive manner.
• The College will not avoid necessary action where that action will serve to protect the public interest and/or patient safety.
• Demonstrated patient safety and robust quality assurance programs are an essential prerequisite for advancement of the profession, including any future consideration of scope expansion, or inclusion in primary care.

Council Position

Regulatory independence is essential to maintaining public confidence in the College and in the profession. The legislative separation of professional associations and regulatory colleges in legislations was intended to ensure independent professional regulation. This model recognizes that public protection must be the primary consideration in regulatory decision-making, and it helps prevent professional interests from unduly influencing regulatory outcomes.

Key Messages

• The College must make decisions free from undue influence and/or external pressure.
• Regulatory decisions must be based on evidence, legislation, and public protection.
• Independence protects both the public and the profession.
• Regulators must sometimes make decisions that are not popular. Popularity, however, is not the measure of good regulation.
• Feedback from the profession is important and valued, but it is not determinative.
• Professional support for independent regulation is critical to advancing the profession.

Council Position

The independence of the regulator from professional organizations is fundamental to public confidence, procedural fairness, and effective regulation.

Key Messages

• Clear boundaries between regulators and professional associations are essential to effective regulation. The legislative separation of colleges and associations exists to distinguish advocacy from regulation, and to safeguard regulatory independence.
• Advocacy organizations play an important role. Respectful advocacy based on evidence and facts can be helpful.
• Advocacy efforts must not influence complaint investigations, disciplinary processes, registration decisions, or other independent regulatory functions.
• Government and public confidence in the profession, and in the regulatory framework, depend on maintaining a clear separation between advocacy and regulation.
• Organized efforts to influence independent regulatory decision-making raise significant governance concerns, and risk undermining confidence in the profession.
• The College will continue to protect the integrity, independence, and fairness of all regulatory processes.

Council Position

Effective regulation requires accountability. The College welcomes scrutiny, embraces continuous improvement, and is committed to demonstrating that its decisions and actions are fair, transparent, evidence-informed, and in the public interest.

CCOA is accountable to the Government of Alberta and to the public in fulfilling its legislated mandate. It is responsible to the profession for carrying out its regulatory responsibilities fairly, independently, and effectively. This includes maintaining regulatory independence, ensuring procedural fairness and transparency, and using its resources to fulfill its legislated mandate.

Key Messages

• Accountability is fundamental to public confidence in both the regulator and the profession.
• The College welcomes respectful, constructive, evidence-informed feedback from anyone.
• The College is subject to significant external oversight, including by the Government of Alberta, through statutory appeal processes, by the courts by the Alberta Fairness Commissioner, and by the Alberta Ombudsman. CCOA is engaged with these bodies multiple times per year.
• The College undergoes a robust, independent external audit each year of its systems, records, and financial information. CCOA is committed to implementing any and all audit recommendations to strengthen the College’s standing where identified as necessary or appropriate.
• The College publishes an Annual Report that includes audited financial statements, providing transparency regarding its activities, governance, and financial stewardship.
• Accountability is not confined to addressing concerns once they emerge. It encompasses the ongoing responsibility to evaluate and improve regulatory performance, thereby serving the public interest while reinforcing the profession’s credibility and capacity for growth.

Council Position

A regulator must hold the trust and confidence of the public to fulfill its mandate effectively. Confidence in the profession contributes to effective regulation, but it cannot take precedence over the regulator’s responsibility to act in the public interest. Trust is built through transparency, fairness, accountability, and the safeguarding of regulatory independence.

Key Messages

• Public confidence is the foundation of professional regulation. Once broken, it is difficult to regain. Maintaining it is a College priority.
• Maintaining public confidence is essential to preserving the profession’s privilege of regulation, and to any advancement the profession seeks, such as scope expansion or inclusion in primary care.
• The regulator values the confidence of the profession. Where public and professional interests diverge, its obligation is to the public interest.
• The College seeks constructive, appropriate relationships with the profession and the associations that represent or protect it, while maintaining regulatory independence.
• Difficult decisions are sometimes necessary to fulfill the public-interest mandate. Regulatory decisions cannot be driven by popularity or professional preference.

Council Position

The College is committed to transparency as a foundational principle of good governance, accountability, and public trust. The College is committed to openness and expects the same commitments from those who engage with CCOA.

Key Messages

• Transparency is a core commitment of the College and is essential to maintaining public confidence.
• The College is expanding transparency in concrete ways.
  • Beginning in November 2026, Council agendas and supporting reports will be published in advance of meetings, giving chiropractors and the public the opportunity to review upcoming matters, and to submit relevant correspondence for Council’s consideration.
  • A new, easier-to-navigate College website has now launched.
  • Commitment to plain language communication.
• To assess concerns and risks appropriately, the College requires accurate, complete, and representative information. Understanding who is raising concerns, how widespread they are, and the specific issues involved supports informed decision-making.
• Productive dialogue is best supported when concerns, evidence, and perspectives are shared openly and transparently by all parties.
• Transparency is a shared responsibility that strengthens productive relationships.

Council Position

Council and staff are committed to consistently conducting themselves in a manner that is accountable, transparent, fair, and firmly grounded in the public interest.

Key Messages

• The College measures consistency by whether decisions are made in accordance with legislation, the public interest, regulatory principles, evidence, and established processes.
• Fairness requires considering the unique facts, evidence, risks, and circumstances of each case.
  • Different circumstances may appropriately lead to different outcomes.
• Public confidence is strengthened when decision-makers can clearly explain how and why decisions were made (while respecting privacy).
• Consistency is achieved through adherence to regulatory values, established processes, and evidence-informed decision making. It is not achieved by producing identical outcomes in every situation.
• Effective regulation balances consistency with flexibility.
  • A rigid one-size-fits-all approach can undermine fairness.
  • A principles-based approach keeps decisions responsive to individual circumstances, while remaining aligned with the CCOA mandate and College values.

Council Position

One of Council’s responsibilities is to protect the independence of the College’s complaints and discipline processes. Their integrity depends on independence from Council, from advocacy and protective associations, and from other external influence. Concerns about disciplinary decisions should be raised through the statutory review, appeal, and oversight mechanisms established for that purpose.

Key Messages

• The independence of complaints, investigations, and disciplinary processes is fundamental to public confidence in professional regulation.
• Complaints and discipline processes require particularly strong protections to ensure fairness to all parties involved.
• Council does not direct, interfere with, or influence complaint investigations, disciplinary decisions, or hearing outcomes.
• CCOA provides transparent information to chiropractors but cannot and does not assist chiropractors through the complaints and disciplinary processes.
• All parties are entitled to procedural fairness, and have access to established review, appeal, and oversight mechanisms. The College encourages parties to obtain legal counsel or other appropriate representation early in the process.
• The College cooperates fully with legitimate oversight, review, and appeal processes, including Government of Alberta, appeal panels, the courts, and the Alberta Ombudsman.
• To maintain confidentiality, procedural fairness, and the integrity of regulatory processes, the College will not engage in public debate regarding complaints, investigations, or disciplinary matters.

Council Position

Council members and staff have a right to a safe and respectful workplace and governance environment. This is non-negotiable. Threats, intimidation, abuse, harassment, and/or retaliation will be addressed swiftly and seriously.

Key Messages

• Disagreement is acceptable, as long as it is civil.
• Psychological, emotional, and physical safety are essential to effective governance.
• Respectful engagement benefits all parties, including those who disagree with the College.

Council Position

Council is committed to ensuring the public interest remains its primary consideration in all regulatory decisions. Council values input from patients, families, caregivers, and the broader public; and incorporates public perspectives into its governance, policy development, and oversight responsibilities, as appropriate and warranted. This is in support of safe, competent, and ethical care.

Key Messages

• Protecting the public is the regulator’s primary mandate and guiding responsibility.
• Public perspectives help Council understand the impact of regulatory decisions on patients and communities.
• Council is committed to transparent, accountable, and evidence-informed decision-making.
• Opportunities for public engagement support trust in the regulatory process, and strengthen public protection.
• Council considers public input alongside legislative requirements, regulatory standards, and expert advice.
• Public members on Council contribute critical perspectives, and help to ensure that decisions reflect the interests of the public.
• The regulatory supports open communication, and encourages members of the public to share concerns, feedback, and experiences.
• Effective regulation is strengthened through ongoing dialogue with the public.

Council Position

As an important interest holder in the work of the regulator, the College values the perspectives, expertise, and experience of chiropractors, and is committed to ensuring the profession’s voice is heard through meaningful engagement and participation in regulatory processes.

Key Messages

• Effective regulation is strengthened when registrants actively participate in shaping the systems designed to support professionalism, competence, and public protection.
• Members of the profession serve on Council, Council Committees, Hearing Tribunals, the Complaint Review Committee, the Competence Committee, the Modes of Care Committee, and various advisory and administrative committees.
  • They also contribute directly to regulatory oversight and quality improvement as Practice Visit Assessors and in key staff positions.
• Over the past three years, the College has sought the profession’s input through three profession-wide surveys (Standards of Practice, Continuing Competence Program, Career-Span Competencies), five chiropractor focus groups (for career-span competencies), and consultation through advisory committees (Modes of Care Committee, Standards of Practice Advisory Committee).
• The profession’s perspective informs regulation. Regulatory decisions must be made in the public interest, consistent with the College’s statutory mandate.
• Perspectives of the profession are heard, without compromising public protection or regulatory independence.

Council Position

CCOA Council believes that Chiropractors are committed to providing safe, ethical, patient-centred care, and want to be accountable to the public they serve. That commitment is a strong foundation on which the profession can continue to build public trust and credibility.

At the same time, available evidence indicates that some members of the profession may not consistently meet minimum regulatory and practice expectations, and the profession has demonstrated generally low compliance with certain standards. Addressing these gaps is required in the public interest. It is also a forward-looking investment in the profession’s future, positioning chiropractors for potential scope expansion, greater integration with the health care system, and broader participation, and broader participation in primary care models.

Key Messages

• A credible and trusted profession requires accountability to minimum standards, and effective regulation in the public interest, free from undue influence.
• Professional accountability is a strength.
• Effective regulation enhances professional credibility and trust.
• Important patient-safety gaps require focused attention, ensuring the profession is keeping apace with evolving public expectations and best regulatory practices.
• Intentional and direct measures must be taken towards the prevention and elimination of sexual abuse and sexual misconduct in the profession.
• Intentional and direct measures must be taken to ensure the profession is, and can demonstrate, consistent adherence to minimum standards of practice.
• Building a more constructive relationship between chiropractors and regulators requires leadership and commitment from all parts of the chiropractic system, including practitioners, regulators, and representative associations.
• The College believes the profession is moving in the right direction, and current College programs provide a strong foundation for continuing this progress and strengthening public trust.
• A public narrative suggesting the profession is unprepared to be assessed against its own longstanding minimum standards raises questions about the profession’s overall compliance. That message serves no one, least of all the profession.

Council Position

Compliance with minimum standards is a fundamental, non-negotiable professional obligation. The College believes the vast majority of Alberta chiropractors are ethical, competent professionals, who are committed to serving patients, providing safe care, maintaining public trust, and contributing positively to the profession.

Key Messages

• Minimum standards are the baseline for safe practice, and regulatory requirements apply equally to all chiropractors.
• The College believes the vast majority of practitioners strive to meet professional expectations.
  • At the same time, it expects to find some chiropractors requiring significant improvement to meet minimum standards.
• Advancing the profession, including potential scope expansion and primary care involvement, requires a demonstrated commitment to meeting regulatory expectations.
• CCOA’s quality assurance and oversight programs help ensure standards are consistently achieved.
  • Broad professional support for these programs helps these programs in achieving their goal.

Council Position

Past regulatory approaches under the former combined Alberta College and Association of Chiropractors (ACAC) did not consistently meet the standards expected of a regulator. Council recognizes the substantial improvements in regulatory oversight achieved legislation mandated the separation of the College and Association and is committed to continuing to strengthen regulatory practice in the public interest.

Key Messages

• Unlike professional associations which are member services organizations and represent member interests, as mandated by the Health Professions Act the College represents the public interest.
• Identifying gaps is not a criticism of individual practitioners.
• Strengthened, appropriate and transparent regulation supports both public protection and professional credibility and strengthens trust in the profession.
• Effective regulation, and the assurance of compliance with minimum standards, provides the foundation for moving forward with initiatives such as chiropractic inclusion in primary care and scope expansion.

The Disciplinary Tribunal decision regarding Dr. Ernest Li provides one example of CCOA’s efforts to pursue informal, collaborative, and remedial resolution before a formal hearing.

This approach is not limited to discipline. In one recent matter involving multiple complaints, CCOA worked with the parties before opening formal complaint files, allowing approximately 80 percent of the matters to be resolved without a formal complaints process.

CCOA remains committed to fair, proportionate, and practical regulatory responses that support accountability, remediation, and resolution wherever possible.

Council Position

Council’s Strategic Plan provides a roadmap to strengthen public protection, improve regulatory effectiveness, and enhance trust in both the profession and the regulator. It also reflects the foundational elements required for an accountable profession to be considered for advancement initiatives such as primary care and scope expansion.

Key Messages

• The Strategic Plan reflects modern regulatory expectations and realities, and is grounded in evidence and risk mitigation.
• It is focused on outcomes that improve public protection and regulatory effectiveness, and its priorities are aligned with legislative responsibilities and best regulatory practice.
• The Plan has been transparently available on the College’s website since 2022, has been referenced in multiple communications to the profession and the public, and guides the work of the organization. To maintain focus and use resources effectively, the College pursues only initiatives that advance the Plan’s priorities and objectives.
• The current Strategic Plan is on track for substantial completion. Over the coming year, Council will develop a new Strategic Plan, taking effect in July 2027, to continue the College’s evolution as a modern regulator acting in the public interest.
• Change can be challenging, but modernization is necessary to maintain public confidence and for the profession to grow or expand within the health system.

Council Position

The College’s regulatory programs are evidence-based, risk-informed, and designed to fulfill CCOA’s legislative responsibility to protect the public.  They are also forward-looking, laying the critical foundation for consideration of professional expansion opportunities.

Key Messages

• The College is confident its regulatory approach is evidence-based and aligned with its legislative obligations and mandate.
• Regulatory initiatives are developed from information gathered through complaints and conduct matters, quality assurance activities, audits and reviews, and emerging regulatory risks.
  • They are informed by years of regulatory experience, direct observation of practice realities, diverse perspectives, and collaboration with other regulators, as appropriate.
• Findings from complaints, investigations, and practice visits have consistently identified issues requiring regulatory attention and improvement, where practitioners are not meeting minimum standards.
• Council recognizes that regulatory initiatives may be challenging for some practitioners, and the College has demonstrated its commitment to transparency to support chiropractors in understanding their requirements. The College encourages chiropractors to seek the support they need.
• A regulator cannot function as an advocate for professionals.

Council Position

The Practice Visit Program is an important quality assurance tool, designed to protect the public, and improve professional accountability and  compliance with minimum regulatory standards. A strong profession welcomes this level of accountability, as it strengthens professional practice and public confidence, building trust in the profession beyond any individual practice or chiropractor.

By clearly demonstrating compliance with established standards, professional accountability, and an ongoing commitment to continuous improvement, a profession strengthens its credibility and is better positioned to participate in future conversations regarding expanded roles, responsibilities, and scope of practice.

Key Messages

• Practice visits are educational and preventative, wherever possible.
• The goal is continuous professional improvement.
• The program was developed, implemented, and assessed by peer chiropractors.
• Routine practice visits are conducted at no additional charge to chiropractors, and the full visit rubric is publicly available.
• Verification of standards is a normal, basic component of professional regulation, and more generally of effective quality assurance programs.
• Verification of standards plays an important role in securing, maintaining, and increasing public trust in the profession.
• Council believes most chiropractors should be confident in demonstrating their compliance with professional and regulatory expectations.
• The College expects the results of a practice visit to show that the majority of chiropractors are meeting their obligations, while identifying some areas where improvement is warranted, and some practitioners who may require significant direction to come into compliance.
  • Where improvement opportunities are identified, the College expects the chiropractor to adopt improvements quickly and willingly, to ensure they are meeting minimum standards.
• The College intends to share aggregate findings transparently to develop supports and guidance where appropriate.

Council Position

Change requires ongoing opportunities for communication, engagement, and education. While that work is never complete, Council is satisfied that the profession receives sufficient communication and support to manage current change. The College believes the profession largely views changes to programming as forward-looking investments in the profession’s future.

Key Messages

• Change is often difficult but necessary.
• Regulatory modernization is a journey rather than an event, meaning that communications and education must be consistent and sustained.
• The College provides robust and varied opportunities for the profession to remain informed, and develops value-added supports for chiropractors where resources allow.
• Chiropractors are expected to read all College communications, and to engage with supports when needed.
• Professionals are expected to implement change professionally.
• The extended system, including chiropractic educational programs (including Doctor of Chiropractic Programs) and associations, also has a responsibility to prepare the profession for change, and to assist it in implementing that change.
• Respectful feedback helps improve implementation.
• Public messaging that suggests chiropractors are unwilling or afraid to be assessed against minimum standards risks eroding trust in the profession amongst patients and the public.

Council Position

The College supports communication with professional associations, while maintaining its regulatory independence and public-interest mandate. Advocacy, protection of the profession, and regulation are distinct functions, and the College has no preference as to which professional association a chiropractor elects to join.

Key Messages

• Public protection remains the regulator’s guiding principle in all engagement.
• Professional advocacy and public-interest regulation are separate functions that serve different purposes.
• Respectful, evidence-informed dialogue between the College and associations can benefit the public and the profession.

Council Position

The College respects and values the important role performed by the CAA in advocating for chiropractors and the advancement of the profession.

Key Messages

• The CAA exists to advocate for chiropractors and the advancement of the profession, and is one of several associations chiropractors may choose to join.
• It is entirely appropriate for the CAA to disagree with regulatory decisions, policies, approaches, decisions, or programs.
• Advocacy is most effective when grounded in a shared understanding of regulatory mandates, legal responsibilities, and public-interest obligations.
• The College welcomes and expects advocacy directed to CCOA to be grounded in facts and evidence, and to reflect best efforts to understand regulation, College programming, and the College’s statutory obligations.
• Given its influence within the profession, the CAA maintains an important role in helping chiropractors understand the distinction between professional advocacy and professional regulation.

Council Position

The Canadian Chiropractic Protective Association (CCPA) plays an important role in supporting chiropractors through professional liability protection, practice risk management, and legal defence. Its mandate is distinct from the regulator’s and, at times, its interests may be adverse to those of the College. This tension is both natural and expected within a healthy regulatory framework.

Key Messages

• The CCPA and the regulator have distinct and important mandates.
  • The CCPA’s primary responsibility is to support and protect its members.
  • The College’s primary responsibility is to protect the public.
• Differences in perspective between the regulator and the CCPA are not unusual and should not be interpreted as negative conflict. They are often reflective of the different responsibilities held by each organization.
• Cooperation and information sharing are appropriate where doing so supports public protection and professional accountability.
• The College values a professional and respectful relationship with the CCPA, while maintaining clear boundaries and regulatory independence.
• Effective governance requires that the regulator remain independent of organizations whose primary mandate is to represent or defend practitioners, including against regulatory action.
• Maintaining clear distinctions between regulatory and defence functions helps preserve public confidence and reduces confusion within the profession.

Council Position

The College welcomes and facilitates discussion of its regulatory role established by the Health Professions Act including College policies, programs, and professional standards, as long as it is respectful, informed and grounded in facts.

Key Messages

• The College has invited One Chiropractic into constructive, evidence-based dialogue.
• Following what Council considered to be inaccurate information presented at One Chiropractic’s June 29, 2026 meeting, the College wrote to the organization to ask that they direct attendees to authoritative public sources of relevant information, and to invite its representatives to present to Council at the at a future Council meeting, as well as to observe public hearing tribunals.

Council Position

Professionals can engage in online conversations where they express their opinions and views on a wide array of topics within their scope of practice, including regulation of their profession.

Professional discussions, regardless of the platform on which they occur, should never include threats; dishonesty; intimidation; defamation; wrongful disclosure of patient or other information protected by confidentiality legislation and/or expectations of privacy; targeting, referencing, or intimidating CCOA staff or Council members’ families; and/or other unethical behaviour. CCOA Council is concerned by recent conduct within certain online forums that has included these behaviours. Council is also concerned that there are many bystanders who are not reporting the behaviour.

Key Messages

• Professional discourse benefits from respectful disagreement, diverse perspectives, and constructive debate.
• Online conversations must respect the inherent power imbalance between chiropractors and their patients and should recognize that chiropractors occupy a position of trust with their patients even after the chiropractor-patient relationship has ended.
• CCOA Council is very concerned by certain behaviours brought to our attention from an online chat amongst practitioners. This includes, but is not limited to, identified instances of dishonesty, misinformation, personal attacks, and threats, including statements identified as potentially defamatory; violations of patient privacy; and the discussion of, or reference made to, CCOA staff members’ children and families.
• CCOA Council denounces this behaviour and demands that it cease immediately.
  • Continued behaviour of this nature may result in regulatory and/or legal actions taken where appropriate and warranted.
• Council is also concerned that no chiropractor among the over 500 on the chat has reported the conduct to the College. Professional accountability extends beyond direct participation. A culture in which inappropriate conduct is tolerated or normalized can harm the profession’s reputation and public trust; amplifying or supporting unprofessional conduct compounds that harm.
• Available information suggests there is a relatively small number of individuals who account for the unprofessional conduct in these forums, while over 500 may be observing.
• Online conversations among chiropractors and others are not private and comments can become public.  Inappropriate behaviour in online conversation can harm the integrity of the profession in the eyes of the public and erodes public trust in chiropractors.