Occupational Therapy Association of the Philippines, Inc.

Enforcement Procedure For Occupational Therapy Code of Ethics

I. PREAMBLE A. This material is an official document of the American Occupational Therapy As sociation (AOTA). It has been adopted with minor revisions for use by the Occupa tional Therapy Association of the Philippines and its members. The Occupational Therapy Association of the Philippines and its members are committed to improvin g individuals ability to function fully within their total environment. To this e nd, the occupational therapy practitioner renders services to clients in all pha ses of health and illness, to institutions, to other professionals and colleague s, and to the general public. The occupational Therapy Association of the Philip pines Code of Ethics is a public statement of the values and principles to use a s a guide in promoting and maintaining high standards of behavior in occupationa l therapy. OTAP and its members are committed to improving peoples ability to fun ction within their total environment. To this end, occupational therapy personne l provide services to individuals in any stage of illness, to institutions, to o ther professionals and colleagues, to students, and to the general public. The O ccupational Therapy Code of Ethics is a set of principles that applies to occupa tional therapy personnel at all levels. The roles of practitioner (registered oc cupational therapist and certified occupational therapy technician), educator, s upervisor, administrator, consultant, fieldwork coordinator, faculty program dir ector, researcher/scholar, entrepreneur, student, and support staff are assumed. Any action that is in violation of the spirit and purpose of this code shall be considered unethical. To ensure compliance with the code, enforcement procedure s are established and maintained by the Committee on Standards and Ethics (CSE). Acceptance of membership in the OTAP commits members to the Code of Ethics and its enforcement procedures. As preamble to the official procedures, the CSE urge s particular attention to the following issues:

B. Professional Responsibility All occupational therapy personnel have an obliga tion to maintain the standards of ethics of their profession and to promote and support these same standards among their colleagues. Each member must be alert t o practices, which undermine these standards and be obligated to take whatever r emedial action is required. At the same time, members must carefully weigh their judgments of unethical practice to ensure that they are based on objective eval uation and not on personal bias or prejudice. C. Jurisdiction The Occupational T herapy Association of the Philippines shall have jurisdiction over all members o f the Association in the monitoring and enforcement of the Occupational Therapy Code of Ethics. The Code applicable to any compliant shall be that version or ed ition in force at the time the alleged act or omission was committed. If the dat e of the alleged act or emission cannot be determined, then the act or omission shall be judged by the code in force on the date of the complaint. D. Disciplina ry Action Disciplinary action for the members of the Association shall be limite d to reprimand, censure, suspension, or revocation from the association. These a re defined as follows: Reprimand a formal expression of disapproval of conduct c ommunicated privately by letter from the Chairperson of the CSE. Censure a forma l expression of disapproval that is public. Suspension removal of membership for a specified period of time. Revocation denial of membership

E. Dismissal of Complaints CSE may dismiss a complaint for any of the following: 1. No Violation. The CSE finds the individual against whom the complaint is fil ed has not violated the Occupational Therapy Code of Ethics, (e.g., accusing a p erson of being rude.) 2. Corrected Violation. The CSE determines that any violat ion it might find has been or being corrected. 3. Insufficient Evidence. The CSE determines there is insufficient fact, evidence, or detail to support a finding of an ethics violation. 4. Absolute Time Limit/Not Timely Filed. The CSE determ ines that the alleged violation of the Occupational Therapy Code of Ethics occur red more than ten (10) years prior to the filing of the complaint. 5. Lack of Ju risdiction. The CSE determines that it has no jurisdiction over the defendant or complaint. (e.g., complaint against a non-member.) 6. Subject to Jurisdiction o f Another Authority. The CSE determines that the complaint is based on matters w hich are already covered by another authority, jurisdiction or are regulated by law, (e.g., accusing a superior of sexual harassment at work; accusing someone o f anti-competitive practices.) 7. Advice of Counsel. On the Advice of counsel, o r other advice, that no further action should be taken on the complaint. F. Advi sory Opinions 1. The CSE may issue advisory opinions on certain issues to inform and educate the membership. These opinions shall be publicized to the membershi p. Ethics. The original records and reports, which form the initial basis for the c omplaint, actual evidence, and disposition of the complaint, shall be filed in t he confidential file of the President of the Association. All others copies shal l be destroyed. IX. PUBLICATION Final Decisions of the Judicial Council will be publicized only after all appeals have been exhausted. Created in September 2003 for Occupational Therapy Association of the Philippine s Approved and Adopted by the Board of Directors, March 1998

B. Grounds for Appeal The appeal must relate to issues and procedures that are p art of the record of the hearing before the Judicial Council. The appeal may als o address the substance of the disciplinary action. 1) The President shall forwa rd any letter of appeal to the Appeals Panel within fifteen (15) days of receipt . 2) Within forty-five (45) days after the appeals are received by the Appeals P anel, the Panel shall determine whether a hearing is required. If the Panel deci des that a hearing is necessary, timely notice for such hearing shall be given t o the appealing party. Participants at the hearing shall be limited to the appea ling party and legal counsel (if so desired), legal counsel for the Association, and any others approved in advance by the Appeals Panel. C. Decision Within for ty-five (45) days after receipt of the appeal, if there is no hearing, or within fifteen (15) days after the appeals hearing, the Appeals Panel shall notify the President of the Association of its decision. The President shall immediately n otify the appealing party, the original complainant, and appropriate bodies of t he Association, and any other notifications deemed necessary. For Association pu rposes, the decision of the Panels shall be final. 2. Educative letter The CSE determines that the allegations in the complaint are not unethical, however they do not fall completely into the prevailing standard s of practice or good professionalism, the CSE may send a letter to educate the complainant and respondent regarding standards of practice and/or good professio nalism. G. Confidentiality Strict confidentiality shall be maintained by all who are involved in the reporting, monitoring, reviewing, and enforcing of alleged infractions of the Occupational Therapy Code of Ethics. The maintenance of confi dentiality, however, shall not interfere with the provision of proper notice to all parties involved in the disciplinary proceedings as determined by the Commit tee on Standards and Ethics. Likewise, final decisions of the Judicial Council a nd the Appeals Panel will be publicized as described in the procedures. II. DISCIPLINARY PROCEDURES A. Complaint Complaints stating an alleged violation of the Associations Occupati onal Therapy Code of Ethics may originate from any individual or group within or outside the association. All complaints must be in writing, signed by the compl ainant(s), and submitted to the Chairperson of the Committee on Standards and Et hics at the address of the Associations National Office. All complaints shall be timely and shall identify the person against whom the complaint is directed (her eafter, the respondent), the ethical principles, which the complainants believe have been violated, and, an explanation of the alleged violations. If available, supporting documentation should be attached. VII. NOTIFICATION All notification referred to in this procedure shall be in writing and shall be registered, return-receipt mail. VIII. RECORDS AND REPORTS At the completion of this procedure, all records and reports shall be returned t o the Chairperson of the Committee on Standards and

B. Sua Sponte Complaints D. Decision 1. The CSE may file a sua sponte complaint and thereby initiate a disciplinary inquiry against a member of the OTAP whose a ctions violate the Code of Ethics, If the CSE receives or discovers through publ ic records any of the following actions by other authorities, including but not limited to: a) a felony conviction; b) findings of malpractice; c) revocation, s uspension, or surrender of a license to practice; d) censure or monetary fine of an individual licensed to practice; e) finding of academic misconduct; or f) ac tions by a duly authorized tribunal or administrative hearing procedure. 2. The CSE may initiate a sua sponte complaint from other information discovered. 1. Wi thin fifteen (15) days after the hearing, the Judicial Council shall notify the president of the Association of its decision, which shall include whatever disci plinary action might be required. 2. Within ten (10) days of notice from the Jud icial Council, the President shall notify all parties, and the original complain ant, of the Councils decision. Within thirty (30) days after the notification of the Councils decision, any individual or individuals judged deserving of discipli nary action might appeal the judgment to the Executive Board of Association. (Se e below). If no appeal is filed, the President shall notify appropriate bodies w ithin the Association and make any other notifications deemed necessary. VI. APPEAL PROCESS C. Continuation of Complaint Process If a member fails to cooperate with the eth ics investigation, CSE shall continue to process the complaint noting in its rep ort the circumstances of the respondents resignation from membership or his/her f ailure to cooperate. Failure to renew membership or to cooperate with the invest igation shall not deprive the CSE of jurisdiction. D. Rules of Evidence Formal r ules of evidence, which are employed in legal proceedings do not apply to these P rocedures of disciplinary Action. The Judicial Council and the Appeals Panel can consider any evidence, which they deem appropriate and pertinent. The Judicial C ouncil may take additional material evidence at any time Appeals shall be writte n, signed by the appealing party, and sent by registered mail to the President o f the Association. The basis for the appeal shall be fully explained in this doc ument. A. Appeal Panel The Vice-Presidents, Secretary, and Treasurer of the Asso ciation shall constitute the Appeals Panel. In the event of vacancies in these p ositions or the existence of a potential conflict of interest, the First Vice-Pr esident shall appoint replacements drawn from among the other board members. The President and the Chairperson of the CSE shall not serve on the Appeals Panel.

The respondent can choose at this time to admit to the violation, accept the dis ciplinary action, and relinquish the right to a hearing by the Judicial Council. The respondent has two (2) weeks from receipt of the CSEs decision to notify the Chairperson of his or her decision. while the matter is pending before it. In general, appeals brought before the Ap peals Panel shall be limited to the Judicial Council proceedings. In the interes t of fairness, the Appeals panel may take additional material evidence not submi tted to the Judicial Council. V. THE JUDICIAL COUNCIL A. Panel Selection The Judicial Council, comprised of three members in good stan ding of the Association, shall be appointed by the President of the Association within thirty (30) days of the notification to hear the formal charges against t he respondent and decide on the merits of the case. Members appointed shall (1) never have had a substantial professional relationship with either the complaina nt or the respondent; and (2) not have a conflict of interest with either the co mplainant or the respondent. B. Hearing Thirty (30) Days in advance of the heari ng, the Judicial Council shall notify in writing all parties of the date, time, and place for the hearing. Within twenty (20) days of notification of the hearin gs, the respondent charged by the Association may submit to the Council a respon se to the Associations charges. C. Support Personnel Legal counsel shall represen t the Association at the hearing. The respondent may be represented by legal cou nsel. Full opportunity to refute all charges shall be afforded. All parties shal l have the opportunity to confront and cross-examine witnesses. Testimony may be presented by others than those who are parties to the charge. A record of the h earing shall be made. III. INVESTIGATION A. Acknowledgement and Review of Complaint Within ninety (90) days of receipt of a complaint, the CSE shall make a preliminary assessment of the complaint and d ecide whether or not an investigation is warranted. If, in its preliminary revie w of the complaint, the CSE determine that an investigation is not warranted, th e individual filing the complaint will be so notified. The respondent will be no tified that a complaint was received. No record will be maintained. If an invest igation is required, the CSE chairperson shall, within fifteen (15) days do the following: (1) Notify the OTAP National Office and investigate the complaint. (2 ) Notify the respondent (by registered, returned-receipt mail) that a complaint has been received and an investigation is been conducted. A copy of the complain t shall be enclosed with this notification. (3) Notify the complainant that an i nvestigation is being conducted. B. Conflict of Interest The investigator shall (1) never have had a substantial professional relationship with either the compl ainant or the respondent; and (2) not have a conflict of interest with either th e complainant or the respondent. In the event that the investigator does not mee t this

criteria, the CSE Chairperson shall appoint an alternate investigator. C. Respon se to the Complaint 1. The respondent shall given thirty (30) days from the rece ipt of the notification to response verbally and/or in writing to the Investigat or, and must be given the opportunity to refute all charges. Apart from the comp lainant and the charge party (respondent), no other persons will participate in the investigation without prior approval of the respondent. 2. The complainant s hall be made aware of any new evidence submitted to the investigator, be given a copy of it, and shall have fourteen (14) days in which to submit a rebuttal. Th ereafter, the record shall be closed. 3. Failure to Act or Participate in CasesFailure of the respondent to cooperate with the investigation, (1) shall not pre vent continuation of the Enforcement procedures of the Code of Ethics, and (2) s hall in itself constitute a violation of the Occupational Therapy Code of Ethics . D. Investigator Timeline The investigation process will be completed within ni nety (90) days of the appointment of the investigator. The investigator shall re port to the CSE unless the CSE determined special circumstances, which warrant a dditional time for the investigation. The investigators report shall state findin gs regarding the validity of the complaint. E. Retention and Referral of Complai nt The CSE may at any time refer the matter to the Professional Regulation Commi ssion, or other recognized authority/authorities for appropriate action. Upon such referral with the appropriate authority, the CSE shall (a) retain juri sdiction; (b) stay any action until the CSE receives notification of a decision by that authority. A stay in conducting an investigation shall not constitute a waiver of CSE jurisdiction. F. Notification of Stayed Action The CSE shall send written notification of a stayed case. Such notification will be sent by registe red mail to the complainant and the respondent. IV. STANDARDS AND ETHICS COMMITTEE REVIEW AND DECISION A. The committee on Standards and Ethics shall review the Investigators report an d shall render a decision within ninety (90) days of receipt of the report wheth er a formal charge by the Association is warranted. The CSE may, in the conduct of its review, take whatever further investigatory actions it deems necessary. B . Acceptance of CSE Decision If the respondent accepts the charge and disciplina ry action as the result of the preliminary investigation, the CSE Chairperson no tifies all parties involved and carries out the disciplinary action. The discipl inary action shall be publicized. If the respondent refutes the allegation, the President of the Association shall be so notified in writing by the CSE Chairper son. C. If The CSE decides that a formal charge is warranted, the respondent to the complaint is notified of the CSEs decision to file a formal charge and the re commended disciplinary action.