Peer & Practice Assessment

The College of Dietitians of Ontario’s Quality Assurance program supports Registered Dietitians in maintaining their continuing competence and fostering quality improvement through education and assessment. We will prioritize new areas of dietetic knowledge and areas of practice posing the highest risk to the public.

The College’s Peer and Practice Assessment (PPA) process is part of the QA program, as required by legislation. It offers a structured opportunity for RDs to demonstrate their knowledge, skills, and judgment according to professional standards, helping them identify areas for growth and enhancing their quality of practice.

Through Behaviour Based Interviews (BBI), the PPA program:

• Assesses RDs’ knowledge, skills, and judgment according to established professional standards and competencies.
• Offers assurance to the public and healthcare partners that RDs practice safely, competently, and ethically.
• Support RDs in identifying professional growth opportunities.

To ensure a fair, balanced and competency-focused approach, the College has updated its selection process using risk-based, proportional stratified sampling for PPA selection based on practice indicator data.

Key aspects include:

• Collecting practice indicators data about activities that may pose a higher risk to clients.
• Basing selection on a distribution from a range of indicators (from the highest to the fewest number) Dietitians with a higher number of indicators are more likely to be selected for the PPA, however, a group with no or few indicators are also included.

PPA selection indicators are grounded in regulatory research and College data and include:

• Working in multiple practice locations or in temporary/casual roles.
• Changes in practice settings.
• Self-employment or independent practice.
• Performing delegated controlled acts.
• Recent registration (2-5 years’ experience) or extended time since initial education (20+ years).
• Serving vulnerable populations (e.g., children, older adults).

Registrants are not eligible for PPA selection if they:

• Are on leave, or hold suspended or temporary certificates.
• Registered within the last 12 months.
• Were assessed within the previous five years.
• Are not practising dietetics under a Quality Assurance Voluntary Undertaking (VUT).

A registrant may also be referred for PPA if:

1. The Quality Assurance Committee (QAC) identifies non-compliance with requirements such as the Self-Directed Learning (SDL) Tool or Jurisprudence Knowledge Assessment Test (JKAT).
2. A reassessment is warranted based on prior PPA findings.

If selected, RDs must engage with the QA Committee or assessor and provide relevant information. The PPA program supports professional development while ensuring quality and safety in dietetics practice.

Registrant may request a deferral from PPA participation due to:

• Major illness
• Self/family crisis.
• Leave of Absence
• Not currently practicing.

To defer, registrants must submit the request for deferral form by the deadline communicated by the College.