I would like to take this opportunity to say hello to all BC opticians and let you know how excited I am to be working for the College as the new Registrar. Though I started at the beginning of March this year, I only officially took over the position of Registrar on May 1, 2018 and this month has gone by very quickly.
I have been licensed as an optician and contact lens fitter for just a little over 30 years (yes I was 9 when I started), and have had the opportunity to work in a variety of practice settings. I moved into the regulatory side of the professions 4 and a half years ago as Deputy Registrar for the Alberta College and Association of Opticians, and have found that this really is my area of interest. I am also involved on the NACOR executive committee, the Opticians Council of Canada executive committee and participated as part of the accreditation team for NACOR during the last round of accreditation.
I look forward to continuing the excellent work started in the past couple of years by the Board of Directors and staff of the COBC. This includes the new Continuing Competence Program, re write to the Standards of Practice, and the Prior Learning Assessment and Recognition tools to assist internationally trained applicants to achieve licensure as an optician in Canada. The COBC is a leader in these initiatives across the country and I will make sure that continues.
I look forward to meeting those of you who attend the Opticians Association of Canada educational day the fall of 2018, and please do not hesitate to contact me if you have any questions.