{"id":31398,"date":"2026-07-24T22:37:56","date_gmt":"2026-07-24T22:37:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/healthcareethicscourses.com\/can\/?page_id=31398"},"modified":"2026-07-25T00:33:39","modified_gmt":"2026-07-25T00:33:39","slug":"how-to-respond-to-a-bccnm-complaint","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/healthcareethicscourses.com\/can\/how-to-respond-to-a-bccnm-complaint\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Respond to a BCCNM Complaint"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t<div data-elementor-type=\"wp-page\" data-elementor-id=\"31398\" class=\"elementor elementor-31398\" data-elementor-post-type=\"page\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-77255ae e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"77255ae\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-225cd90 elementor-widget elementor-widget-html\" data-id=\"225cd90\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"html.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\r\n<!-- ===== How to Respond to a BCCNM Complaint | Elementor Custom HTML fragment ===== -->\r\n<!-- Body only. 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Support<\/a> <span>\/<\/span> <a href=\"https:\/\/healthcareethicscourses.com\/can\/knowledge-support\/nurses-midwives\/british-columbia\/\">Nurses &amp; Midwives &mdash; British Columbia<\/a> <span>\/<\/span> How to Respond to a BCCNM Complaint<\/nav>\r\n<p class=\"eyebrow\">British Columbia &middot; BC College of Nurses and Midwives<\/p>\r\n<h1>How to Respond to a BCCNM Complaint<\/h1>\r\n<div class=\"meta\"><b>10 min read<\/b><span>Last updated July 14, 2026<\/span><\/div>\r\n<p class=\"lede\">Most complaints about nurses and midwives do not begin with a patient. They begin at work &mdash; with an employer report, an incident review, or a colleague discharging a duty to report. And most of them do not end in a hearing: they end in a negotiated agreement. Understanding both of those facts changes what you should do in the first week.<\/p>\r\n<div class=\"callout\"><strong>Before you do anything:<\/strong> contact your liability protection provider (for many nurses, CNPS) <em>and<\/em> your union. Do not give a statement to your employer or the College until you have. Do not add anything to a chart. Do not discuss the matter with colleagues who may be witnesses.<\/div>\r\n<h2>One college, five designations, one new statute<\/h2>\r\n<p>The BC College of Nurses and Midwives (BCCNM) regulates <strong>five<\/strong> distinct groups: registered nurses, nurse practitioners, licensed practical nurses, registered psychiatric nurses and registered midwives. It is the product of two amalgamations &mdash; three nursing colleges merged in 2018, and the College of Midwives joined in 2020.<\/p>\r\n<p>On <strong>1 April 2026<\/strong> the <em>Health Professions and Occupations Act<\/em> (HPOA) came into force, repealing the <em>Health Professions Act<\/em> that had governed nursing and midwifery since the 1990s. Anything you read about a BCCNM complaint that was written before this spring may describe a process that no longer exists.<\/p>\r\n<p>Three things a nurse or midwife needs to know immediately:<\/p>\r\n<ul>\r\n<li>You are a <strong>licensee<\/strong> now, not a registrant, and what is at stake is your <strong>practice authority<\/strong>.<\/li>\r\n<li>BCCNM still receives and investigates complaints &mdash; but it <strong>no longer decides discipline<\/strong>. Serious matters leave the College for an independent tribunal.<\/li>\r\n<li>The <strong>statutory right of appeal to the courts has been abolished<\/strong>.<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n\r\n<h2>Most complaints about nurses do not come from patients<\/h2>\r\n<p>This is where nursing and midwifery diverge sharply from medicine. A nurse&rsquo;s regulatory risk arrives disproportionately through the <strong>workplace<\/strong>.<\/p>\r\n<p>Employers report. Colleagues report &mdash; and are required to: licensees have a positive duty to report a peer where they suspect sexual misconduct, sexual abuse or discrimination, and the HPOA widened that duty further. The Investigation Committee can also open an investigation <strong>with no complaint at all<\/strong> under section 124.<\/p>\r\n<div class=\"callout\"><strong>What this means practically:<\/strong> a medication incident report, a performance management process, or a dispute with a manager can become a regulatory matter. Involve <strong>both<\/strong> your professional liability protection provider (for many nurses, CNPS) <strong>and your union<\/strong>. An employer investigation and a College investigation are different proceedings with different consequences, and what you say in one can be used in the other.<\/div>\r\n\r\n<h2>The nursing-specific hazard: scope, orders and restricted activities<\/h2>\r\n<p>BCCNM sets standards, limits and conditions for each class of licensee. Certain activities are <strong>restricted activities<\/strong> &mdash; not forbidden, but permitted only to particular classes, and some only on a valid order.<\/p>\r\n<p>An order is only valid if it comes from a professional authorised to give that order <em>to your class of licensee<\/em>, and if it is client-specific and documented. Acting on a verbal recommendation that was never written down, or on an order from a profession not listed for your class, is a live regulatory risk &mdash; and one that is easy to walk into on a busy unit under pressure from a colleague more senior than you.<\/p>\r\n<p>Scope-of-practice matters are among the most common and most avoidable sources of nursing complaints. &ldquo;I was told to&rdquo; is not a defence.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<h2>Your first week<\/h2>\r\n<ol>\r\n<li><strong>Contact CNPS (or your provider) and your union before you write anything.<\/strong> Not after you draft a reply. Before.<\/li>\r\n<li><strong>Diarise every deadline<\/strong> in the letter and ask for an extension early if you need one.<\/li>\r\n<li><strong>Preserve the record exactly as it stands.<\/strong> Never add a late entry to a chart after a complaint arrives without clearly dating it as a late entry. Retrospective amendment turns a question about care into a question about honesty.<\/li>\r\n<li><strong>Do not discuss the matter with colleagues<\/strong> who may be witnesses, and do not contact the complainant.<\/li>\r\n<\/ol>\r\n\r\n<h2>Cooperation is now a statutory duty<\/h2>\r\n<p>The HPOA sets out express duties for licensees, including compliance, fitness to practise, ethical conduct and <strong>cooperation with investigations<\/strong>. Under the old Act these largely lived in bylaws and standards. They are now in the statute, and breaching them is independently actionable.<\/p>\r\n<p>Take advice, then cooperate. Those are not alternatives.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<h2>Most complaints end in a negotiated agreement<\/h2>\r\n<p>Here is the single most useful thing to know about the BCCNM process, and the thing that should shape how you respond from day one.<\/p>\r\n<p><strong>The majority of BCCNM complaints are resolved through consensual complaint resolution<\/strong> &mdash; a negotiated, formal legal agreement between the licensee and the College, setting out the steps the licensee agrees to take to address what the investigation identified.<\/p>\r\n<p>That is not a hearing. It is a negotiation. And what you bring to it &mdash; insight, completed remediation, evidence that the risk is already reduced &mdash; is what determines its terms. Consent agreements are published.<\/p>\r\n<section class=\"kt\"><h2>Key takeaways<\/h2><ul><li>BCCNM regulates five designations: RNs, NPs, LPNs, RPNs and registered midwives.<\/li><li>The HPOA came into force on 1 April 2026. You are a &ldquo;licensee&rdquo; with a &ldquo;practice authority&rdquo;; BCCNM still investigates but no longer decides discipline; and the right of appeal to the courts has been abolished.<\/li><li>Nursing risk arrives disproportionately through the workplace &mdash; employer reports, the duty to report peers, and section 124 investigations opened with no complaint at all.<\/li><li>Involve BOTH your liability protection provider (for many nurses, CNPS) AND your union. An employer investigation and a College investigation are different proceedings.<\/li><li>Scope of practice, restricted activities and invalid orders are the classic nursing complaint. &ldquo;I was told to&rdquo; is not a defence.<\/li><li>Most BCCNM complaints are resolved by consensual complaint resolution &mdash; a negotiated consent agreement. What you bring to that negotiation decides its terms.<\/li><\/ul><\/section>\r\n<section class=\"courses\"><h2>Related courses<\/h2><p class=\"sub\">Practical, self-paced CPD courses that map onto the issues in this guide. These are educational courses. They are not accredited by BCCNM and are not a substitute for legal advice.<\/p><div class=\"cgrid\">\r\n<a class=\"ccard\" href=\"https:\/\/healthcareethicscourses.com\/can\/courses\/dealing-with-a-complaint-or-investigation-professionally\/\"><div class=\"ct\">Dealing With a Complaint or Investigation Professionally<\/div><p class=\"cd\">How to respond to a College complaint calmly, constructively and on the record.<\/p><span class=\"go\">View course &rarr;<\/span><\/a>\r\n<a class=\"ccard\" href=\"https:\/\/healthcareethicscourses.com\/can\/courses\/ensuring-clinical-competence-and-patient-safety\/\"><div class=\"ct\">Ensuring Clinical Competence and Patient Safety<\/div><p class=\"cd\">Scope of practice, restricted activities and clinical competence &mdash; the classic nursing complaint.<\/p><span class=\"go\">View course &rarr;<\/span><\/a>\r\n<a class=\"ccard\" href=\"https:\/\/healthcareethicscourses.com\/can\/courses\/documentation-for-healthcare-professionals\/\"><div class=\"ct\">Documentation for Healthcare Professionals<\/div><p class=\"cd\">Documentation standards, and why a late entry must never look like a rewrite.<\/p><span class=\"go\">View course &rarr;<\/span><\/a>\r\n<a class=\"ccard\" href=\"https:\/\/healthcareethicscourses.com\/can\/courses\/ethics-and-ethical-standards-for-nurses-and-midwives\/\"><div class=\"ct\">Ethics and Ethical Standards for Nurses and Midwives<\/div><p class=\"cd\">Core ethical standards for nurses and midwives.<\/p><span class=\"go\">View course &rarr;<\/span><\/a>\r\n<\/div><\/section>\r\n<section class=\"nextset\"><h2>Continue reading: British Columbia nurses &amp; midwives<\/h2>\r\n<a href=\"https:\/\/healthcareethicscourses.com\/can\/what-happens-during-a-bccnm-investigation\">What happens during a BCCNM investigation?<\/a>\r\n<a href=\"https:\/\/healthcareethicscourses.com\/can\/remediation-and-reflection-for-british-columbia-nurses-and-midwives\">Remediation and reflection for British Columbia nurses and midwives<\/a>\r\n<\/section>\r\n<section class=\"faq\"><h2>Frequently asked questions<\/h2>\r\n<details><summary>Has the BCCNM complaints process changed?<\/summary><div class=\"ans\">Yes, substantially. The Health Professions and Occupations Act came into force on 1 April 2026, replacing the Health Professions Act. BCCNM still receives and investigates complaints, but no longer determines disciplinary outcomes &mdash; serious matters go to an independent Health Professions Discipline Tribunal. Nurses and midwives are now &ldquo;licensees&rdquo; holding a &ldquo;practice authority&rdquo;.<\/div><\/details>\r\n<details><summary>Should I call my union or CNPS first?<\/summary><div class=\"ans\">Both, and early. They do different jobs. Your professional liability protection provider &mdash; for many nurses the Canadian Nurses Protective Society &mdash; advises on the regulatory matter. Your union advises on the employment side. Because most nursing complaints originate in the workplace, the two frequently run in parallel, and what you say in one process can surface in the other.<\/div><\/details>\r\n<details><summary>My employer reported me. Is that different from a patient complaint?<\/summary><div class=\"ans\">Procedurally the College treats it the same way, but the context is different and more dangerous. Employer reports often arrive alongside a performance or disciplinary process at work, meaning you are defending yourself on two fronts at once. Get union and CNPS advice before you give a statement to either.<\/div><\/details>\r\n<details><summary>A doctor told me to do it. Does that protect me?<\/summary><div class=\"ans\">No. An order is only valid if it comes from a profession authorised to give that order to your class of licensee, and if it is client-specific and documented. You remain accountable for acting within your scope of practice. &ldquo;I was told to&rdquo; is one of the most common and least successful explanations offered to a nursing regulator.<\/div><\/details>\r\n<details><summary>Do I have to cooperate with a BCCNM investigation?<\/summary><div class=\"ans\">Yes. The HPOA sets out express statutory duties for licensees, including cooperation with investigations. Failing to cooperate is independently actionable. But take advice from CNPS and your union before you respond &mdash; cooperating and being advised are not alternatives.<\/div><\/details>\r\n<details><summary>What is consensual complaint resolution?<\/summary><div class=\"ans\">A negotiated route in which the licensee and BCCNM reach a formal legal agreement setting out the steps the licensee will take to address the concerns identified. The majority of BCCNM complaints are resolved this way rather than by a discipline hearing. Consent agreements are published. Because it is a negotiation, what you bring to it &mdash; particularly completed remediation &mdash; directly affects its terms.<\/div><\/details>\r\n<\/section>\r\n<p class=\"disc\">This article is general information for nurses and midwives licensed by the BC College of Nurses and Midwives and does not constitute legal advice. The Health Professions and Occupations Act came into force on 1 April 2026 and the regime described here is new; bylaws, processes and practice are still settling, and every case turns on its own facts. If you are the subject of a complaint or investigation, contact your professional liability protection provider &mdash; for many nurses this is the Canadian Nurses Protective Society (CNPS) &mdash; together with your union and a lawyer experienced in professional regulation, before you respond. Last updated July 14, 2026.<\/p>\r\n<\/article>\r\n\r\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\">\r\n{\r\n  \"@context\": \"https:\/\/schema.org\",\r\n  \"@graph\": [\r\n    {\r\n      \"@type\": \"Article\",\r\n      \"headline\": \"How to Respond to a BCCNM Complaint\",\r\n      \"description\": \"Most nursing complaints start at work, not with a patient &mdash; and most end in a negotiated consent agreement, not a hearing. 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The Health Professions and Occupations Act came into force on 1 April 2026, replacing the Health Professions Act. BCCNM still receives and investigates complaints, but no longer determines disciplinary outcomes \u2014 serious matters go to an independent Health Professions Discipline Tribunal. Nurses and midwives are now \u201clicensees\u201d holding a \u201cpractice authority\u201d.\"\r\n          }\r\n        },\r\n        {\r\n          \"@type\": \"Question\",\r\n          \"name\": \"Should I call my union or CNPS first?\",\r\n          \"acceptedAnswer\": {\r\n            \"@type\": \"Answer\",\r\n            \"text\": \"Both, and early. They do different jobs. Your professional liability protection provider \u2014 for many nurses the Canadian Nurses Protective Society \u2014 advises on the regulatory matter. Your union advises on the employment side. Because most nursing complaints originate in the workplace, the two frequently run in parallel, and what you say in one process can surface in the other.\"\r\n          }\r\n        },\r\n        {\r\n          \"@type\": \"Question\",\r\n          \"name\": \"My employer reported me. Is that different from a patient complaint?\",\r\n          \"acceptedAnswer\": {\r\n            \"@type\": \"Answer\",\r\n            \"text\": \"Procedurally the College treats it the same way, but the context is different and more dangerous. Employer reports often arrive alongside a performance or disciplinary process at work, meaning you are defending yourself on two fronts at once. Get union and CNPS advice before you give a statement to either.\"\r\n          }\r\n        },\r\n        {\r\n          \"@type\": \"Question\",\r\n          \"name\": \"A doctor told me to do it. Does that protect me?\",\r\n          \"acceptedAnswer\": {\r\n            \"@type\": \"Answer\",\r\n            \"text\": \"No. An order is only valid if it comes from a profession authorised to give that order to your class of licensee, and if it is client-specific and documented. You remain accountable for acting within your scope of practice. \u201cI was told to\u201d is one of the most common and least successful explanations offered to a nursing regulator.\"\r\n          }\r\n        },\r\n        {\r\n          \"@type\": \"Question\",\r\n          \"name\": \"Do I have to cooperate with a BCCNM investigation?\",\r\n          \"acceptedAnswer\": {\r\n            \"@type\": \"Answer\",\r\n            \"text\": \"Yes. The HPOA sets out express statutory duties for licensees, including cooperation with investigations. Failing to cooperate is independently actionable. But take advice from CNPS and your union before you respond \u2014 cooperating and being advised are not alternatives.\"\r\n          }\r\n        },\r\n        {\r\n          \"@type\": \"Question\",\r\n          \"name\": \"What is consensual complaint resolution?\",\r\n          \"acceptedAnswer\": {\r\n            \"@type\": \"Answer\",\r\n            \"text\": \"A negotiated route in which the licensee and BCCNM reach a formal legal agreement setting out the steps the licensee will take to address the concerns identified. The majority of BCCNM complaints are resolved this way rather than by a discipline hearing. Consent agreements are published. 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