Standard 4 - Competence/Ongoing Competence

Standard 4 - Competence/Ongoing Competence

Respiratory Therapists (RTs) must provide competent patient/client care and ensure their knowledge, skills, and judgment/abilities remain current on an ongoing basis.

 Performance Requirements

RTs:

• Possess the competence pertinent to the role and responsibilities of their areas of practice.
• Must refrain from performing activities/procedures for which they are not competent and that are beyond their knowledge, skill, and judgment/abilities.
• Keep their knowledge and skills current and upgrade competence in response to the development of new technologies and methods of delivering care.
• Practice within the professional scope of practice, personal scope of practice and scope of employment.
• Recognize and acknowledge limitations in their competence and seek additional knowledge, guidance, or assistance from others as
• Assume responsibility for their personal and professional development.
• Assess their level of competence based on evidence-informed practices, identifying learning needs, and developing strategies to address the learning requirements.
• Comply with applicable regulatory requirements for professional development/continuing education (e.g., NSRRT Continuing Competency Program “E-Volve” and associated policies).
• Recognize when professional or personal difficulties are affecting their ability to provide safe and competent care and seek appropriate assistance.
• Must refrain from practising the profession while the member’s ability to do so is impaired by any substance, illness or other condition which the member knew or ought to have known would impair the member’s ability to practise.

 Patient/Client Expected Outcome

Patients/clients can expect that RTs provide competent care at all times.

 Related Standards

• Evidence-Informed Practice
• Patient/Client Assessment & Therapeutic Procedures
• Professional Responsibilities
• Safety & Risk Management

  Related Resources

• College of Respiratory Therapists of Ontario. (2021). A Commitment to Ethical Practice. Available at: https://ethics.crto.on.ca.
• College of Respiratory Therapists of Ontario. (2023). Interpretation of Authorized Acts Professional Practice Guideline. Available at: https://interpretation.crto.on.ca.
• Nova Scotia Regulator of Respiratory Therapy. (2023). “E-Volve” Continuing Competency Program Manual. Available at: https://nsrrt.ca/images/Updated_2023_NSCRT_E-Volve_Registrant_Manual.pdf
• Nova Scotia Regulator of Respiratory Therapy. (2015). Code of Ethical and Professional Conduct. Available at: https://nsrrt.ca/professional-practice/code-of-ethics
• National Alliance of Respiratory Therapy Regulatory Bodies. (2016). National Competency Framework for the Profession of Respiratory Therapy. Part 1. National Standards for Entry-to-Practice. Available at: https://nartrb.ca/download/ncf-part-i-entry-to-practice-2016/
• National Alliance of Respiratory Therapy Regulatory Bodies. (2024). National Competency Framework. Available at: https://nartrb.ca/national-competency-profileframework.
• Nova Scotia Regulator of Respiratory Therapy (2025). NSRRT Policy Manual – Section 5 Continuing Competency. Available at https://nsrrt.ca/images/Continuing_Competency_Program_Policy_Manual_Rev_2025.pdf
• Nova Scotia Government. Regulated Health Professions Act (2023). Available at: https://nslegislature.ca/sites/default/files/legc/statutes/regulated%20health%20professions.pdf

Glossary

Appropriate refers to in accordance with ethical, legal, technical and/or clinical requirements of professional practice.

Competent refers to “the ability to consistently and effectively apply the requisite knowledge, skills, clinical judgment, and professional behaviour to provide safe, ethical, and effective patient care".^[1]

Evidence-informed refers to “practice that is based on successful strategies that improve client outcomes and are derived from a combination of various sources of evidence, including client perspective, research, national guidelines, policies, consensus statements, expert opinion, and quality improvement data.”^[2]

Patient/client refers to “individual, group, community or population who is the recipient of respiratory therapy services and, where the context requires, includes a substitute decision-maker for the recipient of respiratory therapy services”.^[3]

Personal scope of practice refers to what is often a subset of the overall scope of practice of a profession (professional scope) and “means the roles, functions and accountabilities that an individual is educated and authorized”.^[4]

Professional scope of practice is outlined in the Respiratory Therapy Act (RTA) and means: “the provision of diagnostic, assessment, and therapeutic modalities to assist in the management of cardio-respiratory and related disorders, in collaboration with physicians and other health care professionals, to achieve optimal respiratory health, wellness and functional performance.”^[5]

^[1] Open AI. (2025). ChatGPT (May 14 version) [Large language model]. https://chatgpt.com

^[2] College of Respiratory Therapists of Ontario. (2021). A Commitment to Ethical Practice. Available at: https://ethics.crto.on.ca.

^[3] Nova Scotia Government. Regulated Health Professions Act (2023). Available at:  https://nslegislature.ca/sites/default/files/legc/statutes/regulated%20health%20professions.pdf

^[4] College of Respiratory Therapists of Ontario. (2023). Interpretation of Authorized Acts Professional Practice Guideline. Available at:  https://interpretation.crto.on.ca.

^[5] Nova Scotia Government. Regulated Health Professions Act (2023). Available at:  https://nslegislature.ca/sites/default/files/legc/statutes/regulated%20health%20professions.pdf