Health professionals share a core of knowledge and skills, whether they come from the diagnostic health technologies, such as diagnostic imaging or laboratory, from the therapeutic area, such as respiratory therapy, or from nursing. This solid foundation of health science knowledge, augmented by experience gained through work in the health care system, allows qualified practitioners to quickly learn and apply new knowledge and skills. This is true whether the individual is learning new or advanced techniques within their discipline (vertical multiskilling) or acquiring skills in another discipline (horizontal multiskilling).

The advantages of learning and providing added skills for qualified health practitioners include:

• new skills are acquired with minimal expenditures of time and money, so training is cost-effective;
• qualified practitioners already understand ethical issues and have developed professional attitudes;
• qualified practitioners understand safe work practices required to protect the patient, fellow health workers, and themselves;
• provides job enrichment;
• health professionals are accustomed to exercising independent judgement and recognizing when a task is outside their level of professional competence; and
  employment opportunities will arise for some individuals who are displaced by health care reform

CSMLS supports multiskilling provided that competency-based assessment is performed to document that individuals have developed those value-added skills and has met the professional standards of the appropriate professional societies/ regulatory agencies.

CSMLS, in partnership with other appropriate health professionals, is committed to develop appropriate professional recognition for multiskilled practitioners, in order to promote consumer confidence and retain the highest standards within the health-care industry.

Initially approved March 3, 1995
Revised September 20, 2002