
Endorsement Requests
As a leader in Canadian Oncology Pharmacy, CAPhO reviews endorsement requests for externally developed educational materials, programs, and clinical support resources related to oncology pharmacy practice. To ensure that CAPhO reviews all endorsement requests in a standardized and unbiased manner, and that all materials meet CAPhO’s standards and align with the organization’s mission and vision, CAPhO has developed the following endorsement policy and framework for these external initiatives.
Examples of External Initiatives Subject to CAPhO’s Endorsement Policy
- Clinical Assessment and/or Monitoring Tools
- Clinical Guidance Documents
- Educational Seminar
- External Educational Courses
- Independent Study Packages
- Non-Profit Review Requests
- Patient Education Materials
Exemptions from Policy
- Programs and materials developed by CAPhO and its Committees in keeping with our mission and values
- Programs and materials developed for CAPhO-based educational programs such as the annual conference, Oncology Fundamentals Day, non-sponsored CAPhO webinars, and podcasts
Policy Implications to Consider
- CAPhO will only accept applications for endorsement from groups or individuals in which at least one submitting author is a member of CAPhO.
- CAPhO will consider endorsing educational programs and materials that are related to oncology pharmacy practice and help bridge current learning gaps.
- CAPhO will only endorse programs and materials in which all treatment options are for Health Canada approved indications and are recommended for public reimbursement.
- CAPhO does not endorse specific therapeutic products such as drugs and natural health products.
- CAPhO only endorses programs and materials that are consistent with its mission and vision.
- CAPhO endorsement is valid for a period of two years. To obtain endorsement beyond this timeframe, a renewal application and fee must be resubmitted (as outlined in Section 10 of Procedures below).
- CAPhO shall provide endorsement in the form of a written statement. The following is an example of an endorsement statement:
"This program meets Canadian Association of Pharmacy in Oncology (CAPhO) standards and is expected to support oncology (pharmacy practitioners/ technicians and assistants/ pharmacists / patients) in their understanding of (topic of program/material). Endorsement is provided by CAPhO for two years, expiring in month/year.” - A disclaimer must appear on all written materials, protecting the organization or individual who developed the material for legal liability. The following statement must be included on all programs and materials for which CAPhO is providing endorsement:
“CAPhO has made every effort to ensure that information included within this program is accurate at the time of endorsement. The information included cannot substitute for the advice or direction of a health care professional, and the association makes no guarantees, nor can it assume any legal liability for the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness of such information or for any damage incurred directly or indirectly from the information. Reference to any specific product does not imply its endorsement, recommendation or preference by the Canadian Association of Pharmacy in Oncology”. - No alterations can be made to the CAPhO logo, supporting statements, or disclaimer. The reader must not be misled to believe that CAPhO has developed the materials.
- Programs and materials must include the date of production/publication.
- The fees to review and provide endorsement of materials and programs is determined by CAPhO’s Board of Directors and is reviewed on an annual basis. All fees are non-refundable. Payment of the application fee does not guarantee endorsement.
- The timeframe for review of the endorsement request will be determined by CAPhO, not the applicant. Reviews of initial application may take 4-6 weeks and complete review of submitted material for endorsement may take an additional 8-12 weeks. Timelines may be impacted if submission coincides with CAPhO educational initiatives, such as the annual CAPhO Conference and Oncology Fundamentals Day, or other CAPhO initiatives.
- A written, contractual agreement between CAPhO and the agency/group/individual seeking endorsement is required.
- CAPhO may make the resource accessible to membership and public as appropriate, and the submitting party may disseminate the endorsed materials to the target audience as outlined in the Procedure. An additional fee is required if the submitting party would like to use CAPhO’s website to host materials.
- The materials will be removed from CAPhO’s website once endorsement has expired.
Endorsement Procedure
Please use the Endorsement Application Site to request Endorsement Application Review (A), apply for Endorsement Review (B) and Renewal (C).
A. Request for Endorsement Review Application (Fee $300 plus GST/HST)
1. Submit a request to CAPhO via the online application. You will be requested to provide the following.
- Title
- Materials type/format
- Target audience
- Intended location of final material (organization website, print versions, etc.)
- Rationale/unmet need
- Objectives/intended use
- Authors, disclosures of conflicts of interest
- Disclosures of sponsorship/grants
- Target date for submission for endorsement review
- Requested endorsement period
2. The application will be reviewed by a member of CAPhO’s Board of Directors, along with the chairs of the Education Committees. The review will ensure the project aligns with CAPhO’s mission and vision and is not redundant in scope with existing resources or educational materials in development.
3. CAPhO will respond to the submitting party to indicate that the proposed material is eligible (with/without recommendations) for endorsement review or ineligible. Confirmation of eligibility does not guarantee future endorsement. If eligible, CAPhO will determine which Director and associated portfolio will lead the endorsement review.
B. Endorsement Review Application (Fee $5,000 plus GST/HST)
4. After the request has been reviewed and the application approved to be further evaluated, the submitting party provides the following materials to CAPhO in electronic format for the endorsement review:
- Statement of currency of document resources (e.g., literature review current through: MM YYYY)
- Author names and credentials, primary place of employment
- Placeholder for the endorsing association’s stamp (e.g., logo), expiry date and disclaimer statement
- Disclosures: author conflicts of interests, medical writer involvement and medical writer disclosures, declaration of sponsorship/grants (e.g., pharmaceutical company support)
- Reference list
5. Materials will be forwarded to the Director leading endorsement review. The Director will conduct an initial review of the material to identify whether material can proceed to the Expert Review. The Director will then assemble a panel of Expert Reviewers (2-3). Expert Reviewers are preferably a CAPhO member with no conflicts of interest with the submitting party. If not available within membership, the Director may ask a non-member to be an Expert Reviewer. Expert Reviewers will receive an honorarium based on CAPhO’s honoraria structure, and the Director will identify the honoraria to the Expert Reviewers upfront based on review workload. Material will be reviewed by the assigned Director and Expert Reviewers for the following:
- Alignment with CAPhO’s mission and values
- Accuracy (appropriately referenced)
- Currency (information and references are recent and up to date)
- Clarity (information is easy to follow for intended audience)
- Bias (includes description of all therapeutic alternatives)
- Relevance to Canadian clinical practice (refrains from including treatment options that are not accessible in Canada or are not recommended for public reimbursement)
6. Expert Reviewers will send their feedback, recommended edits, and whether they recommend material for endorsement to the Director. The Director will evaluate all reviewer’s comments and will request that the submitting party modify the materials, if necessary. Request for revision of program/materials along with the deadline for re-submission will be sent to the submitting party by the CAPhO Management Office. If the submitting party refuses to make edits satisfactory to Director and Expert Reviewer, endorsement will not be granted.
7. Once the required amendments have been made, a letter approving the endorsement (signed by the Director), will be sent to the submitting party, and the submitting party will then pay the $5,000 endorsement fee.
8. The CAPhO Management Office (with the approval of the Director) will ensure that a contractual agreement with the submitting party is signed. The contractual agreement shall include the following requirements:
- CAPhO will have final approval of all statements attributed to CAPhO or using the name “CAPhO”, “Canadian Association of Pharmacy in Oncology”
- CAPhO will be adequately assured of protection against legal liability utilizing legal advice of legal services used by CAPhO.
- The parties will agree on the two-year term of the endorsement.
- CAPhO will have assurances that the CAPhO statement will not be used to make degrading comparisons to other materials or programs.
- All final drafts of materials, layouts for packaging and promotional pieces must be submitted for final sign-off by the Director prior to publication and/ or presentation.
9. CAPhO may make the resource accessible to membership and public as appropriate (e.g. including link on website). The submitting party may disseminate the endorsed materials to the target audience as outlined in the application. If the submitting party would like to use CAPhO’s website to host materials (as opposed to a link to an external website), an additional fee of $500 is required and must be approved by the Director when the endorsement is granted. The materials will be removed from CAPhO’s website once endorsement has expired.
C. Endorsement Renewal Review Application (Fee $300 and $2,000 plus GST/HST, if major revision, $300 plus GST/HST and no charge for minimal revision)
10. The submitting party may request renewal prior to the end of the endorsement period. The procedure for requesting a renewal is as follows:
- The submitting party must submit a summary of the updated content and/or changes made to the program or materials along with a $300 application fee
- The submitting party must contain at least one author that is a current member of CAPhO
- For renewal requests requiring brief review with minimal updates, the submitting party will be required to pay an application fee of $300, but there will be no endorsement fee required. A minimum of 1 Expert Reviewer (in addition to the Director) will be responsible for providing a review.
- For renewal requests requiring major revisions, the submitting party will be required to pay a review fee of $2000 (in addition to the $300 application fee). A minimum of 2 Expert Reviewers (in addition to the Director) will be responsible for providing a review.
- The Director of the portfolio completing the original review will be responsible for reviewing the original and updated materials to determine appropriate fees. The Director may request to have another member of the Board of Directors lead the renewal, at their discretion.
- The submitting party will be allowed to submit no more than three subsequent renewal requests for material before a new submission is required.
CAPhO acknowledges CANO (Canadian Association of Nurses in Oncology) for use of their Endorsement Policy as a framework which CAPhO adapted in the creation of this policy
Approved: January 2024
Due for review: December 2024