Revocation

Revocation is the most severe penalty available in Ontario regulated health professions discipline. It removes the practitioner’s certificate of registration entirely, ending their right to practise the profession in Ontario. For physicians, revocation orders are made by the Ontario Physicians and Surgeons Discipline Tribunal under the Health Professions Procedural Code, and they take effect immediately unless the Tribunal orders otherwise.

Revocation is reserved for the most serious cases of professional misconduct and incompetence. Categories of conduct that have historically attracted revocation include sexual abuse of a patient (for which the Code contains mandatory revocation provisions in respect of certain prohibited acts), repeated or egregious clinical incompetence, falsification of qualifications or records, serious financial misconduct, and conduct that demonstrates the registrant is ungovernable.

A revoked physician may apply for reinstatement after five years (or such longer period as the Tribunal orders), but reinstatement is not automatic. The applicant must demonstrate to the Tribunal’s satisfaction that they have addressed the underlying issues that led to revocation and that public safety would not be compromised by their return to practice. Many revocations are, in practical effect, permanent.

Posts tagged Revocation analyze Ontario discipline decisions in which a physician’s certificate of registration was revoked, including the conduct that supported revocation, any joint submissions on penalty, and the Tribunal’s reasoning.