Clinical care and conduct complaint
Most complaints submitted to the College deal with a registrant’s clinical decision-making or the way a patient has been treated. Below is a guide on how our process works for clinical care and conduct complaints.
How outcomes are determined
College staff and medical consultants review all the materials submitted in a complaint. They will then draft a preliminary decision letter. These decision letters are reviewed by a panel of the Inquiry Committee. The Inquiry Committee provides public and professional oversight. Once a decision letter is reviewed it is sent to the complainant(s) and registrant(s) involved.
Other panels of the Inquiry Committee review and decide upon more complex cases. All Inquiry Committee panels include members of the public, family physicians, surgeons and other specialists.
A registrant may be criticized if their conduct fell short of expectations.
- Criticism may relate to an issue raised by the person filing the complaint.
- Criticism may relate to different concerns that College staff and consultants independently identified during the investigation.
- Formal criticism may not always be warranted, even if a registrant falls short of expectations. We will provide guidance to a registrant to improve their practice if criticism isn’t warranted.
