PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE
“
The College
continued with our
initiative to improve
our processes to
better support
patients and protect
them from sexual
abuse
”
4
improve our processes to better
support patients and protect
them from sexual abuse by phy-
sicians. As part of that effort, we
recognized that our governing
legislation needed to be modern-
ized. To that end, we advanced a
number of proposals for changes
that would strengthen penal-
ties, make sexual misconduct
investigations and prosecutions
more effective and efficient, and
better empower and support pa-
tients involved in the discipline
process.
Bill 87, The Protecting Patients
Act, was introduced in Decem-
ber 2016, and it contains a
number of our recommenda-
tions. In the months that would
follow, the College reviewed the
proposed legislation carefully
and actively participated in the
legislative process to help ensure
the regulatory system had the
tools needed to ensure patient
protection.
And as the opioid crisis
continued to take its toll on
families and communities across
Canada, we stepped up our
efforts to address potentially
unsafe prescribing practices.
We investigated a significant
number of physicians whose
prescribing practices had been
flagged by Ontario’s Narcotics
Monitoring System as poten-
COLLEGE OF PHYSICIANS AND SURGEONS OF ONTARIO
tially concerning. The informa-
tion we received suggested that
these physicians were engaging
in practice patterns that may be
inconsistent with the Canadian
Guideline, and could present a
possible risk to patients, either
by prescribing high doses of
opioids or prescribing opioids
in combination with benzodiaz-
epines.
Investigations, however, are
just one important component
in the College’s Opioid Strategy
– a wide-ranging effort that will
see us add other tools, including
education and assessment, to try
and help bring an end to this
catastrophic crisis.
I urge you to read more about
these initiatives, as well as many
others, in the following pages of
our 2016 Annual Report.
It was a privilege to lead the
College and I am grateful to
my colleagues on Council for
the opportunity. In addition
to thanking my Hospital col-
leagues for their support and
understanding, I would like to
acknowledge the College staff,
who were a pleasure to work
with throughout my term.