FROM THE REGISTRAR’S DESK
When public interest
trumps confidentiality
T
Rocco Gerace, MD
Registrar
photo: D.W. Dorken
There exist special
circumstances where
physicians are
required to report
particular events or
clinical conditions
he actions of a Germanwings co-pilot
who flew his plane into
a rocky valley in the
Alps, in an apparent mission to kill
himself and the other 149 people
on board, has served as a tragic
reminder of the role that mandatory reports can play.
Although, an investigation
revealed that Andreas Lubitz – the
co-pilot – had a medical note covering the day of the plane crash,
his employer says it was never
informed of his depression.
It is only natural to wonder
if a tragedy like that could ever
happen in Canada. Certainly, we
have, in statute, clear reporting
expectations for doctors. However,
the best designed system is only
going to be as good as the level
of vigilance exercised by all those
involved.
So I ask you all to be aware of
your obligations and fulfill your
duty. If you provide care to any
pilot, air traffic controller or
flight engineer that has a medical
condition which may be a hazard
to flight safety, you must make a
mandatory report. We have an article on page 46 of this magazine,
prompted by Transport Canada’s
recent reminder to the profession.
As physicians, we are ingrained
with the legal and professional obligation to maintain the confidentiality of patient information. But
there exist special circumstances
where physicians are required to
report particular events or clinical conditions to the appropriate
government or regulatory agency
in order to serve a greater societal
good. The importance of reporting
a pilot who may pose a risk to air
safety is such an example.
Another example is suspected
child abuse. Abuse and other forms
of neglect are enormous health
hazards for children, and our cover
story makes the point that physicians may not always have the
luxury of certainty in such situations. The threshold for reporting
is reasonable grounds to suspect
a child is or may be in need of
protection. If you do have reasonable grounds to suspect a child is
in need of protection, you must
immediately report the suspicion,
and the information upon which
it is based, to the Children’s Aid
Society.
I’d like to also outline some of
the mandatory reports that physicians must provide to this College
Issue 3, 2015 Dialogue
7