DISCIPLINE SUMMARIES
notified of this suspension, Dr. Clowater continued
to practise during this time.
On September 7, 2011, the College sent Dr.
Clowater a Notice of Suspension of Certificate of
Registration advising her that her certificate of regis-
tration was suspended for non-payment of fees. The
Notice stated that if Dr. Clowater wished to resume
practise in Ontario, she would have to apply to the
College for reinstatement. The Notice also advised
her that, if she were to reapply, her reinstatement
would not be automatic; rather, it would take time
to review and process her reinstatement application.
Lastly, this September 7, 2011 Notice instructed Dr.
Clowater not to resume practise until the College
had advised her that her certificate had been issued.
The College received Dr. Clowater’s reinstatement
application fee on September 19, 2011. College staff
emailed Dr. Clowater on September 28, 2011 to
advise that her application was incomplete and that
she therefore was not authorized to practise medi-
cine. The College staff member asked Dr. Clowater
to confirm whether she had practised medicine
after September 7, 2011. Dr. Clowater emailed the
College staff member back on September 28, 2011,
saying, “I have not been practicing since september
(sic.) 7th 2011. I am awaiting your email to resume
practice.” Dr. Clowater later acknowledged that the
statement that she had not practised since September
7, 2011 was untrue.
Lapse of Professional Liability Coverage
Dr. Clowater practised medicine without profes-
sional liability coverage between November 1, 2010
and June 17, 2011. She submitted claims to OHIP
for the period during which she did not have cover-
age. In response to a College inquiry regarding her
lapse in professional liability coverage, Dr. Clowater
claimed that she first became aware that there had
been a period of time during which her professional
liability membership had not been in good stead after
she received the College’s October 2013 letter. This
was not true.
REASONS FOR PENALTY
Counsel for the College and counsel for Dr. Clowater
agreed that certain penalty elements were appropri-
ate in the circumstances, namely that Dr. Clowater
should be reprimanded, complete a course in medical
ethics, and pay the costs of the one-day hearing at
the tariff rate of $5,000.
The parties, however, did not agree on whether a
suspension of Dr. Clowater’s certificate of regi stration
was appropriate. Counsel for the College submitted
that a four-month suspension was appropriate while
counsel for Dr. Clowater submitted that she should
not be suspended.
Practising with Suspended Certificate
Dr. Clowater admitted that she practised without a
certificate of registration, which is contrary to the
Regulated Health Professions Act. Dr. Clowater admit-
ted to seeing 90 patients at her private office between
September 15 and 28, 2011 while her certificate of
registration was suspended.
The Committee understands that the penalty over-
all must be proportional to the misconduct. In the
view of the Committee, the act of practising while
her certificate of registration was suspended is suf-
ficiently serious that a suspension is required.
Dr. Clowater was fully aware of the pending sus-
pension of her certificate of registration, as illustrated
by the College’s repeated attempts to have her com-
ply with paying her membership fee, clearly outlining
her options, and repeatedly giving her notice that she
would be suspended if she did not pay her fee. This
included repeated letters, emails and telephone calls/
voice mails from June 1, 2011, when her member-
ship fees were due, up until the date of suspension
of her certificate of registration, on September 7,
2011. During this period, Dr. Clowater was either
unresponsive or would indicate that payment was
forthcoming.
Dr. Clowater made untrue statements in delay-
ing and deferring paying for her annual dues in
her responses to the College’s attempts to have her
comply. On August 16, 2011, the College spoke to
Dr. Clowater as well as her husband. Her husband
advised the College that he would fax the credit card
information to the College that afternoon. When no
information was received, the College again tele-
Full decisions are available online at www.cpso.on.ca.
Select Doctor Search and enter the doctor’s name.
ISSUE 3, 2017 DIALOGUE
53