An Ontario gynecologist鈥檚 medical licence has been suspended for two years after the province鈥檚 regulatory body for physicians ruled that she committed professional misconduct and was incompetent in the care of two dozen patients.
The College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario also found that Dr. Cathy Frank, who most recently worked at Southern Ontario Fertility Technologies (S.O.F.T.) in London, Ont., failed to meet the standards of practice of her profession.
the CPSO said it had received more than 30 complaints from patients between 2009 and 2012 about the treatment they received from Dr. Frank. The CPSO鈥檚 decision details for the first time the nature of the complaints and the disciplinary committee鈥檚 findings.
The cases in question include a woman whose only remaining ovary was removed without consent during surgery and a woman whose fallopian tubes were tied without her consent after she lost her infant following an emergency C-section.
The CPSO found that Dr. Frank failed to adequately investigate causes of patients鈥� symptoms before performing surgeries, failed to obtain informed consent from patients, and performed surgeries that resulted in damage to patients鈥� organs and tissues, among other wrongdoings.
As a result, Dr. Frank鈥檚 medical licence has been suspended for 24 months. The suspension came into effect on Feb. 27.
Dr. Frank鈥檚 husband, Dr. James Martin, also worked at the S.O.F.T. fertility clinic. In 2014, he and ceased to practice fertility medicine.
According to the CPSO, Dr. Frank received her postgraduate training at the University of Western Ontario and officially became an obstetrician-gynecologist in 2002.
In its decision, the CPSO outlined 27 cases in which patients treated by Dr. Frank experienced complications, were not properly informed about their treatment options or did not undergo required tests and investigations of their symptoms.
Among the disciplinary committee鈥檚 findings:
- In one case, Dr. Frank performed a laparoscopically assisted vaginal hysterectomy on a patient and noted during the procedure that the woman鈥檚 only remaining ovary looked abnormal. According to the CPSO, Dr. Frank removed the ovary without discussing it with the patient or any of the patient鈥檚 family members. The patient only learned about the ovary removal 鈥渟everal years later,鈥� when she reviewed her medical records, the CPSO said.
- A woman saw Dr. Frank in her 34th week of pregnancy and reported that her fetus鈥� movements had decreased. In her notes, Dr. Frank recorded that there was fetal movement, but did not document how she came to that conclusion. The following week, the patient went to an emergency room, where it was discovered that her fetus was deceased. Dr. Frank used an 鈥渋nappropriately high dose鈥� of a drug called Misoprostol to induce labour in the patient and failed to obtain the patient鈥檚 informed consent to administer the drug, according to the CPSO.
- After another patient鈥檚 infant could not be resuscitated following an emergency C-section, Dr. Frank performed a tubal ligation, or surgical sterilization, on the patient. The woman had not consented to the procedure, the CPSO said.
- Dr. Frank inappropriately used forceps in the delivery of a baby before moving to a C-section, the CPSO found. After the birth, both the infant and the mother experienced 鈥渟ignificant complications.鈥�
In the past, Dr. Frank was the subject of numerous 鈥渦ndertakings鈥� with the CPSO, including restrictions on how she could practice medicine, as a result of prior complaints from patients.
In 2011, three women launched lawsuits against Dr. Frank, who was practising medicine and performing surgeries in St. Thomas, Ont., at the time. The lawsuits alleged that each of the women 鈥渟uffered significant鈥� complications as a result of Dr. Frank鈥檚 medical care. The patients also said that they did not know the CPSO had placed restrictions on Dr. Frank鈥檚 practice in 2009.
Legate & Associates LLP, the law firm that represented the plaintiffs, subsequently said that more than 50 other women came forward and that it expected 鈥渕any more lawsuits鈥� would be issued.
Joni Dobson, a partner at the firm, said Thursday that she cannot discuss the status of the lawsuits 鈥渙r anything related to settlements.鈥�
The lawyer who represented Dr. Frank at her most recent CPSO disciplinary hearing committee did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Thursday.
When Dr. Frank鈥檚 suspension is lifted, she will face numerous restrictions imposed by the CPSO, including practising only in the areas of reproductive endocrinology and infertility,office-based gynecology and early obstetrical care.
