With more than 6,800 patients of an Ottawa clinic now concerned that they have been exposed to infectious disease because of poor sterilization procedures, many are wondering why it took so long for the clinic to be inspected.
For 10 years, gastroenterologist Dr. Christiane Farazli ran a private endoscopic clinic in west Ottawa. This past spring, inspectors with the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario discovered that the clinic was not properly sterilizing its instruments, putting all of its patients at risk of coming into contact with HIV and hepatitis B and C.
The college ordered Dr. Farazli to stop performing procedures in June, though her clinic otherwise remains in operation.
Many patients in Ontario were surprised to learn this week that until last year, clinics in the province performing everything from gastroscopies to liposuction to plastic surgery were not being regularly inspected.
The only reason the problems were discovered at Dr. Farazli's clinic was because of regulatory changes that came into effect last year that allowed inspectors with the college to enter clinics and assess practices.
Until then, the college did not have the authority to inspect a facility unless a specific complaint had been registered with the college, says Dr. Rocco Gerace, the registrar of the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario.
"Before that, the inspection of doctors was a random process. So we were relying heavily on the complaints process," he told CTV's Canada AM Wednesday.
"…We think that a proactive form of regulation is a little bit better."
Gerace explained that the college began the process to initiate regular inspections of clinics about five years ago. But when a 37-year-old real estate agent died in 2007 after undergoing liposuction at a private clinic in Toronto, the process was accelerated, Gerace said.
"That really prompted us to do this a little more quickly," he said.
Gerace explained that bringing in the regular inspection system took time because it required regulations to outline safety standards and legislative changes to allow the inspections and for the college to take measures to stop unsafe practices.
That legislation came into effect last year. Gerace says the college is now aiming to inspect all 276 clinics in Ontario where procedures are performed using certain types of anesthesia, such as private cosmetic surgery clinics and endoscopic clinics.
Gerace says it's unfortunate that clinics weren't regularly inspected until recently.
"They weren't. And I think we have to accept that clinics weren't inspected," he said.
"That's why we began an initiative several years ago to look at how we could begin a prospective and proactive basis to inspect the clinics and facilities."
The college aims to have all the clinics in Ontario inspected by the end of next year and then return for repeat inspections every five years.
