Longtime London, Ont., dentist's licence revoked after college determines he sexually abused patient
CBC
WARNING: This story references actions deemed as sexual abuse by the dental profession's regulatory college.
A disciplinary committee has stripped a longtime London, Ont., dentist of his licence after he admitted to having a sexual relationship with a patient, something the regulatory college says constitutes sexual abuse.
In its decision made public Monday, the Royal College of Dental Surgeons of Ontario (RCDSO) panel said Dr. Brock Rondeau "engaged in multiple acts of professional misconduct" when he initiated a relationship with a female patient in or around 2020 to 2022.
It also found he breached patient privacy rights when he sent the woman a photo of his schedule that showed the names and phone numbers of other patients and reasons for their appointments, the panel's decision says.
"Your professional misconduct is a matter of profound concern. It is completely unacceptable to your fellow dentists and to the public," the panel told Rondeau during a July 15 hearing in Toronto.
Rondeau admitted to the allegations, according to the decision document. During the July 15 hearing, his certificate of registration was revoked.
A longtime RCDSO member — his profile shows he first registered in June 1966 after getting his dental degree from Dalhousie University in Nova Scotia — Rondeau had led a distinguished career hosting educational seminars for dental professionals and has authored several research papers.
Before his registration was revoked, he operated a private practice in London specializing in orthodontic issues and problems related to snoring, sleep apnea and temporomandibular joint (TMJ) disorders, according to his former clinic's website.
The woman, who needed orthodontic and TMJ treatment, was referred to Rondeau by the Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (WSIB) in 2018.
Two years later, the panel said, Rondeau "breached appropriate dentist-patient boundaries" and initiated a sexual relationship with the woman, during which he "engaged in touching of a sexual nature of the patient."
As a result, the panel found Rondeau had sexually abused the patient under the Health Professions Procedural Code of the Regulated Health Professions Act, which defines sexual abuse as "sexual intercourse or other forms of physical sexual relations between a registrant and a patient."
Rondeau was not accused of criminal wrongdoing and no criminal charges were laid.
Such laws and policies exist to protect patients from the power imbalance in patient-practitioner relationships and ensure they're receiving advice in their best interests, said Jacob Shelley, an associate professor of law at Western University.
"Any time that a practitioner is considering their own needs, they might not be acting in the fiduciary interest, in the best interest of that patient," Shelley said.
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