BCCOHP assists oral health professionals who are facing addiction or any health matters that could affect their ability to provide safe patient care*.
All health matters are treated confidentially and oral health professionals may participate voluntarily in BCCOHP’s Health Monitoring Program (Page 115, PDF). The Investigation Committee can also order an oral health professional to undergo a capacity evaluation.
Upon receipt of expert medical advice, the licensee may be asked to voluntarily withdraw from practice until such time as they have been determined fit to practice. BCCOHP’s aim is to see the individual recover and return to work in a sustainable way. BCCOHP works with oral health professionals to determine a pathway back to safe practice.
If you are (or know of) a BCCOHP licensee suffering from a health matter, please contact BCCOHP’s Monitoring department using our contact form.
*a number of health matters may fit into this category of altered physical and/or cognitive competency. A health condition includes a physical, cognitive or mental condition or ailment or an emotional disturbance.
Health regulators recognize that addiction is a disease for which recovery pathways exist, and that those recovery pathways should be separate from complaints and discipline. BCCOHP operates in this manner and works with oral health professionals seeking treatment. The way BCCOHP deals with health matters is confidential.
If you suffer from an addiction/dependency disease, you have a duty to protect the safety of patients and legal/ethical obligation to cease practice immediately and notify BCCOHP in confidence through Manager, Monitoring and Compliance, Moninder Sahota’s direct phone line: 672-202-0448 (ext. 5345).
Additionally, if you are aware of another oral health professional’s addiction/dependency, it is your professional, ethical and legal duty to report it to BCCOHP.
What will happen next?
BCCOHP’s collaborative approach to treatment and monitoring guides oral health professionals through treatment and provides a pathway back to safe practice. The essential elements of the addiction recovery pathway typically include:
1 | Practitioner’s agreement to voluntarily withdraw from practice until deemed medically fit to return (failing a voluntary agreement, BCCOHP has the ability to take action under the Health Professions and Occupations Act – section 259) – Confidential supports and resources may be available from the professional associations for each of the oral health professions. – Access to practitioners able to step in as locums (to maintain the practice on behalf of the practitioner while undergoing treatment) should be explored by the oral health professionals by contacting their professional associations. |
| 2 | Assessment by a physician with addiction medicine expertise recognized by BCCOHP |
| 3 | Treatment (in accordance with expert recommendations) |
| 4 | Post-treatment assessment and planning for return to work |
| 5 | A formal agreement with BCCOHP to fulfill certain conditions for return to practice (and during continued practice) |
| 6 | Upon return to work, a period of ongoing monitoring by the addiction medicine expert and the treatment team, which includes monitored return-to-work protocols |
What happens if I relapse?
Addiction is a chronic brain disease with a complex etiology and a tendency for relapse; however, success rates for professionals who enter a structured program are high. The data for physicians who undergo rigorous standards of treatment and monitoring indicates that 5-year abstinence rates from substance abuse disorders are in excess of 80 per cent, which far outperforms other treatment programs*.
Should relapse occur:
*Six lessons from State Physician Health Programs to Promote Long Term Recovery: DuPont, M.D. and Skipper, G.E. 2012; Journal of Psychoactive Drugs Vol. 44(1), 72-78
The professional associations for each of the oral health professions may offer confidential supports and resources for oral health professionals and their families.
