OMA Response to CPSO Draft Policy “Physicians and the Ontario Human Rights Code”

September 11, 2008 - The Ontario Medical Association (OMA) thanks the College of Physicians and Surgeons (CPSO) for the opportunity to comment on the CPSO draft policy entitled, “Physicians and the Ontario Human Rights Code”. The OMA appreciates the CPSO’s effort to offer physicians assistance in understanding their professional duties in dealing with human rights issues. In particular, the OMA agrees with the CPSO’s statement that physicians may exercise professional judgment in relation to their own clinical competence. However, the OMA is concerned that this draft policy may interfere with physicians existing rights and freedoms. The OMA urges the CPSO to abandon this policy.

First, the section of the policy entitled “Moral or Religious Beliefs” does not adequately inform physicians that their right to freedom of religion is protected under the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. The CPSO acknowledges that “the law in this area is unclear”, however, any policy that the CPSO publishes in this regard has the potential to misstate the law in this area. The CPSO’s interpretation of the Ontario Human Rights Code may conflict with publications of the Ontario Human Rights Commission or could be superseded by the developing case law and Tribunal decisions. The CPSO should refer physicians to the Ontario Human Rights Code when physicians are faced with a moral or religious conflict in the care of a patient.

Second, the draft policy introduces a professional misconduct clause, whereby a physician could be disciplined for withholding information about the existence of a procedure or treatment because providing that procedure or giving advice about it conflicts with their religious or moral beliefs. We believe that the vast majority of Ontarian physicians will provide patients with appropriate advice without a CPSO policy in this regard. We believe that it should never be professional misconduct for an Ontarian physician to act in accordance with his or her religious or moral beliefs.

It is the OMA’s position that physicians maintain a right to exercise their own moral judgment and freedom of choice in making decisions regarding medical care and that the CPSO not insert itself into the interpretation of human rights statutes.