Your practice as a dental assistant is shaped by safe and ethical care and by working within the limits of your education and competence. This helps build patient trust and supports the public’s expectation of high professional standards. We support your professional practice by offering you guidance about practice requirements and by setting standards and ethics. The Standards of Practice and the Code of Ethics set expectations of conduct.
These expectations include:
- knowing and complying with the College’s requirements
- communicating in a professional and timely manner
- providing the College with information as requested, responding appropriately and professionally
- participating fully and meaningfully in the professional conduct process with our College or any other college
- taking responsibility for your decisions and actions
Review the Standards of Practice and Code of Ethics
When a complaint is made
Anyone may submit a written, signed complaint about a dental assistant. Complaints often come from patients, employers, or coworkers and must relate to conduct or care described as unprofessional conduct in s. 1(1)(pp) of the Health Professions Act (HPA).
Examples of unprofessional conduct may include:
- sexual abuse and sexual misconduct
- displaying a lack of knowledge or skill
- contravention of the HPA, Code or Standards
- conduct that harms the integrity of the profession
- failing to comply with a complaint investigation
If a complaint is made about you, the Complaints Director will contact you and may request a written response. This is your opportunity to explain the situation from your perspective and provide information that may assist in understanding what took place.
What you can expect
The complaint process follows Part 4 of the HPA, which requires the Complaints Director to decide how to proceed within 30 days of treating the matter as a complaint. The HPA provides several options including, but not limited to the following:
- informal resolution – suggesting that you and the complainant try to resolve the concern
- investigation – beginning an investigation
- expert opinion – requesting a subject matter expert report
- dismissal – dismissing the complaint
It’s important to note that these options do not have to be done in any particular order.
You can expect to be treated fairly, to receive updates where appropriate, and to have the opportunity to respond and participate meaningfully in the process.
Informal resolution
Some matters can be resolved early through discussion and agreement. The Complaints Director may recommend informal resolution when it’s appropriate and safe to do so. If this is successful, the matter may not need to proceed further.
Investigation
The Complaints Director may conduct an investigation or appoint an investigator to do this. An investigation gathers information relevant to the complaint.
This may involve:
- speaking with anyone who has information about the concern
- requesting documents or records
- visiting the practice environment, if needed
You, the complainant, and others involved, must cooperate with requests for information. Once the investigation is complete, the Complaints Director will review the information to determine the next steps.
Review of a dismissal
If the Complaints Director dismisses a complaint, they must provide a written decision and reasons for their decision. The complainant may request a review within 30 days of receiving the decision. If this happens, the Hearings Director will arrange a Complaint Review Committee (CRC) typically consisting of two public members from the list appointed by the government and two dental assistants from the membership list appointed by Council. The CRC will examine the material considered by the Complaints Director and may also accept written or oral submissions. After reviewing the information, the CRC may:
- refer the matter to a hearing
- require further investigation
- confirm the dismissal
If the CRC confirms the dismissal, the matter is closed.
Hearing
If the Complaints Director determines there is sufficient evidence to prove unprofessional conduct under the HPA, a referral to a hearing will be sent to you, the complainant, and the Hearings Director. A hearing is a formal process before a Hearing Tribunal. Like the CRC, the Tribunal typically consists of two public members and two dental assistants and is set up through the Hearings Director. The Tribunal reviews evidence, hears witness testimony (if applicable) and decides whether unprofessional conduct is proven.
At a hearing:
- you may present evidence, call witnesses, and be represented by a lawyer (at your cost or through your professional liability insurance provider)
- the Complaints Director will be represented by a lawyer
- the tribunal will have independent legal counsel (ILC) to assist with procedural and legal matters (ILC is not the decision maker)
If the Tribunal decides that unprofessional conduct is proven, you and the Complaints Director may make suggestions to the Tribunal about penalties. Section 82 of the HPA lists many potential orders a Tribunal may make, which range from issuing a reprimand to cancellation of the individual’s practice permit. Importantly, the Tribunal must provide a written decision that includes their reasons and the orders they make. The decision will be posted on the College’s website.
Appeals
If you disagree with the outcome of a hearing, you may appeal to Council within 30 days. To do this, you must submit a written request to the Hearings Director that includes your reasons for the appeal.
A panel of Council will hear the appeal, and the appeal must be based on the record of the hearing and the Tribunal’s decision. Council may quash, confirm, or vary the Tribunal’s findings or orders, or return the matter for further review or a new hearing. Council may also require that you pay all or part of the costs of the appeal.
If you are not satisfied with the Council’s decision, you may appeal to the Court of Appeal within 30 days. Appeals are based on the record of the previous decision, and you are responsible for the cost of preparing the record. The Court of Appeal has similar powers under the HPA, including:
- quash, confirm or vary any of the Council’s findings or orders
- make any finding or order it deems appropriate
- refer the matter back to the Council for further consideration
- if your appeal is successful, in whole or in part, direct that you be repaid all or part of the costs of preparing the record
- direct either party to pay all or part of the other party’s costs for the appeal
