Melissa Coiffe

1. From about 1999 to on or about the Spring of 2004 Ms. Coiffe worked at least part time for Employer X.
2. During the 2002-2003 school year Ms. Coiffe worked with about six high need students in the Integrated Education and Therapy (IET) program. Ms. Coiffe made virtually no records or reports in respect of them. In the alternative, she did not provide the information and records she had to the central file, her employer or those taking over the care of the students.
3. When notified of these absent records or reports, Ms. Coiffe failed to provide, make or replace even the essential records or reports for many months.
4. Ms. Coiffe also failed to participate in a chart audit with the Employer.
5. Ms. Coiffe also worked as a research therapist for the Employer. Two of the research projects she was involved in during the 2002 to 2004 period were Project A and Project B.
6. For these two research projects Ms. Coiffe failed to perform her duties including recruiting research subjects, obtaining consent, collecting data, maintaining client files and materials, providing and retrieving prototypes. In the alternative, Ms. Coiffe failed to perform her duties on a timely basis.
7. Ms. Coiffe also provided misleading information as to the status of the projects to her employer / project leader.
8. In addition she also failed to provide, either in time to meet the research deadlines or at all, the expected documentation and prototypes. The missing documentation included consent forms, working files, rough notes, and interview data. A prototype for Project A remained missing for an extensive period if time.
9. Ms. Coiffe thereby failed to follow accepted research and professional standards, jeopardized the research projects, undermined her employer / project leader including their ability to obtain future research projects and placed the research subjects at risk.
10. For both the IET program and the research projects Ms. Coiffe failed to respond to numerous communications from her employer and colleagues.
11. Even after Ms. Coiffe was notified that the concerns had been brought to the attention of the College in the summer of 2004, she did not check her own records to see if she had some of the missing documents until at least about February of 2005.
12. In addition Ms. Coiffe has breached confidentiality by failing to maintain clinical and research information by removing and failing to return the information to her employer.
13. Ms. Coiffe also failed to fulfill her verbal agreement with the representative of the College to attend at the College and return the missing documentation she had and in one case failed to notify the College that she would not attend a scheduled meeting.

• Section 2 Contravening a standard of practice of the profession or failing to maintain the standards of practice of the profession
• Section 15 Failing to keep records in accordance with the standards of practice of the profession
• Section 28 Engaging in conduct or performing an act relevant to the practice of the profession that having regard to all circumstances would be regarded as unprofessional.
• Section 29 Misappropriating property from the work place

1. THE DISCIPLINE PANEL ORDERS the Registrar to suspend the certificate of registration of Ms. Coiffe for a period of three months commencing on date satisfactory to the Registrar within four months of the date of this order to allow Ms. Coiffe to make transfer of care arrangements for her clients.
2. THE DISCIPLINE PANEL ORDERS that two months of the suspension shall, itself, be suspended on the condition that Ms. Coiffe comply with the remainder of this Order. The Registrar shall fix a date for the serving of the remainder of the suspension if any of the following terms, conditions or limitations have been breached by Ms. Coiffe.
3. THE DISCIPLINE PANEL ORDERS that the Registrar impose a term, condition and limitation upon the certificate of registration of Ms. Coiffe that within 60 days of the date of this Order being made Ms. Coiffe:
   1. Diligently search her possessions for all documents she has relating to her work at the Employer and deliver them to the Centre and then deliver an affidavit to the Registrar that she has done so; and
   2. Provide an apology to the Centre and her colleagues there for her conduct in a form that is acceptable to the Registrar.
4. THE DISCIPLINE PANEL ORDERS that the Registrar impose a term, condition and limitation upon the certificate of registration of Ms. Coiffe that Ms. Coiffe fully cooperate with and participate in all aspects of the Quality Assurance Program as required including a peer review that includes an on-site evaluation. This cooperation includes responding promptly and appropriately to all written and verbal communications from the College and to diligently completing any enhancement opportunities recommended by or any remediation program specified by the Quality Assurance Committee. In connection with this term, condition and limitation, Ms. Coiffe has indicated a desire to have an on-site evaluation and the Panel recommends that the Quality Assurance Committee direct that an on-site evaluation take place.
5. THE DISCIPLINE PANEL ORDERS that the Registrar impose a term, condition and limitation upon the certificate of registration of Ms. Coiffe that Ms. Coiffe ensure that performance review reports acceptable to the Registrar be delivered to the Registrar by Ms. Coiffe's employer on a semi annual basis. A performance report shall be provided for each six months of actual practice of Ms. Coiffe for the next two years. Each performance report shall contain a chart review by Ms. Coiffe's supervisor (or an alternative person acceptable to the Registrar) of at least five randomly selected client charts. Each performance report shall also contain a section completed by an occupational therapist who attended with Ms. Coiffe on at least two client visits during the six month period and which contains an assessment of Ms. Coiffe's overall assessment process, clinical reasoning, documentation and follow-up with each client. After one year the Registrar may, at her discretion, waive the need for the latter portion of the performance report (i.e., the occupational therapist attending with Ms. Coiffe on at least two client visits). If Ms. Coiffe's supervisor and/or occupational therapist colleague is unable or unwilling to assist Ms. Coiffe in fulfilling the obligations of this order the Registrar shall appoint an external reviewer to perform a similar review at Ms. Coiffe's expense.
6. THE DISCIPLINE PANEL ORDERS that Ms. Coiffe appear before a panel of the Discipline Committee to be reprimanded and that the fact of such a reprimand be recorded in the public portion of the register.
7. THE DISCIPLINE PANEL ORDERS that Ms. Coiffe pay to the College $2,500 towards the costs and expenses of investigating and prosecuting this matter, payable in full by June 30, 2006.

1. This was Ms. Coiffe's first finding of professional misconduct
2. Ms. Coiffe was experiencing some personal challenges and
3. Ms. Coiffe has exhibited remorse for her actions.