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Inquiries and Mandatory Reports
Employers, Managers, Partners,
Associates & Health Care Providers
The Regulated Health Professions Act 1991 requires an employer, therapist, facility operator, manager, partner or associate to file a mandatory report if:
They have terminated a therapist from their position, not renewed their contract, dissolved a partnership or association or suspended a therapist or restricted their work due to concerns of professional misconduct, incapacity or incompetence OR the therapist resigned from their position or stopped taking work from a referral source while under duress, going through a progressive discipline process or being faced with the prospect being terminated or no longer eligible to receive referrals due to concerns of professional misconduct, incompetence or incapacity.
In addition, there are certain reporting obligations in cases where a client has been sexually abused. In this case, the Regulated Health Professions Act 1991 requires certain people to file a mandatory report if they have "reasonable grounds" to believe that an occupational therapist or member of another regulated health care profession has sexually abused a client. Sexual abuse is defined as
- sexual intercourse or other forms of physical sexual relations between the therapist and the client,
- touching, of a sexual nature, of the client by the therapist, or
- behaviour or remarks of a sexual nature by the therapist towards the client.
Failure to make a mandatory report when required to do so, is an offence which is punishable upon conviction of a fine of up to $25,000.
The investigation of mandatory reports is overseen by the Inquiries, Complaints and Reports Committee of the College, which is a screening committee comprised of two members of the profession who are members of council, two members of the profession who are not members of council and two members of the public who are appointed to the College Council by the Lieutenant Governor of Ontario. After obtaining all necessary information required to make a decision, the Committee may:
- take no further action
- refer the case to the Fitness to Practise Committee if they feel that the therapist is mentally or physically unable to practice
- refer the case to the Discipline Committee if the concerns related to conduct or competence are very serious and cannot reasonably be addressed through one of the other options
- consider other reasonable disposition options
A written decision will be issued to the therapist who is the subject of the report.
Mandatory reports: frequently requested documents
For additional information regarding mandatory reporting, obligations, please contact the Manager, Investigations & Resolutions.
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