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Professional regulationsCollege seeks clarity in misconduct regulationThe College has asked the Minister of Education to ratify an amendment to our professional misconduct regulation approved by Council at its December meeting. Currently, a College member accused of abusing students faces an allegation that includes five different kinds of abuse, even if the particulars of the case refer to only one. This is because Section 1 (7) of Regulation 437/97 defines student abuse for the purposes of proving professional misconduct as:
At its December meeting Council moved to ask the Minister to delineate and renumber the allegations as:
“We believe this change offers transparency to the public as well as clarity to members,” said College Chair Don Cattani. “It will help to end confusion about the number of members who face sexual misconduct allegations.” The College relied on the examples and experiences of other professional regulatory bodies when it proposed the original regulation 10 years ago. However, the legislation governing Ontario’s self-regulated medical professions now clearly distinguishes sexual abuse by members by including it in its own category within the Regulated Health Professions Act. The College’s Discipline Committee wants the same treatment for educators. The Ontario College of Teachers Act defines “sexual abuse” of a student by a member as (a) sexual intercourse or other forms of physical sexual relations between the member and the student, (b) touching, of a sexual nature, of the student by the member, or (c) behaviour or remarks of a sexual nature by the member towards the student. But the regulation combines sexual and other forms of abuse in defining professional misconduct. The proposed regulatory amendment makes original allegations and any subsequent penalties and recommended forms of rehabilitation clear, specific and appropriate. |
