Toronto’s gynecologist patients were related to the risk of infection say they have reported negative experiences earlier

Years before about 2,500 patients of a Toronto gynecologist were warned about a possible risk of infection related to improperly cleaned instruments, Rachael Millanta filed a complaint about her experience in the clinic.

After CBC Toronto was the first to report On the desk of Dr. Esther Park, where Toronto Public Health said earlier this month that no cleaning protocols were respected, several patients presented to share their negative meetings with Park, many expressing that their voices were not heard.

Millanta was one of them.

Millanta said she filed a complaint with the College of Medicians and Surgeons in Ontario (CPSO) in April 2021. She said she was asked personal questions by Dr. Park with the open door and told her to undress from the waist while the door remains open.

CBC News saw the documents submitted to CPSO. In her complaint, Millanta wrote that when she asked for a dress or coverage, she said she should have brought her home.

“He told me to cover me with my clothes … I was wearing tights at the time, so it wasn’t very great, but I didn’t really know what to do,” Milland recalled in a CBC Toronto interview.

After that, Millanta said she offered a painful internal examination she did not consent to, which caused her to bleed. Millanta said she offered a prescription without information about what she is or about her medical condition.

Millanta said she called her mother in tears later and immediately filed a complaint to CPSO.

Complaints about “Feeling in a hurry or not feeling completely informed”

She said she received a response from college a few months later, in which Park rejected most of Millanta’s claims.

“The respondent says that, although he regrets that the applicant is not satisfied with her level of professionalism, he does not agree with this concern,” the document shows. Park’s response in the document also claimed clearly about the examination process and the recipe explanation.

The decision of the college, of September 21, 2021, included the issuance of “tips on professional communication and empathic, sensitive involvement; That it is not appropriate to let the patient request the drapery or bring her home … to ensure a complete gynecological history and evaluation and that the documentation is comprehensive and to adequately reflect the details of the consultation ”.

In his response to Milland, CPSO mentioned that there were several complaints against Park.

“The history of the respondent of previous college complaints includes issues in which patients have sometimes been transmitted that they were in a hurry or did not feel fully informed by the respondent,” the documents said.

CPSO says it cannot share the number of complaints

CPSO says she is investigating the park about the problems of controlling infections in her practice.

CBC Toronto asked the college with the number of complaints against Park. A spokesman said they cannot provide this information due to confidentiality restrictions. More details about the Park license of the college doctor’s register have been restricted since December 2024.

CBC Toronto contacted the clinic, but a staff member said Park will not comment.

The office response machine says that the doctor withdraws and that the clinic will close in April. CPSO said it can continue an investigation while a doctor stays registered with college, as well as after resignation or allows their registration to decrease.

“Patients can also file a complaint with CPSO, after a doctor ceases to practice where concern or conduct is referring to the moment when the doctor was a member,” the college said in a statement.

Sandra Cole, another former Park patient, was outside the clinic with a sign this week. Her purpose was to warn patients and ask for responsibility, she said.

“We have to start exposing these doctors and we have to start exposing the College of Medicians and Surgeons and their lack of responsibility once and for all,” she said, adding that she feels dismissed by the doctor and has concerns around the park that does not change her gloves.

CPSO has stated in a statement for CBC News that “it takes all the problems seriously and is committed to ensuring patient safety.”

The lawyer indicates the legal options

Kristina Maitland, a lawyer associated with medical malpraxis in Neinstein for LLP lawyers, says that if a patient is not satisfied with a CPSO decision, there is also the legal path.

“So if a patient considers that the complaint process did not get the resolution they hoped or or the closure they want, a process can sometimes be a better option, because it is more focused on ensuring that there is the recovery of the applicants themselves, for the specific damages they suffered,” said Maitland.

Maitland said that it is important for patients to look for a legal opinion as soon as possible after an incident to ensure that they are aware of their options and to avoid any problems with limiting periods.

Toronto Public Health says the clinic corrected the infection control problems and had no concerns in October 10.

But for patients like Millanda, the negative experience he had remains with her.

“It was undoubtedly the most traumatic experience I had with any medical professional, possibly anyone.”