Panel to probe Windsor hospitals
March 1, 2010
Tanya Talaga
QUEEN’S PARK BUREAU
The Ontario government has appointed three top doctors to lead a far-ranging investigation into the treatment of patients and quality of care at three Windsor-area hospitals grappling with a crisis in mistaken surgeries and questionable pathology reports.
Last week, the Liberals ordered a review of 15,000 pathology tests and an examination into botched surgical mistakes after it was revealed two women had unnecessary mastectomies. The mastectomies occurred at Windsor’s Hôtel-Dieu Grace Hospital. However, the hospital was not aware of the errors until they found out about them in the media.
Dr. Barry McLellan, the president of Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre and Ontario’s former chief coroner, will lead and co-ordinate the investigation. Dr. Robin McLeod from Cancer Care Ontario will focus on surgical errors and Dr. John Srigley, also from CCO, will examine pathology results.
The three hospitals included in the review are the Hôtel-Dieu, Windsor Regional Hospital and Leamington District Memorial Hospital.
Health Minister Deb Matthews has ordered the doctors to report on the circumstances surrounding the mistaken surgeries, errors in pathology reports, issues related to the quality of surgical and pathology services, the monitoring of patient care and professional staff conducts, the role of the hospitals’ medical advisory boards, and the status of recommendations from earlier studies, reports and strategies concerning surgical and pathology services.
In a statement, Matthews said it is “incumbent upon all of us who are involved in the health system to learn from this situation”.
The Ontario Hospital Association is also calling on a provincial review of the state of pathology services in the province. Matthews is considering the request.
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