On September 29, 2014, the Discipline Committee found that Dr. Bruce Gordon Minnes committed acts of professional misconduct, in that he has engaged in conduct or an act or acts relevant to the practice of medicine that, having regard to all the circumstances, would reasonably be regarded by members as disgraceful, dishonourable or unprofessional.
The Hospital Allegations
The Committee found that Dr. Minnes failed to observe appropriate boundaries in the hospital setting with respect to numerous workplace colleagues over an extended period of time.
Regarding nurse B, Dr. Minnes would, on occasions in 2008 without explanation, put his arm on her shoulder. In early 2009, while she was on the phone, Dr. Minnes placed his hands on her head and leaned in to kiss the top of her head; on an occasion the following month, Dr. Minnes came up behind her and massaged her neck and back. On another occasion, in early 2009, while she was sitting down charting, Dr. Minnes put his hand on her shoulder.
Dr. Minnes also behaved in an inappropriate and unprofessional manner with clinical manager D. In the early 2000’s, Dr. Minnes approached D with a smile, wrapped his arms around her tightly and lifted her off the ground.
Regarding nurse C, on one occasion, Dr. Minnes came up behind her and started massaging her shoulders. He also pointed to or gently touched her collar area to make her look down and then he flicked his fingers up to touch her chin. She found this touching very annoying and uncomfortable and witnessed him do this to a new nurse in the department in the fall of 2011.
On another occasion, Dr. Minnes took nurse C’s hand and kissed it. She told him this was inappropriate and not to touch her again in any way. He called the next day to apologize and stopped touching her hand and doing the finger flicking trick. However, nurse C continued to witness Dr. Minnes touch other staff on the back, shoulders and doing the “finger flicking” routine.
Nurse F, who began work in the department in approximately 2003, witnessed Dr. Minnes giving back rubs to female staff and in the past, saw Dr. Minnes play the finger flicking game with female staff.
These interactions with Dr. Minnes made it uncomfortable for staff to work with him. In March 2009, Chief of the Department of Paediatrics and other staff, met with Dr. Minnes to discuss nurse B’s complaint. In the context of discussing personal boundary issues, Dr. Minnes said that he recognized that at times he had difficulty exercising appropriate self-control and that at times colleagues had told him they were uncomfortable with his behaviour so he stopped. At that meeting, he acknowledged that he had been previously spoken to in October 2003 about complaints received about his inappropriate behaviour, including touching nurses in a manner that could be considered inappropriate and that he had been asked at that meeting to refrain from such action. At the hospital’s direction, Dr. Minnes took certain steps to try to address these concerns.
Dr. Minnes admitted that the facts agreed to with respect the hospital allegations support a finding of disgraceful, dishonourable or unprofessional conduct against him.
The Camp Allegations
The camp allegations pertain to Dr. Minnes’ alleged actions in relation to Ms. A, a 17-year-old counsellor at Camp 2, where Dr. Minnes was volunteering as the camp physician, in the summer of 2007. It is alleged that Ms. A was Dr. Minnes’ patient, and that he engaged in the sexual abuse of his patient; and, that his conduct with respect to Ms. A would reasonably be regarded by members as disgraceful, dishonourable or unprofessional.
The Committee finds based on the evidence that there was no doctor-patient relationship between Dr. Minnes and Ms. A. She was not his patient on the date in July 2007. The Committee found that there was sexual contact between Dr. Minnes and Ms. A in Dr. Minnes’ living quarters attached to the infirmary. Ms. A had informally approached Dr. Minnes with respect to a foot injury. Dr. Minnes told her to drop by the infirmary. A few days later Ms. A encountered Dr. Minnes on what turned out to be his last day at camp. After casual conversation, he invited her to come to his cabin that evening to look at her foot and to have a glass of juice. Ms. A attended the infirmary; Dr. Minnes was in his living quarters. Ms. A entered his living quarters. Dr. Minnes made progressively intrusive advances towards her, enquiring about her sexual activities with her boyfriend, inviting her to sit on the couch beside him, putting his arm around her shoulder, placing her hand on his genitals over his pants, removing her shirt, fondling her breasts, rubbing himself against her buttocks, removing her shorts and attempting to remove her underwear. When Dr. Minnes attempted to remove her underwear, Ms. A told him she had to leave as it was late and she had responsibilities and left the cabin.
The Committee found that the brief informal conversation about Ms. A’s foot did not establish a doctor-patient relationship. While Dr. Minnes, as camp physician, was responsible for providing medical service to both children and staff at the camp, he did not provide any medical services to Ms. A. She did not follow his initial advice to come to the infirmary prior to the date in July 2007, and did not attend that evening out of concern for her foot (which was getting better). Dr. Minnes never properly examined her foot, he gave no medical advice and did not prescribe treatment and no record was made of Dr. Minnes’ brief discussion with Ms. A about her foot.
While the Committee has found that there was no doctor-patient relationship, Dr. Minnes was nevertheless the camp doctor and 47 years old and Ms. A was a 17 year old camp counsellor, and he was in a position of authority vis-a-vis Ms. A. The Committee finds on the evidence that Dr. Minnes’ conduct with Ms. A, having regard to all the circumstances, would reasonably be regarded by members as disgraceful, dishonourable, or unprofessional.
On January 19, 2015, the Discipline Committee ordered and directed that:
1. the Registrar revoke Dr. Minnes’ certificate of registration, effective immediately;
2. Dr. Minnes appear before the Committee to be reprimanded, and that the reprimand be recorded on the register; and
3. the parties make written submissions with respect to the costs payable to the College, to be exchanged and filed with the Hearings Office of the College, within 14 days of the date of this decision.
On February 18, 2015, Dr. Minnes appealed the decision of the Discipline Committee to the Superior Court of Justice (Divisional Court). Pursuant to ss.25(1) of the Statutory Powers Procedure Act, the decision of the Discipline Committee was stayed pending the outcome of the appeal.
On October 9, 2015, the Discipline Committee ordered Dr. Minnes to pay costs to the College in the amount of $17,840.00 within 90 days of the date of this Order.
On February 19, 2016, the Divisional Court of the Ontario Superior Court of Justice dismissed Dr. Minnes’ appeal. The Court awarded $7500.00 in costs to the College, which was an amount agreed to by the parties.
