Déjà vu: After reinstatement in one province, doctor suspended over same case in another

More than three years after his licence was revoked in Saskatchewan for having a sexual relationship with a vulnerable patient, a Lloydminster doctor and former member of Saskatchewan’s physician discipline council has now been suspended in Alberta for 19 months over the same case. Dr. Mohammed Sayeed admitted to the hearing tribunal of the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Alberta that he had sex on more than one occasion with a patient he had treated since she was a child, and that he lied about this relationship on his 2017 and 2018 renewal forms. His suspension in Alberta comes almost two years after Saskatchewan’s regulators reinstated his licence. Dr. Sayeed holds a licence in both provinces because Lloydminster sits on the Alberta-Saskatchewan border. Read: Too much, too soon: Doctor suspended for having sex with patient who asked him out In June 2018, the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Saskatchewan informed the CPSA it was investigating Dr. Sayeed after a patient, whom he'd been treating since about age 10, complained he'd carried out an inappropriate sexual relationship with her in 2016. The CPSA immediately imposed a condition on Dr. Sayeed’s practice, requiring a chaperone be present for all interactions with female patients, caregivers, family members and guardians. Dr. Sayeed voluntarily withdrew from practice in Alberta in December 2018, pending the outcome of the CPSA investigation. This voluntary time taken off his practice will be credited towards Dr. Sayeed’s 19-month suspension. He was ordered to pay a $5,000 fine, plus two-thirds of the investigation and hearing costs, which are still to be determined. According to a CPSA decision document from March 2021, Dr. Sayeed was aware that the patient was in a vulnerable state because in February 2016 he referred her to a psychiatrist. His clinical charts also contained details of her psychiatric care. “In this particular case, Dr. Sayeed and (the patient) had a long-standing doctor-patient relationship dating back to (the patient’s) childhood,” wrote the tribunal. “There are additional details presented about (the patient’s) medical and psychiatric history that may have made her especially vulnerable. Taking advantage of a well-established therapeutic relationship with a vulnerable patient is a breach of the Standard of Practice and is incongruent with the expectations of a physician.” Dr. Sayeed admitted guilt to the charges against him. According to his legal counsel, “As a former councilor of the CPSS, Dr. Sayeed is fully aware of how serious this matter is, and he has reflected upon his behavior in this matter and the negative impact it has had on his patient and the reputation of the medical profession.” Read: Trial underway: Regina doctor pleads not guilty to sexually assaulting five patients

Déjà vu: After reinstatement in one province, doctor suspended over same case in another

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