Doctor who left angry messages for public health insurer's lawyer gets one-month suspension

A Québec doctor has lost her appeal of a one-month suspension for the angry email and phone messages she had left for a lawyer representing the province’s health insurance board, which had assessed her for $627,000 in overpayments. Dr. Mélanie Lessard, a child psychiatrist in Sainte-Anne-des-Monts, Que., had disputed the Collège des médecins du Québec’s disciplinary sanction, arguing that the messages—which she had sent from her home—were private communications that were separate from her professional practice, and that the lawyer was neither a patient nor a colleague. According to the college’s decision document, Dr. Lessard had felt extremely frustrated because the lawyer had categorically refused to meet with her. She felt she was the victim of an abuse of power and that the Régie de l'assurance maladie du Québec had erred in extrapolating she had been overpaid for all of her invoices over five years based on an examination of 35 patient files. Dr. Lessard feared having to close her clinic and being unable to support her two children, aged seven and 12. Read: Against doctors' wishes Quebec passes its Bill 11, asking them to add to their patient loads Dr. Lessard’s communications to the lawyer—which consisted of two email and two voicemail messages from January to February 2019—followed requests she had made for a meeting to discuss the repayment order. On Jan. 30, 2019, she emailed the lawyer five photos of handwritten text, explaining that she was unable to pay the $627,000 and that she believed the RAMQ was abusing its powers. She ended the email with a statement about how disgusted she was by the lawyer’s attitude. About a week later, Dr. Lessard sent another email advising the lawyer that she intended to close her clinic and denying that she defrauded the RAMQ. In this second email, she accused the lawyer of being arrogant. She received a letter shortly from the RAMQ with details of her file and a request for her to address RAMQ representatives in a respectful manner. Read: Tough two weeks ahead for Quebec ERs dealing with COVID-19, influenza, sick staff On the same day, after she had read the letter from the RAMQ, Dr. Lessard left two voicemail messages for the lawyer. In the first voicemail, she said—among many things—that she didn't care about being asked to communicate in a more respectful tone and that if she had a chance to treat the lawyer’s family member, she would be happy to avenge herself. In the second voicemail, Dr. Lessard vented at the lawyer’s refusal to accept three binders’ worth of information that she had sent to the RAMQ to defend her case. She said the RAMQ should have asked a "real scientist," such as a doctor or a statistician review her files, instead of a lawyer. Dr. Lessard had subsequently sent the lawyer a two-page apology, but the college’s appeals tribunal upheld the disciplinary council’s view that Dr. Lessard was not genuinely repentant. The college had also noted that Dr. Lessard was communicating with the RAMQ lawyer about matters related to her practice and that under the doctors' code of ethics, physicians must not harass, intimidate or threaten anyone they come into contact with during the practice of their profession. The suspension—which was handed down originally in March 2020 but put on hold pending a decision on Dr. Lessard’s appeal—took effect on May 31, 2022. Read: Quebec drops section of assisted death bill to ensure it gets adopted quickly

Doctor who left angry messages for public health insurer's lawyer gets one-month suspension

Register for free access or login.

Related Topics