By Sarah Stone

PA doctor admits sex with patient, gets licence revoked

Jul 4, 2014 | 4:15 PM

A Prince Albert doctor has committed one of the most serious offences of unprofessionalism, according to the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Saskatchewan.

Bryan Salte, associate registrar, said Dr. Johannes Nicolas Kriel, a physician at the South Hill Medical Practice, has admitted to having a sexual relationship with a patient.

Although the act between the two was consensual, Salte said it’s still regarded as prohibited.

“It came to our attention as a result of a family member of the patient who had expressed some concern about that and a couple of other issues and as a result of that family member expressing their concerns we asked Dr. Kriel about it [and] gave him an opportunity to respond. He acknowledged that he had been sexually involved with a patient,” Salte said.

The college received the final admission around May and Kriel’s licence was revoked by its council on June 20.

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The process of professional regulation in Saskatchewan as it relates to physicians means the council is the only one with the power to revoke a licence and did so at one of its five regularly scheduled meetings.

“Part of the concern is the potential vulnerability of patients. There’s a lot of research that has demonstrated just how dramatic an affect it can be for patients to become involved with their physicians. It can be difficult for a patient who has a sexual involvement with a physician to have a both a proper doctor patient relationship and also the proper sexual relationship,” he explained.

This is something every physician knows, according to Salte. He said it’s been regarded as prohibited ever since the time of Hippocrates and the Greeks.

The council had additional concerns because the woman Kriel was involved with had a history of being diagnosed with mental illness.

“It’s part of an indication of vulnerability is a concern about the patient’s mental health status.”

Kriel’s licence has been revoked for nine months. The council has said he will also have to go through an assessment by one of the recognized agencies to ensure he won’t be involved in sexual relations with patients in the future.

Even with doing this, Kriel could still be denied.

The man, originally from South Africa, received his medical degree in 1996 and was licenced by the college in 1999.

Attempts to contact Kriel have been unsuccessful. The Practice said he will be on a leave of absence for nine months. No other doctor at the clinic was available for comment.

These types of incidents are not unheard of; Salte said the college deals with one or two a year.

sstone@panow.com

On Twitter: @sarahstone84