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OB/GYN patient complaints up 29% over previous year: Ontario’s patient ombudsman
New data shows more people are filing complaints about obstetrical and gynecological care in Ontario, with insensitivity, poor communication and lack of trauma awareness among the most common grievances.
Ontario’s Patient Ombudsman Craig Thompson says his office received 168 complaints between April 2024 and March 2025, compared to 130 over the same period the previous year — a 29 per cent increase.
Complainants also detailed experiencing a lack of responsive care to factors such as history of sexual assault, pregnancy complications, miscarriages, and difficult births.
Many complaints were related to pregnancy, childbirth and postnatal care provided in hospitals, he said. There’s also been an increase in complaints regarding services at community surgical and diagnostic centres that do ultrasounds, X-rays and surgical procedures.
Complaints are filed online, by email, fax or mail, and then reviewed by the ombudsman, who engages with both parties to reach a resolution.
National data from the Canadian Medical Protective Association suggests patient complaints across medical disciplines are on the rise, with more than 4,045 in 2020, up from 3,379 in 2016. They said many complaints showed communication was an underlying issue.
The Ontario ombudsman’s data will be published later this year in an annual report on the overall number and themes of health-system complaints, but Thompson shared the OB/GYN numbers with The Canadian Press in the wake of an investigation published last week that included several patients alleging neglectful care going back almost a decade by the same Toronto doctor.
The patients described traumatic experiences while under the care of OB/GYN Dr. Esther Park, with some alleging they were not adequately informed about certain procedures performed at her clinic and the hospital she worked at for 25 years.
Dr. Park stopped practising medicine in April. Attempts to reach her for comment were unsuccessful.
In the ombudsman’s last annual report released in March, the number of obstetrical and gynecological-related complaints in the province was described as an “emerging concern” that Thompson said he would continue to monitor.
While Thompson said the way women’s health is delivered in Ontario has been an issue for many years, he said what’s new is the number of grievances about obstetrics and gynecology, and the nature of the complaints.
“We are in that role of a bit of the canary in the coal mine. We identify early signals of a problem,” he said, explaining that annual reports are shared with the province’s ministries of health, long-term care, and relevant health agencies.
The patient ombudsman’s role was created by the provincial government in 2016 to help resolve complaints and conduct investigations on issues of public interest.
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Thompson calls his office the “last resort” for patients who are not satisfied with a hospital’s response to a complaint, and who need help reaching a resolution. But he also tries to pinpoint if a broader issue needs to be investigated and what can be done.
Thompson said he tries to determine: “Where’s the breakdown? Is this a breakdown in policy? Is this a breakdown in education or training of our team? Is this a breakdown in practice? Is the practice that we’ve adopted not meeting the mark?”
He would not disclose if he’s conducting a broader investigation of obstetrical and gynecological care complaints. His last report included two pages on the practice, identifying “broader organizational issues, including a lack of trauma-informed care approaches that, if addressed, could improve the experiences of patients and their families.”
Dr. Heather Millar, an obstetrician and gynecologist at Women’s College Hospital and Mount Sinai Hospital in Toronto, says a trauma-informed approach begins with an awareness of how common painful childhood memories, sexual assaults and triggering medical encounters are. It also includes strategies to avoid traumatizing or retraumatizing a patient.
She said she first came across the method in 2015.
“I was working with a physician at the time who used trauma-informed care principles and I realized that this was something that we should all be doing and that really should be implemented across our specialty,” Millar said.
The premise is to treat each patient as though they have a trauma history, for instance asking permission before touching them and covering their bodies during an exam to facilitate an environment that feels safe.
Since then, Millar has been helping integrate the approach at hospitals, including within Mount Sinai’s obstetric emergency training, and she teaches trauma-informed care to residents at the University of Toronto.
She’s also working on national guidelines with the Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Canada (SOGC) to formally implement this approach as a standard of care.
“We’re much more conscious now of how common trauma is in the general population … and also how the encounters and procedures in our specialty can be traumatic for people,” she said, referencing vaginal exams that can feel invasive, and emergencies during deliveries, which may trigger painful memories.
Dr. Glenn Posner, vice chair of education for the department of obstetrics and gynecology at the University of Ottawa, said when he was a resident more than 20 years ago, trauma-informed care was not talked about. But now, he sees residents bring this sensitive approach to their patients, for instance asking for permission multiple times before an exam, or showing them how a speculum feels on their leg before using it.
But the stressful demands of the job and sheer volume of patients can at times hinder sensitive communication, and can translate into body language that patients will pick up on, he said.
“Having a conversation with somebody with your hand on the door knob is perceived as you’re rushing them. But you can spend the same amount of time or even less if you come in, pull up a chair, sit down.”
Similarly, Millar said there are small changes that can make patients feel more in control, such as raising the head of a hospital bed so that the physician can make eye-contact with them throughout an exam.
In response to an email from The Canadian Press containing the ombudsman’s new data, the ministry of health said it expects every hospital and health-care partner to uphold the highest standard of patient care. They referenced existing patient safety legislation and regulation, but did not say what they would do about the increase in obstetrical and gynecological complaints.
“One complaint about the safety of care is too many,” a spokesperson for the ministry of health said in a statement.
The SOGC said it would not comment on the data since it has not seen the full report.
The head of an advocacy group that speaks out on behalf of patients says she’s seen similar reports for years without any investment in changes.
“I am not surprised that there are more complaints that are coming in this particular area of practice,” said Kathleen Finlay, chief executive officer of the Center for Patient Protection.
Finlay, who has worked as a patient advocate for almost 20 years, said she often hears OB/GYN patients say, “They didn’t listen to me. I had a lot of concerns and I felt I was just being rushed through the process. My questions weren’t being answered.”
She said not enough is being done at the regulatory level to make changes to improve patient experience.
“There are many issues that are, from a woman’s perspective, very traumatic and so much of it is about not being treated with the respect that they deserve.”
Jane Woodcock says when her husband died in 2018, she quickly realized she did not have enough income to support herself and their five animals.
In 2019, just before the COVID-19 pandemic hit, the 68-year-old Woodcock started to see the price of everything rise, leading her to find a job as a cleaner to help cover costs.
The Deseronto, Ont., resident told Global News she’d never imagined she would find herself in this position.
“I thought I’d be retired because my husband died seven years ago and before that I wasn’t working, he was working and supporting both of us and all the animals,” she said.
A 2024 report from Resume Builder found that four in 10 working seniors have unretired.
The report shows that 39 per cent of seniors who are employed have returned to work after retirement, while the other 61 per cent have never retired.
The report says the top reason seniors are returning to work are the cost living increases and insufficient retirement savings.
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Woodcock has two dogs, two cats, and a potbellied pig, and says food to feed herself and her pets is getting out of control.
“Every time I go into the grocery store stuff that I was always buying before; it’s like double the price and just piss me off,” she remarked.
Woodcock estimates she spends $400 a month just for food on the pig, while costs for the other animals also skyrocketed “ridiculously” high.
She has also had to make hard cuts in other areas of her life, like getting rid of cable and being cautious when she runs her heating and air conditioning.
“People should be able to live properly. If you’re hot, you should be allowed to turn on the air conditioner, if you’re cold turn up the heat…. It’s just too much,” she said.
Between her job and survivors pension she gets from her late husband, she has about $4,000 a month to cover expenses but she said between still has a mortgage, to paying for insurance and food that quickly disappears.
“It’s a mix, and it’s still not enough.”
© 2025 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.
A proposed road to the mineral-rich Ring of Fire in northern Ontario will bring economic prosperity to Webequie First Nation, though it may endanger caribou in the region, a newly released assessment finds.
Webequie First Nation is leading an environmental and impact assessment of the Webequie Supply Road that would connect to mining exploration activities in the Ring of Fire.
That road will connect to two other proposed roads that would link the remote First Nation to the provincial highway system hundreds of kilometres south.
“This is a critical milestone for our people and our project,” Chief Cornelius Wabasse said in a statement.
“We are proud of this important work and the respectful approach taken to get it done. We are also grateful for all those who support Webequie’s journey to self-determination, economic self-reliance and a better future for our people.”
The work and subsequent draft report were done under the province’s Environmental Assessment Act and the federal Impact Assessment Act. The report is thousands of pages long and has been shared with 22 other First Nations in northern Ontario for a 60-day review period, which will be followed by a final report filed to both levels of government.
The assessment examined how the natural and socioeconomic environments, Indigenous land use and traditional knowledge of the area would be affected by building the supply road.
The 107-kilometre, two-lane road will take four to six years to complete once construction begins and will need six bridges and 25 culverts to cross various bodies of water, the report said.
The proposed road will run northwest-southeast for 51 kilometres from the First Nation’s airport to the next segment that will run 56 kilometres east-west to McFaulds Lake and the Eagle’s Nest mineral exploration site.
The proposed mine is owned by Wyloo, an Australian mining company with its Canadian operations based in Toronto.
The road is expected to last 75 years, after which major refurbishments will be needed.
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The projected construction costs to the province are $663 million, though it’s unclear yet who will own the road and who will be allowed to use it. The First Nation said those details will come in future negotiations with Ontario.
“Our vision for the Webequie Supply Road is an economic development road that creates real opportunities for our young people and future generations to drive to work and back,” Wabasse said.
“This project offers possibilities to provide skills training for our youth, create new jobs and business opportunities, and strengthen Webequie’s economic future while remaining deeply connected to our land and traditions.”
The report assumes construction would start in the winter of 2028 and be complete by the summer of 2032, though a start date has yet to be announced.
The report comes amid great debate about mining in northern Ontario.
Premier Doug Ford’s government recently passed Bill 5 into law with the aim to speed up development of mining and other projects. The new legislation has been met with outrage and resistance from First Nations.
The government has given itself the power to suspend provincial and municipal laws through the creation of so-called “special economic zones” for projects it chooses.
The province intends to designate the Ring of Fire the first such zone, though it has said it will not do so until it consults with First Nations in the region. Details about how that would actually work are sparse.
The Webequie Supply Road is expected to have a significantly positive effect on the First Nation’s economy during construction and beyond, the assessment found.
“Community members have emphasized the issues of unemployment and the lack of growth and learning opportunities,” the report said.
“With the anticipated road access connectivity from the project, potential economic growth is expected, leading to job opportunities for community members, allowing them to work closer to home.”
The province has pledged some $70 million to help train Indigenous workers for jobs in development and mining. Wyloo also trains its workers who are conducting mineral exploration at the Eagle’s Nest site.
Other mining and forestry opportunities are likely to arise once the road is built, the report found.
By and large, the threats to animals and plants from road construction are not considered significant, except for a few species at risk that include the boreal caribou.
There are about 5,000 caribou left in the province, the vast majority of them in northern Ontario. Webequie First Nation and the proposed road are within that animal’s range.
The species is considered threatened in Ontario, which means it could become endangered if protective steps are not taken.
Construction and operation of the road is “expected to provide predators such as wolves increased access to the caribou, particularly where the road traverses natural movement corridors,” the report said.
“Overall, caribou injury or death due to changes to predator-prey dynamics from the project is considered a significant adverse effect based on current vulnerability of the population,” the report found.
The construction of the road will also change the caribou’s habitat, it said.
Road construction will also affect another threatened species, wolverines, the report found. There are only two known mature female wolverines in the entire study area. One den is within 400 metres of the proposed road site and “will likely lose function as denning habitat due to the indirect effects of clearing activities.”
About half of the proposed road is in the James Bay Lowlands, which is dominated by peatlands, a weak material to build a road upon. Engineers have decided a “floating road” is the best option, done by “carefully loading materials over peat, allowing time for it to consolidate and increase in strength.”
While building the road will have an effect on all parts of the environment, much of that will be negligible with proper mitigation efforts, the report found.
For example, the report said fish and their habitat will not be significantly affected as crews build the six bridges and 25 culverts because construction barriers will be temporary.
The First Nation is also concerned the road will bring more alcohol and illicit drugs to the community, and said it will try to limit access to outsiders during construction as much as possible.
“Webequie First Nation remains committed to an Indigenous-led approach that supports responsible development while upholding our environmental stewardship responsibilities,” its chief said.
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Worker at Toronto supervised injection site sentenced in connection with fatal shooting – Toronto
Khalila Mohammed, the 25-year-old former harm reduction worker, who pleaded guilty to accessory after the fact to the fatal shooting of Leslieville woman Karolina Huebner-Makarat last December, has been given a conditional sentence of two years less a day in addition to 100 hours of community service.
After enhanced credit for nine days in pretrial custody and 22 months of house arrest while awaiting sentencing, Mohammed has 529 days left to serve, which the judge decided will be served in the community.
Ontario Court Justice Russell S. Silverstein ruled the first 300 days of the non-custodial sentence will be served under house arrest except to attend educational programming, employment, counselling, Good Life Fitness, for which she will be allowed two hours daily for travel and workout time, medical appointments, family emergencies and community service.
Mohammed will be subject to a curfew from 11 p.m. to 6 a.m. for the remaining 229 days.
According to an agreed statement of facts read out in court last December, Mohammed helped one of the three men charged in relation to the fatal shooting escape detection by police.
“Accessoryship after the fact constitutes an interference with the administration of justice,” said Silverstein. “It frustrates the legitimate investigation of the crime.”
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The facts state it is the theory of the Crown that on July 7, 2023, three alleged drug dealers, who were selling drugs outside the South Riverdale Community Centre on Queen Street, which operated a supervised drug injection site, got into an argument.
One of the men could be seen on video surveillance pistol-whipping another man, before a third man robs the second man of his satchel. Moments later, there was an exchange of gunfire, and Huebner-Makurat, a wife and mother to two young children, was struck by a stray bullet.
The bullet went into Huebner-Makurat’s back and through her liver, kidney and aorta, killing her.
Mohammed admitted that after the shooting, she escorted one of the accused, Ahmed Ibrahim who was injured, into the health centre. She also provided Ibrahim with new clothes because his clothes were bloody, helped him out of the South Riverdale Health Centre and to get an Uber out of the area.
The facts also state that text messages between Mohammed and Ibrahim obtained by police establish that “the two had a close relationship that blossomed into a romance immediately after the shooting.”
In those messages, Mohammed suggests to Ibrahim that he “stay away for a while” to avoid being arrested by police.
After suspect images were released by police, Mohammed texted Ibrahim to “get out of the city” and “lay low,” assuring him his bloody clothes were “tucked away” and “gone”.
According to the facts, Mohammed also assures Ibrahim that “the way the surveillance cameras at the site are positioned, they would not have captured the shooting, showing an awareness on her part of Ibrahim’s involvement in the shooting”.
In handing down his sentence, Silverstein said the general range is extremely broad for cases like this, from between 18 months and 3.5 years. Denunciation and general deterrence being the principal factors, the judge said as a youthful first-time offender, the principles of rehabilitation and restraint also apply.
Along with the conditional sentence and community service hours, Mohammed was given a weapons ban and ordered to give a DNA sample. She is prohibited from having any contact with Huebner-Makurat’s widow, parents, or any of the three accused in relation to the fatal shooting.
The Crown said at the end of Monday’s sentencing that all other charges were being withdrawn. Mohammed was also facing a charge of obstructing justice.
The trial for Ibrahim and Damian Hudson, the man police allege fired the bullet that killed Huebner-Makurat, is scheduled to begin this fall.
Ibrahim is charged with manslaughter and robbery, while Hudson is charged with second-degree murder. A third man, Ahmed Ali whom the crown alleges is the second shooter, is wanted for manslaughter and robbery. Ali remains at large.
© 2025 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.
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