Alberta family doctor suspended for unprofessional conduct

File photo. (CTV)

An Alberta family doctor and veterinarian has been suspended for unprofessional conduct.

Dr. Gina Arps was suspended in October by the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Alberta (CPSA).

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Her suspension, according to the decision, stems from her failure to comply with CPSA standards of practice. 

Among the allegations were that Arps had kept expired drugs and medical products in her clinic, added hand-written expiry dates to expired disinfectant, failed to store pre-sterilized devices safely and operated in an unsanitary area.

She was also accused of processing "soiled" equipment from her veterinary practice at her human clinic, and using needles from human patients on animals in her veterinary clinic.

A tribunal found those allegations to be true and she was found guilty by the CPSA of:

• failing to comply with minimally acceptable infection prevention and control measures and requirements;
• violating previous restrictions from 2017 to not perform invasive procedures, pelvic examinations, or IUD insertions or removals outside of an Alberta Health Services facility; and
• failing to be candid with investigators, including lying about providing cosmetic Botox injections or having injectable medications in the clinic.

"According to the evidence, these breaches were ongoing from 2016 to October 2022 despite several attempts by the CPSA to provide Dr. Arps with guidance, education and remediation," the decision read.

Arps was sentenced to a nine-month suspension, with six months served.

She will also be responsible for up to $15,000 of the tribunal's cost, to be paid after she returns to practice.

Arps is a staff member family medicine team at Zia Medical and Women's Health clinic in Edmonton, and she is listed as a family doctor in Westlock on HealthDoc.ca. 

She is also named as a veterinarian in Westlock in the 2023 Alberta Veterinary Medical Association (ABVMA) directory.