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Sloka, Jeffrey Scott

CPSO#: 92164

MEMBER STATUS
Revoked: Discipline Committee as of 30 Apr 2019
CURRENT OR PAST CPSO REGISTRATION CLASS
None as of 19 Sep 2017

Summary

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Former Name: No Former Name

Gender: Male

Languages Spoken: English

Education: Memorial University of Newfoundland Facu, 2003

Practice Information

Primary Location of Practice
Practice Address Not Available

Professional Corporation Information


Corporation Name: Scott Sloka Medicine Professional Corporation
Certificate of Authorization Status: Inactive: Jul 8 2019
 

Medical Records Location

Instructions/Address:
RSRS
111 St Regis Cres S
Toronto  ON  M3J 1Y6
Phone: 1-888-563-3732
Date Received: 19 Jul 2019

Specialties

Specialty Issued On Type
Neurology Effective:30 Jun 2008 RCPSC Specialist

Registration History

Action Issue Date
First certificate of registration issued: Independent Practice Certificate Effective: 05 Oct 2009
Transfer of class of certificate to: Restricted certificate Effective: 19 Sep 2017
Terms and conditions imposed on certificate Effective: 19 Sep 2017
Revoked: Discipline Committee. Effective: 30 Apr 2019

Previous Hearings

Committee: Discipline
Decision Date: 30 Apr 2019
Summary:

On April 30, 2019, on the basis of a Statement of Uncontested Facts and Plea of No Contest, the Discipline Committee found that Dr. Jeffrey Scott Sloka committed an act of professional misconduct, in that he has engaged in sexual abuse of a patient and has engaged in an act or omission relevant to the practice of medicine that, having regard to all circumstances, would reasonably be regarded by members as disgraceful, dishonourable or unprofessional.

STATEMENT OF UNCONTESTED FACTS AND PLEA OF NO CONTEST

Dr. Jeffrey Scott Sloka (“Dr. Sloka”) is a 50 year old neurologist who received his certificate of registration authorizing independent practice from the College in 2009. Throughout the relevant time he practised in Kitchener, Ontario.

Patient A
 
Patient A was referred to Dr. Sloka for an appointment in August 2010 for an assessment regarding seizures. At the time, she was a teenager and was living in a group home.

At her appointment, Dr. Sloka told Patient A that he had to perform a physical assessment and to look over her body. She understood that he would look for “anything like moles,” as this could be connected to her seizures.

Expert neurologists retained by the College to review this matter advised that certain skin lesions can be a marker of syndromes causing epilepsy, but that any skin examination would require appropriate draping.

Dr. Sloka left the room so Patient A could change, directing her to take off her bra and underwear and to gown. When Dr. Sloka returned to conduct the examination, however, he instructed her to fully remove her gown and stand with her arms and legs out, facing the window of the examining room. Patient A did so, while Dr. Sloka slowly and closely looked over her entire body, including crouching down with his face close to her skin. This made Patient A very uncomfortable.


Afterwards, Dr. Sloka had Patient A lie down on the examining table and conducted neurological assessments, including testing the strength in her legs and her reflexes. Patient A recalls that she was still ungowned throughout this process.

Patient A expressed her discomfort with her first encounter with Dr. Sloka to another physician, who made a report to the College in January 2016, leading the College to investigate Patient A’s concerns.

During the College’s investigation, Dr. Sloka stated to the College that he had conducted a skin examination but denied he had required Patient A to disrobe. He did not mention a skin examination in the consultation letter he dictated about the appointment, though the letter indicated Patient A herself had mentioned having a spot on her abdomen.

 
 

Dr. Sloka engaged in disgraceful, dishonourable or unprofessional conduct towards and sexual abuse of Patient A during her first medical appointment with him, when he required her to be examined in the nude, which was behaviour of a sexual nature and not of a clinical nature.

Patient B

Patient B was Dr. Sloka’s patient between 2010 and 2012, having been referred to him by her family physician with respect to a seizure disorder.

During one of Patient B’s first appointments with Dr. Sloka, Dr. Sloka indicated that he had to check her skin for abnormal markings or moles. Her understanding was that this could indicate she had cancer. Dr. Sloka required Patient B to take off her gown and stand naked with her arms outstretched, facing the window. He first checked her back and then her front. When he checked her front, Dr. Sloka cupped each of her breasts separately and lifted them up and moved them.

As noted above in respect of Patient A, appropriate draping would be required for any skin examination. As advised by an expert retained by the College to review this matter, it was not clinically appropriate for Dr. Sloka to touch Patient B’s breasts.

Patient B felt uncomfortable. She continued to see Dr. Sloka for four additional consultation appointments, but in 2015 she discussed her concerns with her family physician, who reported them to the College, resulting in an investigation.

During the investigation, Dr. Sloka suggested that Patient B had been mistaken in saying that Dr. Sloka had asked her to disrobe, and denied lifting or cupping her breasts.

Dr. Sloka engaged in disgraceful, dishonourable or unprofessional conduct towards and sexual abuse of Patient B during a medical appointment, by requiring her to be examined in the nude, and by touching her body, including lifting and cupping her breasts. This was behaviour and touching of a sexual nature and not a clinical nature.

Patient C

After learning that allegations regarding Dr. Sloka’s conduct towards Patients A and B had been referred to the Discipline Committee, Patient C contacted the College in October 2017 to express her concerns regarding his conduct towards her.

Patient C was Dr. Sloka’s patient between 2011 and 2017. She had been referred to Dr. Sloka initially by her family doctor for a neurology consultation after she began to feel tingling from the waist down.

At her first appointment, Dr. Sloka directed Patient C to remove her bra and leave her underwear on and to put on a gown. He left the room while she changed and returned. In addition to such items as checking her reflexes while she sat on the examining table, Dr. Sloka told Patient C he would examine her breasts and ‘check for lumps.’ Dr. Sloka asked Patient C to lie on her back. He stood at her side and lifted her gown from the right side to the left with the gown gathered
 
almost to her face and her right breast exposed, and then did the same on the other side. On each side, after he had lifted her gown, Dr. Sloka exposed and touched Patient C’s breast, squeezing each breast with his fingers, with the palm of his hand on the breast. Patient C described it as a gentle touch, “like I would do to my babies.” Dr. Sloka told her he felt no lumps and that “they’re good.”
 
Dr. Sloka’s patient chart for Patient C contains no record of any breast examination.

After her first appointment with Dr. Sloka, Patient C disclosed to her family that she believed she had been “felt up” by Dr. Sloka. She wanted to see another neurologist but returned to Dr. Sloka because she could not find another physician.

Dr. Sloka engaged in disgraceful, dishonourable or unprofessional conduct towards and sexual abuse of Patient C in touching her breasts during her medical appointment. This was touching of a sexual nature and not of a clinical nature.

Patient D

After learning that allegations regarding Dr. Sloka’s conduct towards Patients A and B had been referred to the Discipline Committee, Patient D contacted the College in October 2017 to express her concerns regarding his conduct towards her. Patient D was Dr. Sloka’s patient between 2011 and 2018 for management of her seizure disorder. She was first referred to him as a university student after having a seizure. At a number of appointments, Dr. Sloka checked Patient D’s skin all over her body. She would begin the examination wearing a gown, but as he examined her from her arms down the rest of the body, Dr. Sloka would slowly remove her gown himself, undoing the ties and letting it fall. He would examine her with his face up close to her body, getting on his knees when examining her legs. He explained that he was checking for skin abnormalities linked to neurological issues. While doing this, he would move her breasts, squeezing and pushing them, including around the nipples. Dr. Sloka had Patient D lift her leg to a ninety degree angle while the gown was around her waist with her breasts exposed so that he could examine a birthmark in her inguinal area.

During a follow-up visit in 2013-2014, Patient D complained of twitching in her leg and back pain. Dr. Sloka asked her to lie on the examining table. He proceeded to insert two fingers into her vagina while she lay with her legs flat on the table, which had no stirrups. This occurred after another skin examination. He had not told Patient D that he would touch her genital area or offered a reason for doing so. Dr. Sloka told Patient D that her cervix was low and invited her to feel it for herself, but she declined.


While Patient D remained lying flat on the table, Dr. Sloka then moved his hand and put a finger or fingers into her rectum for approximately five seconds, commenting that he was going to check whether constipation could be causing nerve pain. Dr. Sloka’s hand that he used to touch Patient D’s vagina and rectum was ungloved.
 
 


Patient D recalls that Dr. Sloka touched her vagina and rectum in the manner described above again at subsequent medical appointments, on a total of three to four occasions.

As opined by an expert neurologist retained by the College to review this matter, Dr. Sloka’s conduct towards Patient D described above was not clinically indicated. There was no clinical rationale for the invasive physical maneuvers involving Patient D’s vagina and rectum. Nor were repeated skin examinations, the lack of draping, or the touching of Patient D’s breasts clinically appropriate.

Dr. Sloka engaged in disgraceful, dishonourable or unprofessional conduct towards and sexual abuse of Patient D, in requiring her to be examined without adequate draping, by moving her gown to expose her body, and by touching her vaginal area, rectum, breasts, and groin area. This was touching of a sexual nature and not of a clinical nature.

Dr. Sloka does not contest that the above facts constitute professional misconduct, in that he engaged in sexual abuse of a patient, and in an act or omission relevant to the practice of medicine that, having regard to all the circumstances, would reasonably be regarded by members as disgraceful, dishonourable or unprofessional.

AGREED STATEMENT OF FACTS RELEVANT TO PENALTY

Dr. Sloka has no prior discipline history.

Dr. Sloka entered into an interim undertaking to the College on September 19, 2017, pending final disposition of this case. It has required all of his patient encounters to take place in the presence of a practice monitor who is a regulated health professional acceptable to the College. The practice monitor has submitted reports to the College, and there was a requirement to post signage to advise patients of these practice restrictions.

Dr. Sloka has agreed to undertake not to apply or reapply to practise medicine in Ontario or any other jurisdiction.

DISPOSITION

The Discipline Committee ordered that:
- The Registrar to revoke Dr. Sloka’s certificate of registration effective immediately.
- Dr. Sloka attend before the panel to be reprimanded
- Dr. Sloka reimburse the College for funding provided to patients under the program required under section 85.7 of the Code, by posting an irrevocable letter of credit or other security acceptable to the College, within thirty (30) days of this Order in the amount of $64,240.00.

Dr. Sloka waived his right to an appeal under subsection 70(1) of the Code and the Committee administered the public reprimand.
 
 


Decision: Download Full Decision (PDF)
Hearing Date(s): April 30, 2019 9:00 start time

Concerns

Source: Member
Active Date: April 30, 2019
Expiry Date:
Summary:
Summary of the Undertaking given by Dr. Jeffrey Scott Sloka to the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario, effective April 30, 2019:

College investigations were conducted into whether Dr. Sloka engaged in professional misconduct towards patients in his neurology practice, including sexual abuse. In the face of these allegations, Dr. Sloka agreed never to apply or reapply for registration as a physician in Ontario or any other jurisdiction.
Download Full Document (PDF)

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