Melanie de Wit

Application by Syl Apps Youth Centre and Dr. Rod Evans for a 180-day extension of secure treatment commitment for a 17-year-old with complex mental health diagnoses and severe self-harming behaviors.

The respondent opposed the extension, arguing that no appropriate plan for care upon release had been established.

The court granted the extension, finding that while the plan lacked specificity and detail, it was reasonable given the circumstances, including the child's complex needs, limited community resources, and the strong planning process and contingency plans in place.

The appellant appealed a Consent and Capacity Board decision finding him incapable of consenting to treatment under the Health Care Consent Act.

The appellant, who had been found NCR for First Degree Murder and diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia, stopped taking his medication and his mental health deteriorated.

The Superior Court of Justice dismissed the appeal, finding the Board's decision reasonable and supported by evidence that the appellant lacked insight into his illness and could not appreciate the reasonably foreseeable consequences of refusing treatment.

A physician brought a motion to lift a stay of a civil action alleging constructive dismissal against a hospital and department head.

The defendants argued that disputes concerning revocation or alteration of hospital privileges must be resolved through the statutory review and appeal process under the Public Hospitals Act, which provides a comprehensive code for such matters.

The court held that although the impugned “double coverage” scheduling requirement may have substantially altered the physician’s hospital privileges, the evidentiary record did not establish that the decision was made under the hospital’s bylaws as required to trigger the statutory appeal regime.

Because the hospital bylaws were not before the court, the court could not conclude that the statutory process applied.

The stay was therefore lifted and the constructive dismissal action was permitted to proceed.