Surgeons disciplined by regulatory bodies in Canada between 2000 and 2017

Identifying characteristics of disciplined surgeons is important for public safety. A database of all physicians disciplined by a Canadian provincial medical regulatory authority (College of Physicians and Surgeons) between 2000 and 2017 was constructed, and comparisons between surgeons and other physicians were undertaken. Of 1100 disciplined physicians, 174 (15.8 %) were surgeons. Obstetrics and gynecology was the specialty with the most disciplined surgeons (57 of 174 [32.8%]), followed by general surgery (48 of 174 [27.6%]). The overall disciplinary rate for surgeons was higher than for other physicians (12.59, 95 % confidence interval [CI] 10.69–14.83 v. 9.85, 95 % CI 8.88–10.94 cases per 10 000 physician-years, p = 0.013). Even after adjusting for surgeon age, sex, international medical graduation and years in practice, surgeons remained more likely than other physicians to be disciplined for standard of care issues (55.6%, 95% CI 46.6–64.2 v. 38.7%, 95% CI 32.6–45.2, p < 0.001).