Lawyers for Dental Hygienists

As trusted dental hygienist lawyers, we routinely represent dental hygienists in Ontario in regulatory, litigation, clinical and risk issues, including those with the College of Dental Hygienists of Ontario (the “CDHO”), the Human Rights Tribunal and the Information and Privacy Commissioner. We help dental hygienists navigate the legal landscape governing dental hygiene in Ontario, including under the Dental Hygiene Act.

If you have a complaint, investigation or disciplinary matter before the CDHO, it is important to get legal advice from a dental hygienist complaint lawyer or dental hygienist discipline lawyer to evaluate your risk and help you manage your response. This is especially important because many forms of remediation ordered by the CDHO remain on a dental hygienist’s public register indefinitely. We are dental hygiene defence lawyers who assist routinely on all types of CDHO matters, including clinical issues, billing issues, communication issues, IPAC issues, recordkeeping issues and boundary violations/sexual abuse allegations.

We regularly work with the insurance company for the Ontario Dental Hygienists’ Association and also routinely represent dental hygienists and dental hygiene students directly who do not have coverage for regulatory matters. We typically offer our clients the choice of an hourly rate or flat fee for these regulatory matters, especially for dental hygiene complaints. We represent dental hygienists across the province of Ontario, including in Toronto and the GTA, Ottawa, Hamilton, Kitchener, London, Brampton, Barrie, Kingston and Thunder Bay.

Legal Services for Dental Hygienists

  • Responding on behalf of dental hygienists to CDHO patient complaints before the Inquiries, Complaints and Reports Committee (“ICRC”) of the CDHO;

  • Facilitating proactive courses or Specific Continuing Education or Remediation Programs (“SCERP”) for dental hygienists ordered by the CDHO;

  • Responding for dental hygienists to CDHO section 75 investigations before the ICRC;

  • Responding to disciplinary matters and allegations of professional misconduct for dental hygienists before the Discipline Committee of the CDHO;

  • Responding to registration issues for dental hygienists before the Registration Committee of the CDHO or guiding dental hygienists on their application for licensure in other provinces/countries;

  • Defending dental hygienist malpractice lawsuits;

  • Defending allegations for dental hygiene students on testing irregularity and cheating made by the Federation of Dental Hygiene Regulators of Canada;

  • Responding to appeals and judicial reviews for dental hygienists before the Health Professions Appeal and Review Board (“HPARB”), the Divisional Court of Ontario or the Court of Appeal for Ontario;

  • Responding to complaints made against dental hygienists to the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario regarding discrimination and human rights violations;

  • Responding to complaints against dental hygienists before the Information and Privacy Commissioner;

  • Responding on behalf of dental hygienists to CDHO Fitness to Practice matters;

  • Assisting dental hygienists in managing a challenging patient, including harassment and assault;

  • Navigating clinical issues for dental hygienists, including public health inquiries, infection prevention and control (“IPAC”) issues, privacy breaches, dental hygienist malpractice allegations, recordkeeping issues and patient demands;

  • Navigating billing issues for dental hygienists, including appropriate billing codes and amounts;

  • Navigating compliance for dental hygienists with CDHO Standards of Practice

  • Assisting dental hygienists in responding to the annual CDHO report regarding past criminal and regulatory issues; and

  • Representing dental hygienists on workplace investigations

Need help with any of the above? We are dental hygienist attorneys, so don’t hesitate to contact John McIntyre for a free consultation at john@mcintyre-szabo.com or through the website here.