Today a media statement was published in response to recent police charges against Dr. Errol Gaum. The statement also outlines key elements of the Provincial Dental Board of Nova Scotia’s process for addressing formal complaints. A link to the statement can be found online on the Halifax Chronicle Herald website.
Please find a full version of the statement below.
“DR. DOUG MACKEY: Professional probe into complaints against Halifax dentist will take time”
Published February 25, 2022
Dr. Doug Mackey is the Registrar of the Provincial Dental Board of Nova Scotia.
The Provincial Dental Board of Nova Scotia’s role is to protect the general public interest in the delivery of dental care.
Last week, police laid eight charges against a Halifax area dentist, Dr. Errol Gaum. We fully cooperated with the police investigation and, as the regulator of dentists in the province, are conducting separate investigations into the complaints we received.
As the Registrar of the Provincial Dental Board of Nova Scotia, I am reaching out today to Nova Scotians to make clear our commitment to public safety and to provide information on the process taken when we receive public complaints regarding licensed dentists and dental assistants. Our responsibility to protect the public interest includes informing the public about our handling of these complaints to the extent we are permitted by the Dental Act of Nova Scotia.
These are the details we can publicly share regarding the suspension of Dr. Gaum. On November 17, 2020, we received multiple complaints regarding Dr. Gaum. Many of these complaints included allegations of events that date back many decades. These complaints followed public Facebook posts that made serious allegations against Dr. Gaum. Less than 48 hours after receiving these official complaints, on November 18, 2020, the Provincial Dental Board of Nova Scotia took the extraordinary decision to suspend Dr. Gaum’s license indefinitely on the recommendation of the then Acting Registrar to our Complaints Committee, in the interest of public safety. This suspension was the strongest action available to the Committee, and it remains in effect while our investigations into the complaints continue.
While typical investigations usually take about 12 months, the investigations into the complaints against Dr. Gaum are not typical, involving multiple complaints going back half a century in some cases. In light of this complexity, combined with the various realities of conducting investigations during COVID-19, the investigations are progressing as quickly as they can.
I want to assure the public that the investigations into the complaints against Dr. Gaum are a priority for me as Registrar.
In addition to the complaints that led to the suspension of Dr. Gaum, we understand that some Nova Scotians have voiced concerns regarding historical complaints. We want the public to know that the manner in which complaints are handled has evolved over the decades. Changes in the early 2000s significantly modernized the process, including the formation of a Complaints Committee.
The proper handling of complaints matters to us, and we want to hear from Nova Scotians with complaints about the quality of their dental care. Every official complaint the Provincial Dental Board of Nova Scotia receives is investigated, and in due course, all complaints are referred to the Complaints Committee, an independent, quasi-judicial tribunal mandated to deal with them.
The Provincial Dental Board of Nova Scotia is grateful to the dedicated members of the public serving on the Complaints and Discipline Committees, who provide invaluable input into the decision-making of these Committees.
As with all complaints, we are committed to ensuring a thorough process is followed and the public’s trust is maintained. The immediate suspension of Dr. Gaum’s license in 2020 demonstrates our commitment to ensuring public safety. While we are prohibited by the Dental Act and its regulations from disclosing much about our ongoing investigations, we want to assure the public that we hear its concerns and that our investigations are continuing.
Dr. Gaum’s license remains suspended, meaning he can not currently practise dentistry in Nova Scotia.
Information on how to file a complaint is available on the Provincial Dental Board of Nova Scotia website under the public tab or by calling our office at 902-420-0083.