But Dr. Arvind Singh went on to defend his treatment plan under cross-examination by a lawyer at the College of Physicians and Surgeons, saying that what he did was in Laurel Hurst’s best interest. Hurst and her parents were looking forward to leaving the hospital’s psychiatric ward and being accepted into a long-term care home, Singh told defendant attorney Doug Drysdale. “Wedgewood Manor told us that if her behavior was not consistent, they could not accept it,” she said. “It was done in good faith, to get him out of the hospital as soon as possible … Getting discharged and then coming back would be even more painful.” Singh is accused of failing to meet acceptable professional standards, failing to work with a patient’s family, prescribing drugs or treatments in a way that “does not conform to generally accepted professional standards and procedures,” and abusing a patient verbally or physically. Laurel Hurst, now 40, is the patient at the center of complaints of professional misconduct against psychiatrist Dr. Arvind Singh. (Submitted by Wedgewood Manor)
Hurst’s parents said Singh used behavior modification therapy with their daughter, trying to change her actions with a system of punishments and rewards – even though her degenerative disease had left her cognitively weak and unable to link actions to consequences. . “The patient continues to be manipulative,” Singh wrote in a series of patient notes presented at Tuesday’s hearing. “You may need to isolate her if her behavior does not improve.” Another note taken by hospital staff cited by Drysdale contained this comment: “Parents would like the phone restrictions lifted. The doctor disagrees.” He made statements such as “The staff is just sitting and picking up checks.” The family would react without discussing it with staff. The decision was made to restrict access to the telephone.- Dr. Arvind Singh
Singh explained the comments by saying that Laurel Hurst was going to other patients’ rooms without permission, and called her family to complain about her treatment at the hospital. “He made statements like ‘The staff are just sitting and picking up paychecks,’” he told Drysdale. “The family would react without discussing it with staff. The decision was made to restrict access to the phone.”

Participants ask a psychiatrist

A three-person panel will make a decision at the end of the college hearing process that could see Singh fined or operate his practice with restrictions.
On Tuesday, committee members were able to ask Singh directly for the first time. John Hennessey wanted to know how long the average patient remained in the ward, compared to Hurst’s 17-month stay. Laurel Hurst was a patient in the psychiatric ward of Prince County Hospital for 17 months, from January 2017 to June 2018. She now lives at Wedgewood Manor in Summerside. (Tom Steepe / CBC)
Singh said the regular patient is admitted for one to two weeks, but long-term care patients who need to receive psychiatric treatment in hospital can stay for months. “Hirst was” one of my biggest hospital admissions, “he confirmed. He also acknowledged that Hurst was “upset” that he was not being released.
“She saw other patients coming and going. She blamed her parents. We started giving her cards … Nobody came to take her out. She expected her family to be more available.”

Notes are disputed

Dr. Rosemary Henderson, chair of the committee, asked Singh about a patient note she had written: “There are no memory problems to worry about.” Singh said he could not remember why he wrote this, as Hurst had been declared incompetent due to her reduced brain function. Henderson went on to say, “We’ve heard staff feel underestimated and ridiculed in front of others other than yourself. Did you know that people felt that way?” Singh replied: “I know we have different sensitivities, but I did not feel that I hurt anyone.” Another member of the committee, Dr. Randy MacKinnon, referred to the interruption in communication between Singh and Hurst’s father, Stephen, her legal guardian. He was the one who officially complained about the treatment of his daughter in Singh’s hands, after he was released from the hospital in June 2018. “I have a feeling that the loss of communication between you and the Hurst family has sometimes put staff in a difficult position,” MacKinnon told Singh. “Right,” the doctor replied.

The procedures are currently completed

The hearing ended the evidence-gathering phase early Tuesday afternoon, after the commission said it would not accept a report submitted by a witness who wanted Singh’s legal team to present. Lawyers will now have about six weeks to submit written summaries to the commission, and the defense requested an additional month after that to respond to the prosecution summary. The prosecutor then has two more weeks to respond to that response. At that point, the hearing will end on June 28. The decision will be issued within 60 days.