A Doctor's Obligation To Report A Patient Who May Be Unfit To Drive

A recent Ontario study indicates that doctors seldom report their patient's medical risk of driving to licencing authorioties, even though they are obligated to do so by law.

BC has similar legislation as Ontario. Section 230 of the  BC Motor Vehicle Act, R.S.B.C. 1996, c. 318 provides as follows:

Report of psychologist, optometrist and medical practitioner

230(1) This section applies to every legally qualified and registered psychologist, optometrist and medical practitioner who has a patient 16 years of age or older who

(a) in the opinion of the psychologist, optometrist or medical practitioner has a medical condition that makes it dangerous to the patient or to the public for the patient to drive a motor vehicle, and

(b) continues to drive a motor vehicle after being warned of the danger by the psychologist, optometrist or medical practitioner.

(2) Every psychologist, optometrist and medical practitioner referred to in subsection (1) must report to the superintendent the name, address and medical condition of a patient referred to in subsection (1).

(3) No action for damages lies or may be brought against a psychologist, an optometrist or a medical practitioner for making a report under this section, unless the psychologist, optometrist or medical practitioner made the report falsely and maliciously

Should a medically unfit driver cause an accident, and an injury occurs, the doctor who failed to report the unfit driver could be sued by the person injured.
 
Several Ontario cases have dealt with this issue. In a recent BC case,  McMurray v. Marshall et al, 2005 BCSC 961, although not a decision on the merits of the claim, the doctor was named as a defendant on the  basis of section 230:

See the Ontario Report here:
http://www.openmedicine.ca/article/download/141/112