A Windsor doctor has engaged in disgraceful, dishonourable or unprofessional conduct, according to a discipline committee with the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario.

On Tuesday, the committee ordered a four-month suspension of Dr. Thomas Barnard’s certificate of registration and the imposition of numerous restrictions on his practice. 

On Jan. 20, 2017, Barnard entered into an undertaking with the College, effective March 17, 2017, that he must not practise family medicine, must not bill the Ontario Health Insurance Plan, and must not provide any OHIP-insured service.

Barnard, who is the medical director at Fresh Medical Spa, may only provide certain aesthetic and cosmetic services and may provide nutritional counselling. 

The college received a letter from the Chief Coroner for Ontario on Oct. 18, 2012, enclosing reports from a Coroner’s investigation of the death of a person who was a regular patient of Barnard’s between May 2000 and April 2012.

The Coroner’s report indicated that the cause of death was a multi-drug toxicity, which included controlled substances that had been prescribed to the patient by Dr. Barnard.

“The truth is, I wore a lot of egg on my face for something that was somewhat out of my control,” Barnard says.

Regardless, the committee determined Barnard failed to maintain the standard of practice of the profession in his care and treatment of the patient.

There were several other investigations of Bernard involving other patients.

Barnard, who has been practising medicine for 37 years, tells CTV News he will continue to practice natural, cosmetic and aesthetic medicine, as well as provide nutritional counselling. He says his main priority right now is transitioning his patients to different physicians.

“I'm seeing the children of the children of my original patients, and I really love all the people I've seen,” he says. “I really want to make sure everyone gets looked after well.”

“I'm going to set up my practice where there will be a bunch of other docs, colleagues who will be able to take on patients so that people won't be bereft without a family doc.”

The Discipline Committee will release reasons for its decision in the coming weeks, and when released, the decision will also be posted to Barnard’s profile on the public register on the CPSO’s website.

CTV's Rich Garton will have more comments from Barnard and his patients at 6.