# 2022-114 Careers, Counselling and Probation

Case summary

F&R Date: 2024-02-01

The grievor, a Medical Technician, was given a Counselling and Probation (C&P) regarding two incidents: one involving the grievor being untruthful about administering medication to a patient, and one about patient care. The grievor contended that the C&P was based on misrepresented information to his chain of command (CoC) as described by others working with him on the days in question. As redress, he requested that the C&P be removed from his files.

The Initial Authority (IA) found that there was evidence to substantiate that both incidents occurred. He noted the grievor took no responsibility for his actions and placed the blame on others. The IA concluded that the conduct of the grievor's CoC was reasonable and denied redress.

The Committee found that, on a balance of probabilities, the grievor was not truthful about the incident involving the administration of medication. However, the Committee found that there was insufficient evidence to conclude that the grievor displayed a conduct or performance deficiency for the incident involving patient care, which did not warrant a remedial measure. With respect to the incident involving the grievor's untruthfulness about the administration of medication, the Committee noted that the implications of this conduct could be quite serious. As a result, the Committee concluded that the potential implications for the health and safety of patients cannot be ignored, and found that this incident merited a C&P.

The Committee recommended that the Final Authority (FA) quash the original C&P and remove it from the grievor's files. The Committee further recommended that the FA issue a C&P to the grievor for the incident involving the grievor's untruthfulness relating to the administration of medication.

FA decision summary

The Director Canadian Forces Grievance Authority, acting as FA, partially agreed with the Committee's findings and recommendations. The FA found that the C&P did not meet the requirements of Defence Administrative Orders and Directives 5019-4, and therefore directed that it be remove from the grievor's personal files as recommended by the Committee. However, the FA did not agree with the Committee's recommendation that a C&P be issued as replacement for the incident involving the administration of medication.The FA gave the grievor the benefit of the doubt that the incident was an issue of miscommunication, not deliberate deception on the grievor's part.