Former patient testifies doctor told her future husband would regret it if she got tubes tied

A woman who sought a surgical procedure to prevent pregnancy testified Wednesday that a Cape Breton gynecologist told her the choice should be up to her future husband and that "no other doctor in Canada" would perform it on her.

The former patient, whose identity is protected by a publication ban, said she was seeking to get her "tubes tied" in 2017 and was given a consultation with Dr. Manivasan Moodley, who is currently facing a multi-day professional misconduct hearing in Bedford, N.S.

The woman was in her early 20s when she met with Moodley in his Sydney office. She is one of three former patients who have testified before a five-member panel at the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Nova Scotia hearing.

She said Moodley asked her during her appointment if she had a partner, which she did, and testified he told her the boyfriend or a future husband would regret her decision to get a tubal ligation, which would sterilize her.

Moodley told her that doctors would only consider doing a tubal ligation on women 10 years older who were on social assistance and had had multiple children, she testified.

"It felt dismissive," she said. "It felt like I didn't have the right to make that decision. I felt like I had no say in what was happening, no matter how much I advocated for it."

Professional misconduct accusation

Moodley is accused of professional misconduct and incompetence related to three complainants. The first testified earlier in the hearing that he performed a surgical procedure against her wishes during childbirth.

A second woman, who was also pregnant, alleged Moodley dismissed her labour pains as back spasms and ignored her requests for epidural pain medication, and testified staff at Cape Breton Regional Hospital failed to pay close enough attention, which may have led to health complications for her son.

The panel is hearing evidence about the complaints and is tasked with examining whether Moodley engaged in professional misconduct. Moodley is expected to testify in his own defence at a later date.

Moodley has previously been disciplined. In 2021, his licence was suspended for five months and he was ordered to pay $325,000 after two female patients said he made inappropriate sexual remarks to them.

Procedure denied

Wednesday's witness testified she was referred to Moodley by her family doctor after inquiring about permanent sterilization. She said she told him she didn't want to have biological children and her partner supported her choice, but that Moodley refused to do the procedure and did not send her for a second opinion.

Moodley began the appointment by telling her he would do an ultrasound. She testified nothing inappropriate happened during the procedure, but that she didn't know why he was performing it given she was at his office to consult about a tubal ligation.

It was only at the end of the appointment, following the discussion about tubal ligation, that Moodley raised his voice and told her he'd detected a solid mass on her ovaries, she testified. A later ultrasound found her ovaries were normal.

Frustration and anger

Moodley's lawyer, Muneeza Sheikh, suggested during cross-examination that the complainant was being "dishonest" about Moodley referring to women on welfare with multiple children, and that she falsified notes she wrote in her phone about the incident during the following months. The woman denied that was the case.

The woman only lodged a complaint with the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Nova Scotia more than three years after her appointment with Moodley.

She told the panel she didn't realize until then that she could file a complaint, and had also read a news story in 2020 about another complaint about Moodley.

Excerpts from an interview Moodley gave with college investigators were read out loud Wednesday. In it, he stated doctors need to give sufficient information, and that young people can make decisions and then later change their minds.

He suggested the woman gained something positive with the appointment and the information he provided, given she didn't proceed with sterilization.

The woman said she still wants a tubal ligation, but testified she no longer has a family doctor and due to her experience with Moodley doesn't have the "drive or confidence" to discuss the procedure with another physician.

The woman's mother also testified Wednesday, telling the panel her daughter was frustrated and angry following the appointment and told her she felt she'd been mistreated by Moodley.

The hearing has taken much longer than expected and has fallen behind schedule. It is now tentatively set to resume in November.