Tribunal finds dentist culpable for girl’s brain damage

The bulk of unprofessional conduct charges levelled at an Edmonton dentist whose practice was involved in an incident that left a young girl with brain damage after being sedated have been declared proven by an Alberta Dental Association and College hearing tribunal.

William Mather faced a dozen charges over the events in September 2016 that sent Amber Athwal, then aged four, into medical distress after a dental surgery under general anesthetic.

The tribunal heard that during the recovery period, Amber went into respiratory and cardiac arrest and now suffers “serious and irreversible neurological damage.”

Mather admitted to unprofessional conduct in relation to six of the charges, with the tribunal finding the now retired dentist “committed serious breaches of his professional and ethical duties” for the remaining six charges. He will face sanctions.

“While every dentist hopes that they will never encounter a serious medical emergency in their practice, this case has shown that these incidents do arise and that the dentist and his or her staff must be fully trained and fully prepared to deal with such a medical emergency,” tribunal chairman Jack Scott wrote in his decision.

“Unfortunately, Dr. Mather and his staff ... were not fully trained or prepared to prevent or deal with Amber’s medical emergency.”

Randall Croutze, chief executive of the dental association, offered his “continued sympathy for what happened to Amber and her family” and was “hopeful for her continued recovery.”

“This is a tragic situation,” Croutze said in a release.