Pubdate: Fri, 16 Apr 2004
Source: Abbotsford Times (CN BC)
Copyright: 2004 The Abbotsford Times
Contact:  http://www.abbotsfordtimes.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1009
Author: Christina Toth

SWANNEY TARGET OF POLICE DRUG TRAFFIC INVESTIGATION

Former Abbotsford family doctor James Swanney is under investigation
for trafficking methadone, a controlled drug, and for causing the
death of Christena Constible due to negligence in May 2000.

A search warrant filed by Abbotsford police Det. Don McKenzie
requested paper and electronic documentation from the B.C. College of
Physicians and Surgeons regarding their investigation of Swanney's
care of his patient, correspondence with the doctor on the matter and
the college's final report on the arbitration agreement with Swanney.

The documentation was seized by the police on April 1 and the
investigation continues.

In the warrant, McKenzie states he made his application after speaking
to Elaine Easton, the in-house legal counsel for the College of
Physicians and Surgeons, and after reviewing sworn testimony given at
an inquest into Constible's death by her mother, Carolyn Constible.

Christena Constible had been under Swanney's care as she tried to
overcome a heroin addiction and he had prescribed methadone and other
drugs to her during the course of treatment.

Constible had not been prescribed methadone since March 2000. The
warrant states that on May 11, 2000, Swanney gave the young woman a
vial of methadone to drink in his office and another to administer to
herself later at home. Her mother was present at the appointment with
Swanney.

Christena Constible drank the second vial at her parents' home and
subsequently died. A coroner's inquest found Constible, 21, stopped
breathing and died May 12, 2000, due to an overdose of methadone,
chloral hydrate and venlafaxine.

Swanney told the coroner's inquest that he had kept methadone in his
office, which had been returned by other patients, for emergencies.
The warrant states that Swanney possessed methadone, a Schedule 1
narcotic, which he knew was against the Controlled Drugs and
Substances Act. Swanney testified the medication had been in his
possession for more than a year, he had not tested it to ascertain its
reliability and he was not certain what was in the container.

In his testimony, Swanney told the coroner he did not examine
Constible or take a urine sample to determine if she had been using
any street drugs, had any other underlying medical condition or if she
was going through methadone withdrawal.

In the warrant document, the detective noted these actions are illegal
and contrary to the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act.

According to Peaston, the college determined Swanney failed to meet
the standards required of a general practitioner and that constituted
unprofessional and inappropriate conduct.

In January, through dispute resolution, the college imposed several
sanctions on Swanney, including a fine of $13,500 for legal costs,
further education in general practice, regular submissions to a
medical mentor and refraining from prescribing certain narcotics for
at least two years after he resumes practice in Canada. Swanney
practised as a family doctor in Abbotsford from 1979 to 2002, when he
returned to his native Scotland to work as a doctor. 
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