Fear and denial: grappling with the reality of abusive physicians

The release in 1991 of the findings of the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario Task Force on Sexual Abuse of Patients created a furore in the media and was met with denial and anger by many physicians. The publication in this issue (see pages 169 to 176) of Cohen and associates' survey on the impact of the task force report and the legislation that it prompted on the attitudes of recently certified family physicians provides an occasion for the author to reflect on the painful lessons that were learned in the course of the task force's inquiry.