Grand Erie Public Health found improper use of personal protective equipment, including gloves that were not changed between treatment rooms and the handling of radiographic film. (iStock)
Ontario dentist George Chan has resigned his registration with the Royal College of Dental Surgeons of Ontario (RCDSO) following a public-health investigation that identified 15 infection prevention and control lapses at his Brantford dental office.
Chan’s resignation took effect July 2, ending his authorization to practise dentistry in Ontario. His general certificate of registration had been active since May 29, 1986.
The RCDSO’s public register also lists a term requiring Chan to undergo 24 months of monitoring of his infection prevention and control practices should he apply to become registered again.
“Should Dr. Chan seek to re-apply for registration as a dentist in Ontario, he will submit to College monitoring of his infection prevention and control practices for 24 months, commencing on the date that he resumes practising dentistry in Ontario,” the register states.
The condition, which took effect July 2, also requires Chan to pay the college’s monitoring expenses after each visit.
The RCDSO told CBC News that its investigation into what occurred at the clinic remains ongoing.
How did the investigation begin?
The public-health investigation began after Lyn-Marie Portelli, a receptionist and qualified dental assistant who worked at Chan’s St. Paul Avenue office, contacted Grand Erie Public Health on Oct. 29, 2025.
Portelli told The Brantford Expositor that she became concerned after the office received what she described as a higher-than-normal number of complaints about temporary fillings.
“I know that can happen because of expired bonding agents,” Portelli told the newspaper.
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Portelli said she subsequently found loose dental instruments and expired dental products, including composite that had expired in 2007 and topical anesthetic that had expired in 2014.
Grand Erie Public Health has not alleged that Chan used the expired products on patients.
Public-health inspectors attended the clinic on Nov. 3, 2025. Their investigation identified 15 lapses involving the disinfection and sterilization of reusable instruments.
The findings included insufficient flushing of suction lines between patients, improper glove use, inadequate sterilization records and a lack of biological monitoring of sterilizers. Inspectors also found instruments stored loose and unpackaged in treatment rooms and semi-critical equipment that had not been properly disinfected or sterilized.
The clinic closed Nov. 3. In an email to the health unit dated Dec. 3, 2025, obtained by CBC News, Chan said he was retiring and would not reopen the office, work as an associate or practise at another location.
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More than 800 patients advised to seek testing
In March, Grand Erie Public Health began notifying more than 800 former patients who received treatment at the clinic between Nov. 3, 2021, and Nov. 3, 2025.
The health unit advised those patients to speak with a healthcare provider about testing for hepatitis B, hepatitis C and HIV because of the sterilization lapses.
CBC News reported Tuesday that it had obtained photographs taken during the public-health investigation through a freedom-of-information request. The images show loose, unpackaged instruments stored in a treatment-room drawer, expired products and equipment in the clinic’s instrument-reprocessing area.
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