B.C. doctor disciplined over U.S. prescriptions

The College's deputy registrar, Doug Blackman, says Dr. Gandham was risking the safety of those patients.

"You don't have a relationship with these patients, your prescribing is obviously a medical act based on a proper full history of the patient, an examination of the patient to come to a diagnosis and a treatment plan.

"But without a face-to-face contact with those patients, you haven't established those criteria on which to be prescribing."

And while Dr. Gandham is the first B.C. doctor to be disciplined, Blackman says this is a growing problem.

"I think this is happening extensively across the country, probably more extensively in some provinces than others," he says.