Alberta · College of Registered Nurses of Alberta

What happens during a CRNA investigation?

An investigation is not a punishment and it is not a foregone conclusion — but it is a formal fact-finding exercise whose product can be put before a hearing tribunal. The thing that changes how you should act is this: the investigator’s report is built largely from documents and from what you say, and you have real rights in how both are handled.

How an investigation actually begins

Not every complaint becomes an investigation. The Complaints Director first reviews the allegations and may dismiss the matter, attempt resolution, or direct an investigation under Part 4 of the Health Professions Act. An investigator is then appointed.

The trigger is usually a signed written complaint, but it may equally be an employer report of conduct-related discipline, which the Act treats as a complaint. Whatever the source, you will be told, and you will be provided with a copy of the complaint.

What the investigator can do — and what they will want

An investigation under the Act is a serious exercise with real powers behind it. The investigator gathers documents, obtains the clinical record, and interviews witnesses — the complainant, colleagues, managers, and you. Expect the chart, the medication administration record, incident reports, and your employer’s internal investigation to be obtained.

This is why the contemporaneous record is decisive. What you wrote at the time, in the moment, carries a weight that nothing written afterwards can match. It is also why altering a record after the fact is so catastrophic: it converts a case about a clinical concern into a case about honesty, which is far harder to survive.

Your rights during the investigation

You have a statutory right to counsel, and you may be represented by a lawyer, a union representative, or an agent of your choosing at every stage. You are entitled to know the allegations and to be given the information gathered during the investigation, because the college is bound by the principles of procedural fairness — you must have a real opportunity to answer what is said against you.

You may be asked to give an interview or to provide a written response. Both should be prepared with your lawyer. Cooperating is expected and failing to cooperate carries its own consequences — but cooperating carefully, and with representation, is not the same thing as answering off the cuff.

How long it takes, and how you will be kept informed

There is no single fixed statutory deadline for a CRNA investigation, and the college is candid that a matter can take days, months, or in complex cases considerably longer, depending on severity and complexity. What Alberta does provide is a rhythm of communication: where there is an investigation, the CRNA updates both the complainant and the registrant at least every 60 days.

That 60-day update is a genuine right, and worth using. A long silence is not a sign that a matter has gone away, and your lawyer can and should press for clarity on where the file stands.

What happens when the investigation ends

The investigator reports to the Complaints Director, who then decides. The matter may be dismissed — where the complaint is trivial, vexatious, or the evidence does not support it. It may be resolved through expedited alternate resolution and a complaint resolution agreement, which avoids a hearing altogether. Or it may be referred to a hearing tribunal.

If a complaint is dismissed, the complainant has a right to ask the Hearings Director to review that dismissal, so a dismissal is not always the final word. And a complaint alleging conduct of a sexual nature will be referred to a formal hearing.

If it is referred to a hearing tribunal

A referral is not a finding. Once the matter reaches the Hearings Director, a hearing would normally be scheduled within about 90 days, and you must be given a Notice to Attend setting out the allegations at least 30 days before the hearing date.

Hearings can be contested, or resolved by consent or partial consent where you agree some or all of the facts, the finding of unprofessional conduct, and the sanction. The Act also allows an admission of unprofessional conduct to be dealt with as a preliminary matter. Hearings are presumed to be open to the public, and a finding of unprofessional conduct is published on the CRNA website with your name. A decision of no finding is not published, and neither is a dismissed complaint.

What you can do while it runs

You cannot control the pace of an investigation, but you can control what you bring to its conclusion. Nurses and midwives who emerge best from this process arrive at the decision point already able to show reflection and concrete remediation — not as a defence, but as evidence that the concern has been understood and addressed.

Assembled while the file is open, that record can genuinely inform how a matter is resolved — including whether it can be dealt with by agreement rather than a hearing. Produced only after a sanction has been proposed, it carries far less weight.

This guide is general information for nurses and midwives in Alberta and is not legal advice. It is not affiliated with or endorsed by the College of Registered Nurses of Alberta or the College of Midwives of Alberta. Regulatory processes change and every case turns on its own facts — contact the Canadian Nurses Protective Society, your union, or a regulatory lawyer about your own matter, and confirm current requirements with your college. No course or programme can guarantee the outcome of a regulatory process. Last updated July 14, 2026.