Dr. Rajpaul is a physician practicing medicine in Toronto for 27 years. She has a specialized skill and is routinely sought after for her expertise, especially when patients are in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) and experiencing complicated medical conditions. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Dr. Rajpaul becomes increasingly concerned about her own vulnerabilities and catching the virus. Although she is still working regular shifts at her local hospital, she starts to contemplate what the implications of contracting COVI-19 might mean for her. When a new variant emerges in 2022, Dr. Rajpaul has enough. She says that she is going to take a break from medicine, and stop practicing until the pandemic is over. The hospital she works at panics, and says that she cannot quit her job, and that she has a duty of care to her patients. Dr. Rajpaul responds that even though she is a professional, she is able to choose when and how to work, and refuses to allow the hospital to dictate her professional terms of engagement. She points to a transfer of care plan that she has drafted, and insists that patient safety will not be adversely impacted.

Should medical professionals like Dr. Rajpaul have special duties or obligations during situations like emergencies and pandemics? Is her response to the hospital here a reasonable one?