A long-time Toronto psychiatrist, who believes homosexuality is a “sexual disorder” that can be overcome, has been found guilty by Ontario’s medical regulator of sexually abusing two of his male patients.

Dr. Melvyn Iscove, 72, was described in a decision of the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario’s discipline committee as having a “special interest in the treatment of patients with problems related to homosexuality.”

He also engaged in mutual masturbation and oral sex with two male patients on different occasions during therapy sessions, and once had anal intercourse with one of them in his office, the committee found.

“Neither complainant described any emotional or romantic aspects of the sexual activity with Dr. Iscove, and both said that at some point, they thought that the sexual activity was part of the therapy and an attempt to cure them of homosexuality by engaging in the acts, rather than fantasizing about them,” the five-member discipline panel wrote in a decision released this week.

Iscove testified in his own defence, and the discipline panel noted that he studied and applied the theories of Dr. Edmund Bergler, a psychoanalyst who theorized on homosexuality in the 1950s. Passages of Bergler’s writings introduced at Iscove’s discipline hearing included “All attempts to prove homosexuality to be anything but an illness had in my opinion failed” and “there are no happy homosexuals.”

The discipline panel found Iscove tried to “soften the effect of these passages, but in the end, endorsed or at least accepted them.”

“Dr. Iscove also became evasive in responding to questions as to whether homosexuality should be considered an illness, and whether it was capable of being ‘cured,’ despite that these views were clearly held by Dr. Bergler.” the panel wrote.

“Given that Dr. Iscove had admittedly devoted his professional life to studying and applying the theories of Dr. Bergler, it was not clear to the committee why Dr. Iscove refused to acknowledge that he agreed with Dr. Bergler on these points.”

“He stated that these patients only became responsive to his therapy when they were ready to fight it (i.e., the homosexuality),” the panel said

The doctor still faces a separate discipline hearing for an allegation of “improper conduct in a public men’s washroom,” according to his profile on the College of Physicians’ online register.