January 2015
Thirteen dentistry
students at Halifax’s Dalhousie University who were part of a “gentlemen’s”
Facebook group were suspended over outrageous and offensive Facebook posts about
female colleagues, the school’s president said Monday in a disciplinary
announcement delayed by fears the male students were in danger of self harm over
the scandal.
As the suspension
was announced, fallout from the incident continued with the Royal College of
Dental Surgeons of Ontario demanding to know the names of students involved, in
case any of them apply to practice in the province — assuming they are able to
graduate and become doctors.
“I am concerned
about the misogynist, sexist, gender violent kind of behaviour.… We would take a
good hard look as to whether or not we thought they were suitable to practice,”
said Irwin Fefergrad, registrar of Ontario’s dental college, which regulates who
can be a dentist in the province.
The social media
posts — which included suggestions dentistry anesthetics be used to subdue
female classmates prior to rape and a vote on the relative aggressive sexual
interest in various classmates in the school’s small Faculty of Dentistry — were
made over three years in a private Facebook group for the school’s male dental
students.
The 13 fourth-year
students allegedly involved have been suspended from clinical activities while
the case is under review, which will, at least temporarily, prevent them from
acquiring a degree because dentistry students are required to complete work in
dental clinics as part of their studies.
“The suspension is
necessary to ensure a safe and supportive environment for patients and
classmates who participate in the clinics,” said university president Richard
Florizone and Tom Boran, dean of the Faculty of Dentistry, in a joint statement
released Monday.
The university said
other disciplinary measures and broader action is still pending.
Despite the
high-profile nature of the dentistry scandal that was known to the university in
early December, and the school’s decision to suspend the students being made
before Christmas, the announcement was held back until the resumption of classes
because of concerns for the safety of those suspended and to ensure appropriate
on-campus support was available to them.
“We had credible
reports from our frontline staff of potential self-harm,” Mr. Florizone told
reporters. “We took those seriously and so that concern for student safety
overrode our concern about communicating this publicly.”
Dalhousie’s
administration became aware of the posts on Dec. 8 by a student who was affected
by the commentary, Mr. Florizone said. The student, apparently a female
dentistry student, had been referred to his office after first complaining to
the university’s Human Rights, Equity and Harassment Prevention office.
A week later, the
Facebook group and some of its posts were published by the CBC, which had been
given copies of some of the material after the Facebook page was taken down.
Subsequently,
several of the women who were the subject of some of the comments, as well as
male members of the Facebook group, came forward to the school’s administration,
said Mr. Florizone.
At the time of the
Dec. 15 news report, he called the posts “entirely unacceptable and deeply
disturbing” and said he would weigh “the full range of options” within 48 hours.
The remaining exams for all of the fourth-year dentistry students were
postponed.
Two days later, Mr.
Florizone issued an updated statement.
“The comments have
caused harm broadly — most importantly, to the women who were impacted by these
posts, and women in general, but also to our Faculty of Dentistry, to the
university and to the dental profession,” he said. The university’s sexual
harassment policy provides for either an informal resolution or a formal
complaint procedure. The undisclosed number of women chose an informal
“restorative justice process,” he said.
That process is
confidential but the outcome may become public if those involved deem it
appropriate. Mr. Florizone said the school’s obligation was to anyone victimized
by the comments, understanding and repairing the harm caused, and then to
holding those responsible accountable.
But the swift
response then seemed to falter. Despite the university treating the complaints
as a priority, nothing more was released until Monday, when the surprise reasons
for the delay was revealed.
The university said
the suspension allows the Faculty of Dentistry Academic Standards Class
Committee to consider the case for possible further action — which could include
recommend expulsion.
“Our overall
response must also address cultures of sexism, misogyny and sexualized violence.
We must ensure an inclusive community that offers a healthy and safe learning
and working environment for all,” Mr. Florizone said.
But the anonymous
restorative justice process is not appropriate in a matter when medical
licensing and patient safety is at stake, said Mr. Fefergrad.
“As the chap
responsible to protect the public interest for the public in Ontario, I have
grave concerns about the attitudes expressed by these students — they’re going
to be doctors in a few months,” Mr. Fefergrad said.
He has written to
Dalhousie asking for the names of the students involved for future vetting if
any apply to be a dentist. If the university declines to release the names to
the college, any applicant from Dalhousie will be specially scrutinized, he
said.
“We can’t just let
it sit.”
The college has not
received a response from the school. Calls and emails to Dalhousie’s spokesman
were not returned by deadline Monday.
National Post, January 15, 2015.
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