On June 24, 2016, a white South African-born surgeon tied a noose and taped it to the door of an operating room in the Queen Elizabeth II Hospital in Grande Prairie, Alta. He told another doctor the noose was for a Black Nigerian-born surgical assistant. On Thursday, four years after the incident, Alberta’s health minister said he is ordering an independent investigation.
On June 24, 2016, a white South African-born surgeon tied a noose and then taped it to the door of an operating room in the Queen Elizabeth II Hospital in Grande Prairie, Alta.
He told another doctor the noose was for a Black Nigerian-born surgical assistant.
The incident was reported minutes after it occurred. Several more times over the next four years, at least three doctors reported it — to the hospital’s administration, Alberta Health Services, the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Alberta (CPSA) and Health Minister Tyler Shandro.
Several of those who reported the incident said as far as they know, nothing was done.
On Thursday afternoon, days after CBC News asked Shandro for an interview, the minister said he is ordering a third-party, independent investigation into the incident.
“This investigation will include looking into whether the incident was reported to local Alberta Health Services (AHS) administrators in 2016, and if so, how it was handled,” Shandro said in a statement.
Sources say the surgeon, Dr. Wynand Wessels, was to their knowledge never suspended and faced no formal discipline. He continues to hold several leadership positions within the hospital and AHS.
In a statement, Alberta Health Services CEO Dr. Verna Yiu said the health authority took appropriate action, but did not mention any formal discipline or reprimand Wessels received at the time.
‘Heinous symbolism’
Wessels declined an interview request from CBC News. In a statement, he said: “Some years ago, as a foolish joke, I made what I considered to be a lasso and hung it in an operating room door. In no way was it intended to be a racist gesture.
“It was very quickly drawn to my attention by staff members that this was unacceptable,” Wessels said. “I subsequently brought the matter to the attention of AHS and apologized both verbally and in writing to my colleagues.
“At the time, I did not appreciate the heinous symbolism behind the knot I created. I did undertake some self-study and I now have great insight into the symbolism here and I am terribly sorry and embarrassed about this incident.”
CBC News, however, has obtained a letter of apology written by Wessels in 2016 in which he refers to the “small rope noose” he tied.
The colleague who was the target of the noose did not respond to repeated interview requests. His Grande Prairie colleagues have been in contact with him recently and say he fears losing his job. CBC News has chosen not to name him.
Dr. Carrie Kollias, a former member of the CPSA’s council, which sets direction and policy for the college, filed several complaints about the incident, including to Shandro in August 2019.
Former NDP health minister Sarah Hoffman told CBC News she was not informed of the incident.
Kollias, who now lives in Australia, said AHS and others effectively tolerated the egregious behaviour.
“The fact the incident occurred — yes, that was atrocious,” Kollias said in an interview. “But the lack of action, I think, is equally atrocious.
“What does that say to any other physician, health-care worker, hospital housekeeper, porter in the province of Alberta? It says that if you are a victim of an equal or lesser injustice, then don’t bother reporting because nothing is going to happen.”
Those interviewed by CBC News say what they view as the failure by the CPSA, AHS and the health minister to act on an incident involving a noose directed at a Black man stands in sharp contrast to several other similar cases in North America where offenders were immediatel