A surgeon who worked alongside George Doodnaught – the Toronto anesthesiologist on trial for sexual assault – said when one patient lodged a complaint, it was “so unbelievable” he assumed she was hallucinating.
Robert Brock, who performed operations on four of Dr. Doodnaught’s 21 alleged victims, also acknowledged he was unfamiliar with North York General Hospital’s incident reporting policy; rather than following up on the woman’s complaint, he testified, he tried to “reassure her” it was a drug-induced dream.
“I did not believe there was a criminal act that occurred… It was just so unbelievable, so foreign to my understanding,” Dr. Brock testified Wednesday in the second week of Dr. Doodnaught’s trial.
The Toronto anesthesiologist stands accused of sexually assaulting 21 women, ranging in age from 25 to 75, over a four-year period that ended with his arrest in early 2010. The Crown alleges Dr. Doodnaught covertly molested the women, who were under conscious sedation, while working behind a sterile screen that separated him from the surgical team.
The role of North York General has come into sharp focus at the trial, with the Crown alleging the hospital failed to investigate Dr. Doodnaught until police laid charges, despite several previous patient complaints. Even as an internal probe unfolded, the Crown alleges, the hospital’s chief anesthesiologist sent an email urging his colleagues to “support George in any way we can.”
Get breaking National news
Dr. Brock, meanwhile, was the presiding surgeon in four of the cases before the court, including that of a 62-year-old woman who says Dr. Doodnaught massaged her breasts and kissed her on the lips; a 56-year-old who says he delivered a “very experienced” French kiss; a 25-year-old who says he placed his penis in her hand; and a 28-year-old who says he kissed her and fondled her breasts. The victims’ identities are covered by a publication ban.
- Woman in Canada less than 2 months found dead inside suitcase in Newfoundland
- Ball hockey referee left with fractured skull, jaw after removing player from game
- Car theft finally decelerating in Canada after surge — a ‘positive sign’
- Quebec government quietly loosened its approach to drug possession over a year ago
Although he was operating just steps away from Dr. Doodnaught, Dr. Brock said he witnessed nothing untoward during the surgeries in question.
“I had never in my experience had any question about his professionalism,” Dr. Brock told the court.
When the 62-year-old patient spoke with Dr. Brock after her knee replacement surgery to tell him about the alleged assault, she appeared upset and anxious, he recalled.
However, “I had heard lots of hallucinations from patients on narcotic medications, and I really felt that’s what this was,” Dr. Brock said, noting the hallucination could have stemmed from the anesthesiologist repositioning electrocardiography “leads” – which connect ECG wires to the human body – around the breast area.
“I tried to explain what I thought was a logical explanation,” he testified, adding he did not know specifically what drugs Dr. Doodnaught administered to sedate the woman, but “everybody responds differently” to medication.
Dr. Brock eventually flagged the woman’s complaint, but only after hospital staff became aware of the criminal investigation into Dr. Doodnaught’s conduct, the court heard.
When Crown attorney David Wright suggested Dr. Brock had initially “received and dismissed” the complaint, the surgeon stiffened.
The trial resumes Thursday.
Global Toronto reporter Catherine McDonald was live-blogging the trial in court. Review Wednesday’s testimony below.
Comments