NOTE: This is an update to say this investigation has concluded. The College would not provide any comment. No disciplinary action has been taken against the RMT, Tru Hartwood.
A Pender Island woman who launched a formal complaint about a massage therapist after she says she was subjected to an inappropriate session wants to know why he has been allowed to continue practicing during long delays in the investigation.
“I haven’t had a massage in almost three years, because I can’t bring myself to go,” complainant Shannon Broad told Global News.
“Imagine how you’d feel, laying naked on a table, knowing that you’re all alone and this man can do whatever he wants.”
Broad said she arranged to meet a massage therapist at the Bishop Coleman Memorial Health Centre on Pender Island after hours in May, 2017.
She said she had seen him once before and didn’t think much of it.
“He’s an RMT working in a clinic, working in a clinical setting,” Broad said.
Broad claims during the treatment, the massage therapist, Tru Hartwood, began discussing issues he was having with his ex-wife, before moving on to explain what a good lover he was, describing in detail the things he would do for a partner.
“I realized I was by myself and I had nothing to defend myself with and whatever was going to happen was going to happen,” Broad said.
“So, I just froze up and waited for him to be done.”
While Broad said there was no physical element to his advances, she was still shaken.
She kept the experience to herself until two years later when she shared only surface details in a thread about “toxic masculinity” on the Island’s online Facebook forum. Within an hour, she says others came forward with similar claims.
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“I had three other women message me, telling me I know who this person is, named him, and said, ‘I know because it happened to me too,’” she said.
One of the other women, who did not want to be identified out of concern going public would affect other parts of her life, told Global News she too experienced the behaviour.
“It was a creepy thing to go through,” said the complainant.
“We briefly shared our stories and they were all very, very similar.”
The women, all who say they have never met, filed separate complaints with the College of Massage Therapists of British Columbia.
According to correspondence with the college, it confirmed it had received the complaints in June of 2020 and the investigation process was underway.
The complainants say this involved in-depth interviews, in some cases with their spouses as well.
On Nov. 9, 2020 the College sent an update saying it had not reached a resolution but would do so by Jan. 8 this year.
On that date, another update said while the investigation had been completed, no decision had been made. One was to be expected on Feb. 22. When that letter came, it read:
“The Inquiry Committee has not reached a disposition (resolution) in this matter by February 22nd, 2021.”
“The investigation of this matter will be suspended temporarily for 30 days.”
Broad said the process has been “ridiculous.”
“There’s a reason they have board certification for things like this. They’re in a position of authority and that needs to be taken seriously.”
When Global News reached Hartwood by phone to respond to the allegations, he said he was unable to comment during an ongoing investigation.
According to the College’s website, he is not listed among therapists under suspension or restrictions.
“I’m going to say it, it’s terrifying,” Broad said.
“It’s terrifying thinking there are other women in my community who may be sitting where I’m sitting right now – and nothing is being done about it.”
According to the Ministry of Health, work is underway to improve the timelines of these investigations. Last summer, a steering committee provided a series of recommendations.
“Timely investigations and conclusions of complaints are important to ensuring public safety and confidence in the regulation of health professionals,” the committee’s report stated.
But even that is a waiting game. None of the recommendations have been implemented.
“I just hope the college understands how much pain this has caused,” Broad said.
After learning Global News was working on this story, the College of Massage Therapists of British Columbia contacted the women, despite the 30-day suspension period.
They were informed the Inquiry Committee will be meeting to make a decision on the matter in early April.
Editor’s Note – This story has been updated to clarify that the College of Massage Therapists of British Columbia confirmed it received the complaint in June of 2020.
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