William Osler Health System apologizes after Sikh patient's beard shaved 'without consent and without medical necessity'

William Osler Health System is apologizing for an incident in which an elderly Sikh patient’s facial hair was shaved “without consent and without medical necessity” by staff at Brampton Civic Hospital.

In late August, 85-year-old Joginder Singh Kaler was transferred to Brampton Civic from Toronto’s St. Michael’s Hospital where he’d undergone a lengthy period of treatment for a serious fall.

The man’s family told CP24.com that after arriving at the hospital in Peel Region, staff asked for permission to shave his beard, but they declined due to faith-based reasons.

Those wishes, however, weren’t respected.

Following the incident, the family spoke out and the hospital network ultimately launched an investigation into the matter.

In a statement issued on Wednesday, William Osler Health System confirmed that it has now completed that investigation and will be taking “additional actions … that build on our existing practices, protocols and policies and include focused workforce education on cultural safety and humility” to ensure that it “consistently honours religious and cultural practices” going forward.

The statement did not elaborate on the extent of what these actions will entail.

“We take full responsibility for this incident and have extended our deepest apologies to the patient and his family. We also want to extend our apology to the Sikh community and the exceptional culturally diverse community that we serve,” the hospital network said.

“The distress this incident has caused the patient, the patient’s family, and the wider Sikh community – including our own workforce – has profoundly affected us as an organization and beyond. Although we can’t go back and undo what has been done, we are committed to learning from this and making changes to help prevent this from happening again.”

Many members of the Sikh faith keep their hair unshorn and do not shave. This practice, called kesh, is one of five visible articles of faith observed by initiated Sikhs. It has a deep spiritual significance and is seen as a sign of commitment and acceptance of God’s will.

In its statement, Osler said it is “deeply committed to delivering high quality, people-centred, compassionate, and culturally safe care,” but acknowledged that they “failed to uphold religious and cultural care practices” when it comes to this incident.

Joginder Singh Kaler, a practicing Sikh, was shaved without consent at Brampton Civic Hospital, says his family. (Kaler family photo)

Both Kaler’s family and the World Sikh Organization (WSO) of Canada spoke out about the incident in early September after they said that Osler failed to provide them with a proper explanation as to why he was shaved without consent.

At the time, the man’s son-in-law Jasjit Dhaliwal said staff at Brampton Civic offered a half-hearted “sorry,” saying that what happened was a “mistake.”

“What was the reason? They had no reason whatsoever to shave him… What happened at Brampton Civic Hospital shouldn’t have happened,” said Dhaliwal, who also said that they went public with the incident to possibly prevent others from going through the same thing.

“There was no need for this. It was a question of respecting our faith. This feels like an attack on our religion.”

Patient’s family accepts Osler’s apology

Kaler’s family has accepted the hospital network’s statement.

“For sure we would like to see the hospital do what they promised to do with educating their staff, and make sure this type of incident doesn’t occur in the future with another practicing Sikh or with any other member of another faith,” they told CP24 on Wednesday afternoon.

The non-profit organization acknowledged Osler’s public apology for the “deeply concerning” incident and said that it “appreciates that (the hospital network) has accepted full responsibility for this serious breach and has committed to taking corrective measures to prevent such incidents in the future.”

"The incident involving Mr. Kaler was both unacceptable and deeply shocking. While the error was irreversible, along with the pain caused to Mr. Kaler and his family, we are hopeful that this unfortunate event can lead to positive changes, ensuring that the religious beliefs and practices of all patients are respected going forward,” WSO President Danish Singh said in a statement.

“Brampton is home to one of the largest Sikh communities outside of Punjab, and it is crucial that the hospitals serving this community are fully aware of Sikh practices and respectful of them. The community must have confidence that their beliefs will be upheld in all aspects of care.”

The organization said it is committed to continuing its work with Osler to “safeguard the rights of Sikh patients.”

“We welcome Osler’s apology as an important first step, but we also recognize that there is much work ahead to ensure that such an incident never happens again. We look forward to ongoing dialogue and collaboration with Osler to create an environment where all patients receive care that respects their cultural and religious identities,” said Singh, who added that WSO would continue to be engaged with the health system and the broader community to “ensure that meaningful changes are implemented and that healthcare providers across the country are equipped with the resources and education necessary to meet the needs of Sikh patients and others from diverse cultural and religious backgrounds.”

Joginder Singh Kaler, a practicing Sikh, was shaved without consent at Brampton Civic Hospital, says his family. (Kaler family photo)

Balpreet Singh, WSO’s legal counsel, spoke with CP24 on Wednesday afternoon and said that Osler’s statement “sets the record straight that there was no medical reason to have done the shaving and there was no consent.”

“I think what we're looking for still is the next steps, concrete next steps in order to make sure this doesn't happen again and that's really the most important part for the family as well as the community,” he said.

Singh said that some of those next steps would include asking patients when they come in to the hospital “explicitly if they have any religious practices that medical staff should know about,” and if they do, there should be a visual indication of that, either on file or even on their bed, he said.

“And secondly, we need to make sure that there's education, ongoing education for physicians and staff.”

Singh said that the last time WSO dealt with a situation like this was back about 15 years ago in British Columbia. In that case, an elderly man could not accept that his facial hair had been removed, and he stopped eating and eventually died, he said.

“The mistake that's taken place can't be reversed. An apology can't fix it,” Singh said, adding as an organization, they’re also focused on ensuring what happened to Kaler doesn’t happen to anyone else.

“The way (this man from B.C.) looked for his entire life had changed for no reason. So, the impact on a Sikh patient is profound, and what we're looking for is educational materials that our organization has offered to help with, as well as ongoing education. And this shouldn't be just for Brampton or Toronto. This is something we're looking for, really across Canada.”

Osler, meanwhile, expressed its “sincere gratitude” to the family and the World Sikh Organization of Canada for their leadership and willingness to collaborate during the investigation.

“We remain fully committed to strengthening the trust of our communities by upholding the deeply-held religious rights and dignity of all patients, in every interaction,” the statement notes.