Medical journal 'equity' audit ignores Jewish doctors, medical professionals

Article content

OTTAWA — Glaring omissions in an equity audit from Canada’s leading peer-reviewed medical journal are causing concern amongst Jewish medical professionals. 

Published in June by the Canadian Medical Association Journal (CMAJ,) the external audit was meant to improve the publication’s diversity efforts, but instead the authors chose to focus almost exclusively on Black, Muslim and Indigenous issues — without once mentioning the explosion of antisemitism impacting Jewish physicians and medical students.

“In 2022 the CMAJ editor-in-chief commissioned an independent audit of CMAJ’s culture and processes in support of developing a strategy to address issues related to antiracism, equity, diversity and inclusion (AEDI,)” read an excerpt from the report’s webpage.

Among the report’s recommendations are developing a “learning framework around historical systemic oppression and racism in the health sector with a focus on anti-Black racism, anti-Indigenous Racism and Islamophobia for CMAJ staff and editorial teams.”

But completely absent from the report was any mention of struggles faced by Jewish medical professionals, who — especially after last year’s Oct. 7 Hamas terror attacks — face daily discrimination and harassment, particularly those in medical school.

“Jewish learners and faculty are, frankly, afraid to be out as Jews,” said Sara, an Ontario-based Jewish physician granted anonymity out of fear of retaliation.  

“I know of learners who are completely in the closet as Jews. Nobody knows they’re Jewish — they’re hiding.”

Sara told the Toronto Sun it reminded her of attending medical school in the 1990s, where LGBT students concealed their sexuality out of fear of jeopardizing both educational and career prospects.

“They were afraid they weren’t going to get a residence position, that nobody’s going to talk to them, they’re going to get made fun of, or get hurt,” she said. “That’s what Jewish students are doing now.”

Both Sara and others say they’re concerned the audit only focused on racism against Black and Muslim doctors, ignoring other groups experiencing systemic discrimination.

“Nobody in the Jewish medical community, or in the medical community (as a whole,) is saying we shouldn’t care about Black (doctors) or we shouldn’t care about Muslim (doctors,)” Sara said.  “If you’re only including some groups, you’re excluding people.”

The report, prepared by Toronto-based consulting firm Inclusive Leaders, was commissioned after backlash to a 2021 letter about hijabs by Dr. Sherif Emil entitled, “Don’t use an instrument of oppression as a symbol of diversity and inclusion.”

The letter was retracted and an apology proffered by CMAJ Editor-in-Chief Dr. Kirsten Patrick.

Since Oct. 7, numerous Jewish doctors experienced relentless antisemitic attacks by anonymous anti-Israel, pro-Palestinian activists, including harassment, unfounded complaints to employers and doxxing.

The audit says it was created with the help of focus groups consisting entirely of CMAJ senior editors, the Black Health Education Collaborative, the Muslim Medical Advisory Council, the Muslim Advisory Council of Canada, and the National Council of Canadian Muslims.

Also of concern are a series of anti-Israel social media posts by audit co-author Gilary Massa, including tweets posted one day after last year’s Hamas terror attacks accusing those sympathizing with Israel of being “on the wrong side of history” and practicing “selective outrage,” and accusations that Israel’s campaign against terror somehow constitutes a “genocide” against Palestinians.

Invitations for comment to Inclusive Leaders went unacknowledged.

Jess Burke, director of EDI and Liaison to 2SLGBTQIA+ partnerships for the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs (CIJA), told the Sun the audit’s omission represents a “serious disconnect,” perpetuating a harmful status quo. 

“Systemic antisemitism in healthcare has largely been ignored, from past university quotas prohibiting Jewish medical student attendance to more recent incidents of discrimination, profiling, and anti-Jewish violence perpetrated by physicians with antisemitic biases,” she said.

“Since Oct. 7, there have been reports of Jewish healthcare workers receiving death threats, Jewish patients facing denial of care and antisemitic treatment, and many feeling they must conceal their identities to avoid harm.”

RECOMMENDED VIDEO

We apologize, but this video has failed to load.

Try refreshing your browser, or
tap here to see other videos from our team.

Play Video

CMAJ Editor-in-Chief Dr. Kirsten Patrick admitted to the Sun that the report omitted several groups, something she addressed in an editorial published shortly after its release after readers objected to its contents.

“It was an audit by the CMJA by an external company,” she said. “We couldn’t tell them how to do their job and we were obliged to post that report publicly, which has caused us a bit of a headache.”

While Patrick declined to denounce either the report or its authors, she said it represents the journal’s first steps towards developing an equity statement.

“It was a start to our work on an equity statement, and or work looking at CMAJ’s internal processes, staffing systems, etc.  to make sure they are more anti-racist, more equitable and cater to  a more diverse audience,” Patrick said.

bpassifiume@postmedia.com
X: @bryanpassifiume