Winnipeg Free Press - ONLINE EDITION
MD did not refuse lesbians, clinic says
THE director of a south Winnipeg clinic defended a family physician accused of discrimination against a lesbian couple Tuesday, saying the doctor did not refuse to treat the women.
Dr. Terry Gwozdecki, medical director of Lakewood Medical Centre, sent an email statement to the Free Press late Tuesday that said Dr. Kamelia Elias "at no time refused to accept these women into her practice."
Andrea and Ginette Markowski — a same-sex couple of 18 years — filed a complaint with the Manitoba Human Rights Commission and the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Manitoba this week claiming Elias refused to take them as patients and told them she doesn’t know how to treat lesbians.
Gwozdecki said Elias interviewed the couple, took their medical history and had already initiated the doctor-patient relationship when one of the women asked Elias if she had a problem with their same-sex relationship.
Gwozdecki said Elias was upfront with her religious beliefs — which are opposed to homosexuality — and disclosed she has not had exposure to lesbian patients.
He said no physician at Lakewood Medical Centre has ever discriminated based on race, sexual orientation or religious beliefs. "Dr. Elias felt it necessary to be upfront with regards to her own religious beliefs and inexperience in treating homosexual patients,"
Related Items
-
Articles
Gwozdecki said in the statement. "Please understand that her inexperience stems not from unwillingness to treat these patients, but solely due to lack of exposure to them in her practices in Cairo, Egypt and Steinbach, Manitoba."
On Monday, Elias told the Free Press she has no experience treating lesbians and gays who sometimes have "sexual problems" and "get a lot of diseases and infections."
Andrea Markowski said she’s not surprised the clinic is standing behind its physician, but maintains Elias was clearly uncomfortable with same-sex relationships during their meeting. Markowski said she asked Elias if she had a problem treating the lesbian couple and that her answer was clear — Elias said yes, and explained homosexuality violates her religious beliefs.
-
WFP Hockey
Download our new hockey app for the iPhone for Winnipeg Jets updates
-
Editor's Bulletin
Sign up for daily bulletins from editor Margo Goodhand
-
Winnipeg Jets
All things NHL on our Jets landing page
-
Twitter
Follow our reporters and our news feeds on Twitter
-
News Cafe
Check out the menu, read our blog posts or get info on coming events
-
Facebook Fanpage
Follow our Facebook Fanpage for story links, contests and special events
Ads by Google
- Back to Top
- Return to Latest News
Poll
Most Popular
- Juror dismissed in second-degree murder trial of Mark Stobbe
- Piers Morgan blasts 'gruesome' Madonna
- Steinbach booms to No. 3 city in province
- Cabela's to open massive store just west of IKEA site
- RCMP receptionist told Stobbe wife dead
- US teen gets life in prison for killing 9-year-old; called the murder "pretty enjoyable"
- Should infants be allowed in the House of Commons?
- RCMP receptionist told Stobbe wife was dead
- No comfort in trade talk: Veteran Thorburn says closely knit club well worth keeping together
- Father of man charged in Mountie shootings pleads with him to come home
- Piers Morgan blasts 'gruesome' Madonna
- Clothing chain pulls Caterpillar boots to protest closure of London, Ont., plant
- Three winning tickets sold for Friday's $50 million Lotto Max jackpot
- Woman's car stolen at gunpoint at St. Vital mall, police say
- Eleven people killed after truck hits van in southwestern Ontario
- 'This is so silly': Mom and Dad tell story of baby Zade, born on side of Highway 59
- Stobbe said slaying during shopping trip 'strange': sister-in-law
- Tactical squad storms St. Vital house
- Restaurant Dubrovnik may be closed for good
- RCMP receptionist told Stobbe wife was dead
- Do you smoke marijuana?
- Driver dead after SUV goes over Disraeli Bridge
- George Clooney's prank could end Pitt's career
- Piers Morgan blasts 'gruesome' Madonna
- Tina Maze strips down to her sports bra to send out underwear message: 'Not your business'
- Clothing chain pulls Caterpillar boots to protest closure of London, Ont., plant
- Minor earthquake strikes near Manitoba
- Car's plunge off Disraeli fatal
- Two children, two women die in fire
- Kate Beckinsale's weight fears over Underworld catsuit
- Tassimo brewers and espresso packages recalled amid rupture, burn concerns
- Cabela's to open massive store just west of IKEA site
- Fighting fire with knowledge
- New appointees named to Manitoba Hydro board
- Spain mourns death of Catalan painter, sculptor Antoni Tapies, top contemporary art figure
- Steinbach booms to No. 3 city in province
- Juror dismissed in second-degree murder trial of Mark Stobbe
- Pardon application fee to quadruple later this month despite complaints
- Our 'true champion'
- Flood reviews launched
- Tassimo brewers and espresso packages recalled amid rupture, burn concerns
- Swedish bunny's sheep herding skills becomes click-monster on YouTube
- League encourages hazing secrecy
- Cabela's to open massive store just west of IKEA site
- Harper driven by libertarian ideology, not reality
- Northern fishing lodge destroyed by fire
- Police target drivers talking on cellphones, texting
- Obama torn by conflicting allies
- 'This is so silly': Mom and Dad tell story of baby Zade, born on side of Highway 59
- Fighting fire with knowledge
- Minor earthquake strikes near Manitoba
- Paddler Starkell was modern-day voyageur
- Tassimo brewers and espresso packages recalled amid rupture, burn concerns
- Driver dead after SUV goes over Disraeli Bridge
- Car's plunge off Disraeli fatal
- Canadian woman 'badly injured' in Mexico, local media report apparent beating
- Winnipeg mother watches as car stolen with child inside
- Swedish bunny's sheep herding skills becomes click-monster on YouTube
- League encourages hazing secrecy
- Cabela's to open massive store just west of IKEA site
You can comment on most stories on winnipegfreepress.com. You can also agree or disagree with other comments. All you need to do is register and/or login and you can join the conversation and give your feedback.
The Winnipeg Free Press does not necessarily endorse any of the views posted. By submitting your comment, you agree to our Terms and Conditions. These terms were revised effective April 16, 2010; View the changes. New to commenting? Check out our Frequently Asked Questions.