JCCF: Canadian doctors censored for speaking out against government and public health authorities

Canadians continue to be cancelled over differing from the government narrative on COVID-19. This time, medical practitioners are the casualties.

The Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms represents Dr. Francis Christian, Clinical Professor of General Surgery at the University of Saskatchewan and a practicing surgeon in Saskatoon. Dr. Christian was called into a meeting Wednesday, suspended from all teaching responsibilities effective immediately, and fired from his position with the University of Saskatchewan as of September 2021.

He will retain the Justice Centre as part of his defence against an investigation by the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Saskatchewan. Their complaint objects to Dr. Christian advocating for the informed consent of COVID-19 vaccines for children.

On June 17, he released a statement to over 200 doctors which contained his concerns regarding giving COVID-19 shots to children. He stated outright that he did not represent any group, the Saskatchewan Health Authority or the University of Saskatchewan. Dr. Christian is also pro-vaccine.

"I speak to you directly as a physician, a surgeon, and a fellow human being." He noted that the principle of informed consent was sacrosanct as a patient should always be "fully aware of the risks of the medical intervention, the benefits of the intervention, and if any alternatives exist to the intervention."

This should apply primarily to new vaccines that have never been tried in humans, he writes in his statement. "Before the vaccine is rolled out to children, both children and parents must know the risks of mRNA vaccines."

Dr. Preston Smith, the Dean of the College of Medicine, told Global News that Dr. Christian’s suspension is justified.

"When somebody is saying things that are at such great variance with all of our experts and worldwide experts and public safety is involved and could be jeopardized through these differences of view, I think we have to recognize that that’s a special situation that requires urgent and extraordinary action and that’s our reason for acting at this time."

Dr. Christian expressed concern that he had not come across "a single vaccinated child or parent who has been adequately informed" about COVID-19 vaccines for children. He argued that mRNA vaccines are new and experimental and have not been sanctioned by Health Canada or the US CDC. They are under interim authorization in Canada and emergency use authorization in the US.

To qualify for emergency use authorization, there must be an emergency. Dr. Christian said children do not readily transmit the virus to adults, so there is no emergency for them.

While there is a strong case for vaccinating the elderly, the vulnerable and health care workers, the same is not declared for children. He wrote the risk of them dying of COVID-19 is less than the risk of them dying of the flu.

He also noted that vaccines have already caused "serious medical problems for kids" worldwide, including "a real and significantly increased risk" of myocarditis, inflammation of the heart. The German national vaccine agency and the UK vaccine agency are not recommending the vaccine for healthy children and teenagers.

Dr. Christian wrote that "full vaccine approval takes several years and multiple safety considerations," which has not happened. mRNA vaccines have been "associated with several thousand deaths" in the Vaccine Adverse Reporting System in the US. "These appear to be unusual, compared to the total number of vaccines administered." He called it a "strong signal that should not be ignored."

The Saskatchewan Health Authority and College of Medicine wrote a letter to Dr. Christian on Monday, alleging he discouraged children and adolescents from receiving COVID-19 vaccinations, contrary to the recommendations and pandemic-response efforts of Saskatchewan and Canadian public health authorities.

Dr. Christian’s concerns regarding underage COVID-19 vaccinations are not isolated to him. The US Centre for Disease Control had an emergency meeting Wednesday to discuss the growing cases of myocarditis in young males after receiving the COVID-19 vaccines.

The CDC released new data Wednesday that the risk of myocarditis after the Pfizer vaccine is at least ten times the expected rate in 12 – 17-year-old males and females. The German government has issued public guidance against vaccinating those under the age of 18.

On Monday, the World Health Organization posted to its website that children should not be vaccinated for the moment. Within 24 hours, this guidance was withdrawn and replaced with "COVID-19 vaccines are safe for those over 18 years of age."

Dr. Christian said there is an extensive, growing "network of ethical, moral physicians and scientists" who are urging caution in recommending vaccines for all children without informed consent. Physicians must "always put their patients and humanity first," he said.

Dr. Byram Bridle, a prominent immunologist at the University of Guelph with a subspecialty in vaccinology, recently participated in a Press Conference on Parliament Hill on CPAC organized by MP Derek Sloan, where he discussed the censorship of scientists and physicians. Dr. Bridle expressed his safety concerns with vaccinating children with experimental mRNA vaccines.

Justice Centre Litigation Director Jay Cameron also expressed concern over the growing censorship of medical professionals who question the government narrative on COVID-19. "We are seeing a clear pattern of highly competent and skilled medical doctors in very esteemed positions being taken down and censored or even fired for practicing proper science and medicine," said Cameron.

The Justice Centre represented Dr. Chris Milburn in Nova Scotia. He faced professional disciplinary proceedings last year after a group of activists took exception with an opinion column he penned. They said the proceedings against his opinions and commentary on matters of public interest amounted to 'bullying' and 'intimidation' for speaking out against the government.

The Justice Centre provided submissions to the College on Dr. Milburn’s behalf, defending the right of physicians to express their opinions on a policy of public interest in the public square. They argued that everyone, including doctors, is entitled to freedom of thought, belief, opinion and expression, as guaranteed by the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

Last week, Dr. Milburn also faced punishment for speaking out with his concerns about public health policies. He was removed from his position as the Head of Emergency for the eastern zone with the Nova Scotia Health Authority. Since, a petition circulated to have him replace Dr. Strang as the province’s Chief Medical Officer.

"Censoring and punishing scientists and doctors for freely voicing their concerns is arrogant, oppressive and profoundly unscientific," said Cameron. "Both the western world and the idea of scientific inquiry itself is built to a large extent on the principles of freedom of thought and speech. Medicine and patient safety can only regress when dogma and an elitist orthodoxy, such as that imposed by the Saskatchewan College of Medicine, punishes doctors for voicing concerns."