Stories
Windsor Hotel Dieu Grace Hospital
On Saturday, November 12, 2005, Dr. Marc Daniel, an anesthesiologist, murdered Lori Dupont, a nurse, at Windsor Hotel Dieu Grace Hospital. This shocking crime was devastating to the community, as well as the Windsor Hotel Dieu Grace Hospital. Dr. Daniel had a long history of professional misconduct, related to his stalking and intimidating behavior towards Ms. Dupont as well as other incidents with various staff members. The hospital requested that Dr. Daniel sign a Memorandum of Agreement requiring him to 1) go on probation, 2) to abide by the rules of the harassment policy, 3) to obey the Code of Conduct and 4) to take anger management therapy. Dr. Daniel however, continued to behave in a threatening manner and had his workplace security card cancelled, and was removed from working. After a period of therapy Dr. Daniel requested to return to work, and was reinstated without consultation from hospital staff who had felt threatened by his behavior. Six months after being allowed back to work, Dr. Daniel murdered Ms. Dupont, and subsequently committed suicide.
The Hotel Dieu Grace Hospital board committed to examining in detail each of the recommendations of the Coroner’s Jury, which inquired into the deaths of Lori Dupont and Marc Daniel. Recommendation 12 was that “Patient and staff safety, and quality of care must be the most important factors and not be superseded by a physician’s right to practice. Hospitals should be able to exercise the appropriate degree of authority over physicians working within their institutions consistent with that of other regulated health professionals.”
The board noted that this recommendation is addressed in the Medical/Dental Staff Bylaws, which include:
Under section 1.7.1 of the By-Laws, the Board of Trustees of the Hospital (“Board”) may at any time, revoke or suspend the appointment of a member of the medical staff or suspend, restrict or otherwise deal with the privileges of the member.
