Committee: Discipline
Decision Date: 17 Jun 2019
Summary:
On June 17, 2019, the Discipline Committee found that Dr. Joshua Wang committed an act of professional misconduct in that: he has engaged in an act or omission relevant to the practice of medicine that, having regard to all the circumstances, would reasonably be regarded by members as disgraceful, dishonourable or unprofessional; he has engaged in conduct unbecoming a physician; and, he has been found guilty of an offence that is relevant to his suitability to practise.
Dr. Joshua Hwang is 32 years old. He graduated with an M.D. from Western University Schulich School of Medicine and Dentistry in 2016. Between October 2016 and July 2017, Dr. Hwang was a PGY1 resident in the Family Medicine residency training program at Western University. He had a certificate of registration authorizing postgraduate education. On July 1, 2017, Dr. Hwang was placed on a leave of absence from his residency program. On August 24, 2017, Dr. Hwang was suspended from that program, and was never reinstated. Dr. Hwang’s certificate of registration expired on June 30, 2018.
CPSO Investigation
In June 2017, Dr. Hwang was living in London, Ontario. On June 21, 2017, Dr. Hwang travelled to attend a conference in a different city. He made arrangements to stay with two of his friends, Dr. A and his wife, Dr. B, at their apartment.
Dr. A and B’s apartment had 2 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms. Dr. A and B used the master bedroom and en suite master bathroom. Dr. Hwang was given the guestroom to stay in, and a separate bathroom in the common area to use.
On June 21, 2017, Dr. Hwang installed a video and audio recording device (“the Recording Device”) in his friends’ en suite master bathroom by plugging it into an electrical wall outlet facing their shower and toilet. The Recording Device was concealed as a USB charger. Using the Recording Device, Dr. Hwang surreptitiously recorded Drs. A and B naked and partially naked in their bathroom, including when they were using the toilet and showering.
After Dr. B noticed the Recording Device plugged into the electrical outlet in the en suite bathroom, Dr. A questioned Dr. Hwang about it. Dr. Hwang acknowledged that the Recording Device belonged to him, but falsely denied knowing that it was a camera or that it had recording capabilities. Dr. Hwang told Dr. A that he thought the Recording Device was merely a USB charger; that he had purchased it on the internet; that he had been trying to use it to charge his cell phone; but that he had had to plug it in in the en suite master bathroom because it had not been working in other outlets in his friends’ apartment. This explanation was false.
Dr. Hwang also falsely told Dr. A that he could provide an e-mail receipt to prove that the device he had ordered was supposed to be a USB charger. Dr. Hwang forwarded to Dr. A an email receipt dated November 30, 2012 that related to Dr. Hwang’s purchase of a USB wall charger. The USB wall charger that Dr. Hwang had purchased was not the Recording Device that Dr. Hwang installed in his friends’ en suite bathroom in June 2017 that he had used to surreptitiously record them.
In addition to surreptitiously video recording Drs. A and B in their bathroom, Dr. Hwang also used the Recording Device to surreptitiously record:
- a clinical encounter between Dr. Hwang and a female patient, taken on June 19, 2017, at clinic where Dr. Hwang was practicing as part of his residency. The camera was positioned to face the exam table. The patient was off camera during most of the encounter. Dr. Hwang is visible throughout the recordings. Dr. Hwang can be seen taking the patient’s blood pressure reading, and speaking to the patient. Another video captures further discussion between Dr. Hwang and the patient. Dr. Hwang can also be seen removing the camera from the electrical wall outlet. The patient was unaware that Dr. Hwang had recorded her patient encounter. She did not consent to Dr. Hwang’s recording the appointment; and
- two females in bedrooms in Dr. Hwang’s home. Both of them were, at times, in a state of nudity. In one of the recordings, a female was engaged in intimate sexual activity. The recordings were made surreptitiously. Neither of these two individuals was aware that Dr. Hwang video recorded them, nor did they consent to the recording. One of the individuals described it as an “invasion of privacy” when she was told of the recording.
Dr. Hwang made the recordings referred to above so that he could later watch them for his sexual gratification.
Criminal Proceedings
On August 4, 2017, Dr. Hwang was charged with committing voyeurism against Drs. A and B, contrary to s. 162 of the Criminal Code of Canada, and specifically that:
on or about the 21st day of June in the year 2017 at the City of Ottawa in the East/De L’Est Region did, without lawful excuse, surreptitiously make a visual recording of a person who was in circumstances that gave rise to a reasonable expectation of privacy when that person was in a place in which that person could reasonably be expected to be nude, to be exposing his or her genital organs or anal region or exposing her breasts or be engaged in explicit sexual activity, namely the victim’s bathroom, and thereby commit an offence under Section 162, subsection (1), clause (a) of the Criminal Code, contrary Section 162, subsection (5) of the Criminal Code of Canada.
A copy of the criminal information is attached at Tab 1 to the Statement of Uncontested Facts.
Dr. Hwang pleaded guilty to, and was convicted, of this offence on February 17, 2018. On June 29, 2018, Dr. Hwang was sentenced to six months’ house arrest, followed by two years’ probation. The Ontario Court of Justice transcripts of Dr. Hwang’s conviction and sentencing are attached at Tabs 2 and 3 to the Statement of Uncontested Facts
Disposition
On June 17, 2019, the Committee ordered that:
- The Registrar revoke Dr. Hwang’s certificate of registration effective immediately.
- Dr. Hwang attend before the panel to be reprimanded.
- Dr. Hwang pay costs to the College in the amount of $6,000.00 within six (6) months from the date of this Order.