CWRU Must Issue Medical Degree
Case Western Reserve University (my alma mater) has been ordered to award a medical degree to a student who had completed his graduation requirements but was deemed “unprofessional” by the school’s Committee on Students.
The order came from the United States District Court for the Northern District of Ohio, which dismissed the University’s contentions regarding an alleged lack of professionalism.
The university relied on the student’s failure to report a DUI arrest as well as incidents recited below. Notably, the school handbook did not require students to report arrests.
In April 2014, the university told the student he was graduating with honors; four days later, they told him of their concerns about his conduct. Within days, the school ordered him to resign or be withdrawn from the medical school.
A Michigan resident, he sued the university in federal court.
The court
While Case should receive great discretion in judging academic standards, the determination of “professionalism” goes well beyond academic or patient related matters. The University’s definition of “professionalism” expresses a moral judgment, rather than an evaluation against a set of specialized criteria. Case describes “professionalism” in moral judgment terms: “ethical, honest, responsible and reliable behavior”; “respectful dialogue”; “personal limitations and biases”; and “professional and interpersonal behavior, sensitivity, sense of responsibility, and ethics, and the ability to conduct oneself suitably.”
Although courts should give almost complete deference to university judgments regarding academic issues, the same deference does not follow university character judgments only distantly related to medical education.
Ultimately, Case denied Al-Dabagh a diploma because it believed he should have reported an out-of-state arrest and prosecution for driving while impaired that had not yet concluded and despite University Handbook provisions that did not require an arrest be reported. It also believed he earlier dissembled regarding being late for class and earlier dissembled by giving summaries on patients when he might, or might not, have examined the patient before giving the summary.
Medical schools have no special expertise regarding judging character for honesty.
The other conduct
Case relies upon four examples. First, in his first year, Al-Dabagh was five to ten minutes late for a class and Al-Dabagh may have asked his instructor not to mark him late. Second, Al-Dabagh went drunk to a school dance, harassed two women to dance with him, and may have grabbed another woman’s behind and argued with that woman’s date. Later that night and while drunk, Al-Dabagh then tried to stiff a cab driver by rolling out of a moving cab to avoid paying his bill. Third, an unidentified student said Al-Dabagh presented on a patient he had not personally examined. Fourth, a patient’s family asked that Al-Dabagh not treat their relative when Al-Dabagh was doing an internal medicine internship, likely for personality reasons.
The school dance is called the Hippo Ball.
As to the student
For Al-Dabagh, the stakes are high. Al-Dabagh completed (and paid for) five years of medical school. He has successfully published more than a dozen articles or book chapters on dermatology, including an article published in one of the leading dermatology journals. And the physician who supervised his dermatology research described Al-Dabagh as “quite the team player. . . willing to lend a helping hand even without being asked to do so. He is well read, punctual and prepared for his clinics. His caring demeanor is apparent when he interacts with patients. He exhibited a can do, help others spirit that has been a huge benefit to research projects, helping other students and faculty on collaborative review articles and original research.” If denied injunctive relief, Al-Dabagh’s medical career will be lost or significantly diminished.
The court found that the University had acted arbitrarily and capriciously. (Mike Frisch)