Dr. Gary Allan Joseph Harding had his medical license revoked for six months after he imposed personal and sexually motivated relationships with a couple of his students during his mentoring and teaching practice at the University of Manitoba.
Students, who wished to stay anonymous, stated Harding's actions were "gravely serious and deeply troubling."
From their testimonies, mentor`s behavior felt simply strange at first, but evolved into something disturbing and frightening with time, including thousands of text messages sexual references where he asked for oral sex multiple times, regular sleepovers, arranged by a doctor. The board also found that doctor prescribed drugs to students without supplying proper documentation. One of the mentored students calls the doctor`s behavior "extremely traumatic" and says he is still dealing with the impact on his personal and academic life.
Dr. Harding was accused of professional misconduct by the panel of the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Manitoba.
He is also ordered to pay $125,000 in investigation costs. Also, he will be able to reclaim his license if he passes a very thorough and case-specific evaluation. He will be prohibited from mentoring or teaching any medical students ever again.