Posted to Newsflash Podiatry ONLINE, 7/8/2000

From: John L. Trench III, DPM
Sub: The Brian Gale, DPM case affects us all

Dear Dr. Sherman,

I am writing to express a view concerning the situation being faced in North Dakota by Dr. Brian Gale. I am not going to spend any time rehashing the details of his situation, as those are by now familiar to everyone who frequents the Podiatry Student Forum or who has paid attention to the letters and comments that have appeared in Podiatry Online from time to time. Anyone who for whatever reason is not familiar with Dr. Gale's situation can educate themselves by going to: 
http://www.briangale.com

The abuses endured by Dr. Gale to date would be terrible enough even if they affected only Dr. Gale as an individual. The level of ethically-questionable behavior by certain of his tormentors, the
peculiar and in many instances trivial nature of the "complaints" being dredged up for use against
him, the unreasoning viciousness of the attacks he has been subjected to, the systematic denial of
any meaningful due process--all of these and more have exacted a tremendous toll upon Dr. Gale as an individual in so many ways: financially, in tremendous legal expenses leading to personal
bankruptcy; personally, through the tremendous stress of eight long years of abuse, and the strain
those years have placed upon his family and his marriage; and professionally, as he faces the
possible loss of his license, and thus the destruction of the practice he has labored so diligently to
build.

These alone are sufficient to justify--no, to demand--the outrage of every honest, ethical podiatric
professional, and immediate action by every member of this profession on behalf of Brian Gale, to
put an end to the torment he has been forced to endure, and to hold his tormentors accountable for their actions.

The repercussions of this situation are not confined to a single individual, however, but affect every aspect of the podiatric profession. What is happening to Dr. Gale right now is by no means a unique nor an isolated incident in the history of our profession. Similar abuses have been inflicted upon podiatric physicians by the more mean-spirited and vile of the "old boy" network and the politically well-connected, throughout the years podiatry has existed. Unfortunately, we appear to have no shortage of those, and more of our colleagues will undoubtedly be subject to such abuses in the future.

None of us are immune, after all. Each of us is vulnerable to exactly the same abuses as have
befallen Dr. Gale. Any of us may at any time run afoul of someone vicious enough to attempt to
destroy us simply for existing and enjoying a modicum of success in their presence, and
well-connected enough to act upon that attempt and enlist the full weight of the state society or state board to assist them. We, too, may face vicious and scurrilous attacks that could damage or destroy us both professionally and personally.

If you were the subject of such an unfair and destructive attack, wouldn't you need the defense and support of your colleagues? Indeed, as a member of a group that claims to be a true profession, wouldn't you expect the support and defense of your colleagues? Wouldn't you have the right to such support and assistance?

Yes, you would. You do have the right to such support and assistance from your colleagues. You
also have the obligation to provide support, defense, and assistance to any of your colleagues who
may need it. It is an obligation that is part and parcel of the Hippocratic tradition--a tradition you bound your own life to when you took the Hippocratic Oath. To call this obligation sacred is by no means an overstatement. It is something every physician owes to--and has the right to expect from--every other physician, without exception. This includes DPMs as well as MDs and DOs.

Dr. Brian Gale needs this support, defense, and assistance from every one of us. He has the right to expect it from us, and we each have the obligation to provide it. And yet, with but a relative handful of exceptions, he as yet to receive that support from this profession. Instead, podiatry has chosen to continue its long tradition of abandoning its members to their individual fates when they are faced with scurrilous attack. The silence of our profession on the subject of Brian Gale is deafening--and damning!

By failing to give Brian Gale the support that is his due as our colleague, we leave him isolated and
alone. By leaving Brian Gale isolated and alone, we have left ourselves isolated and alone as well. If Brian Gale is destroyed, an important part of each and every one of us will also be destroyed.

By failing to act as a cohesive group, by failing to support one of our own, we have violated a basic tenet of human life and left ourselves vulnerable to the same abuses that currently plague Dr. Gale's life. As Benjamin Franklin put it so well, leading up to the signing of the Declaration of Independence two hundred and twenty four years ago: "We must indeed all hang together, or most assuredly we shall all hang separately." This is true in every aspect of life: personal, financial, political, professional. Nowhere is it more graphically and dramatically illustrated than in the experiences of Dr. Brian Gale over the past eight years.

This shameful situation destroys the security of all podiatrists, effectively robbing us of our rights and placing us at the mercy of the more vicious, mean-spirited, self-serving "insiders" in our
profession. For God's Sake, the public is seeing this behavior! They are seeing our bottom-feeding, politically-connected "insiders" attacking and destroying decent podiatrists, not just in North Dakota but nationwide, while the majority of our profession remains silent and looks the other way, taking the coward's way out instead of rushing to the defense of the victims and putting an end to these outrages. Do you have any idea what this makes us as a "profession" look like in the eyes of the public? Do you have any idea what it makes you as an individual look like in the eyes of the public? It's nothing to be proud of, I assure you.

Worse yet, our students and prospective students are watching this terrible and cowardly spectacle! Do you have any idea what effect this may be having upon them?

Our students and residents, seeing the rape of Dr. Gale, must certainly realize by now that they are witnessing their own future fate, when they have the misfortune to be the ones running afoul of one of our many selfish, petty, well-connected "insiders". They are being taught that they can expect no assistance or support from their "colleagues" in this "profession", but will be abandoned to face the onslaught alone, denied even the pretense of due process, let alone decent and fair treatment. How many of them, adding this to the other abuses and indignities they must endure as students or residents in podiatric medicine--abuses and indignities which are unique to our profession--have come to regret their choice of podiatry as their career? How many do we lose each year? How many carry embittered attitudes toward this profession into private practice, bringing our already-tarnished reputation new marks and smudges? How many transfer or retrain to become MDs or DOs, and take those same embittered attitudes into their new profession --attitudes that will adversely color the perception of podiatric medicine by that profession for decades to come?

And what of prospective students? Is anyone out there foolish enough to believe that 
pre-professional students investigating podiatry as a possible career choice are not seeing this sorry spectacle playing out in North Dakota? Why would any young man or woman with even a modicum of intelligence and common sense today consciously choose to go into podiatric medicine, knowing that the support they can expect as a matter of course in the other health professions will be nonexistent for them in ours. Why would they want to enter a profession that routinely abandons or, as bad, cannibalizes its young--a distinction we "enjoy" that is unique in the health care professions.

How many students do we lose each year, students who leave college and select some other health profession because of the drivel and tripe with which we have allowed our own to become riddled? The internet has torn down the barriers that once hampered communication and prevented to effective spread of such information in the past. Today students and prospective students are plugged into virtually everything that goes on in this profession. They are constantly mining information from the internet and other sources, and using the resources of the internet to share that information with each other. They know the things that are going on today. They are seeing everything. Are they really seeing what we want them to be seeing? Of course not--and that has to be affecting the number of applicants we get each year to podiatric medical school, contributing at least somewhat to the dismal numbers today--just 300-or-so for this year, isn't it?

A lot of you out there are sitting at your computer thinking how you don't do any of those nasty
things to other podiatrists, so you can't be part of the problem. But you are. In fact, you are the
biggest part of the problem, because you don't do anything! You are the real reason all those vicious and petty sharks, gators, and bottom-feeders in our profession are able to exist and perpetrate their outrages--you do nothing to stop them, nothing to help their victims. It is not enough that you simply refrain from committing such outrages yourself. You must stand up, speak out, and take action on behalf of the Brian Gales of our world who are being victimized. All that is necessary for evil to triumph in this world is for good people to stand aside and do nothing.

Do not stand aside and do nothing while Dr. Gale continues to suffer such outrageous persecution!

Stand up, speak out, and be counted on this issue. Demand an end to the torment of Brian Gale--and every other colleague being unfairly treated.

Look, think about it this way: imagine it's you, or your beloved son or daughter, who is suffering
these indignities instead of Dr. Gale. What would you want, what would you expect, from this
profession on behalf of you, or on behalf of your child?

Give that to Brian Gale.

Sincerely,

John L. Trench III, DPM

http://www.smartfoot.com/JohnTrenchonBrainGale.html