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Exhibit No. 1B: Letter of "The friends of Dr.
Delev"
The following letters (Exhibits 1a and 1b) from "Friends of Dr. R. Delev"
were sent to many officials. The letters were either ignored or answered
evasively. Nevertheless, from my point of view, they are the most forceful
evidence that supports my case and -- this book.
The signatories of those letters, especially Dr. Vujnovic, were very kind and courageous to support my actions. They were tireless in knocking at the authorities' doors.
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Dear Sir or Madam,
We have appealed to the many friends and acquaintances of Dr. Risto Delev to help and aid him in his great moral crisis. This letter is an appeal to any politician, particularly doctor, lawyer, or other professional person, who has had some experience or knowledge with cases resembling that of Dr. Delev. Since Dr. Delev's grievances are fairly lengthy, we wish to summarize some of the more salient characteristics of the case in order to familiarize those who are unaware of the situation.
Dr. Delev was committed to a psychiatric hospital in Quebec for six months without just cause. Dr. J.M. Divic, professor of psychiatry, wrote on December 27, 1973:
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"In summary, I feel that this patient was committed on hearsay evidence.
Therefore I was the one who suggested to Dr. Delev that he pursue legal endeavour
available to him... I would like to mention that I have presented Dr.Delev's
case in Grand Rounds in my department, and it was the consensus of the conference
held on September 12, 1972, that there was no justification for commitment
(of Dr. Delev) who according to the medical documentation and the objective
findings at the time, showed no psychotic material indicating that he was
dangerous to himself, dangerous to others or property, which is the basis
for medical certification in this country.
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Regarding the 'diagnoses' given Dr. Delev, Dr. Divic wrote on January 24,
1974:
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| "...Doctor Juretic (implicated) psychiatrist) calls this state "situational depressive state" and I wonder whether it would be logical to ask ourselves how a situation in which any one of us, finding ourselves incarcerated in a mental hospital without ability to get out, on an involuntary basis, would feel. Surely, the only appropriate reaction is a depressive state. |
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Dr. Heseltein, Professor of Psychiatry at the University of Western Ontario,
expressed the following to lawyer P. Goulston about Dr. Delev's therapy:
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"The drugs in question were commonly given to little old ladies who never
drive on sundays but who have trouble sleeping at night. ... he was 'cured'
by pills that are given to little old ladies who only go out on Sundays."
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Dr. D. Pivnicki, Dimitrijeprofessor of psychiatry at McGill University, wrote
the following letter on February 14, 1975:
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"...I am absolutely convinced that they (the involved psychiatrists) do
not justify either the admission, the transfer from Quebec to Montreal, or
the continuous treatment in St. Jean-de Dieu. They do not show what was really
done, who ever made a reliable psychiatric diagnosis, why the man was treated
at all, and what was achieved through hospitalization. I would like to believe
that a serious legal attack could be made on formal grounds, namely that
the documentation is faulty. All parts of good documentation, particularly
of a stay which was as long as Dr. Delev's, are non-existent. There is no:
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(1) referral slip;
(2) admission note; (3) case history; (4) course in hospital notes; (5) documented transfer slip; (6) re-assessment of the case history in St.-Jean-de-Dieu (he was apparently sent to Montreal to be re-assessed by a psychiatrist speaking Serbo-Croatian language!); (7) the dates of the course of illness in St.-Jean-de-Dieu; and finally (8) we don't find the reasons why the patient has been discharged at that given moment! Has he improved? Has he been cured!
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| All these questions cannot be answered. Consequently, the burden of proof should be laid on these people who kept Dr. Delev in hospital. |
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On the basis of the opinion of Dr. Littmann, we have come to certain conclusions,
as delineated in the enclosed letter. Despite this consensus of opinion,
Dr. Delev, after five years, has come to an impasse. The psychiatrists who
have written on Dr. Delev's behalf, have themselves, due to numerous and
endless delays, become discouraged. The lawyers, one after another, have
resigned from the case under trivial pretexts, and the authorities refuse
to get involved, claiming that "this matter is not one over which (they)
have any jurisdiction".
What we wish from you, then, is any information that would help us determine exactly who has jurisdiction over this matter, or how we can help Dr. Delev rectify the injustices done to him, and take his rightful place in Canadian society.
Thanking you in advance, we are
FRIENDS OF DR. R. Delev |
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(Signature of Dr. P. Vujnovic) Dr. Predrag Vujnovic M.D., Dr. I.P. Mihic M.D. 15 Roncesvalles Avenue Suite 201 Toronto M6R 2K2 Tel: 524-4442 |
(Signature of Dr. I.P.Mihic) Dr. I.P. Mihic M.D. 15 Roncesvalles Avenue Suite 201 Toronto M6R 2K2 Tel: 535-4659 |
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