Catholic university approved research into paedophile clergy

The Cranberra Times

December 19, 2012

The Australian Catholic University approved a highly sensitive research project to analyse archives detailing child sexual abuse by clergy and to identify common themes in their behaviour.
The project, titled ''Sexual Boundary Violations Among Catholic Religious'', was conducted by staff of Encompass Australasia, which was established by the Catholic Church in 1997 to treat clergy for psycho-sexual disorders. Many of those clergy were never reported to police.

To comply with national laws governing human research, Encompass Australasia was required to get approval from an institution with a human research ethics committee.

 Fairfax Media has previously reported how Encompass Australasia was used by senior church figures to harbour paedophile clergy who had been diagnosed with ''mood disorders'' in order to be treated at Sydney's Wesley Private Hospital and meet private health insurance criteria.

It is understood that no clergy treated by Encompass Australasia were ever reported to police, despite some admitting to sexually abusing children and others facing serious accusations. In some cases, known paedophile clergy were sent overseas after being treated by Encompass staff at the Sydney hospital.
Encompass Australasia's former chief clinician, Geraldine Taylor, said on Tuesday that the research project involving the files of clergy treated by her organisation was ''incomplete'' and only in the data-gathering stage when Encompass closed in 2008. Dr Taylor's comments came as the ACU confirmed the Encompass Australasia application was approved in 2004 and extended in 2007 by the university's human research ethics committee.

A source familiar with the Encompass Australasia application process has claimed the research proposal included a questionnaire allegedly seeking clergy to detail their sexual relationships, including with young boys.
 
''How many, ages, how often, how long ago'' was how the source described the nature of some of the questions.

However, Dr Taylor said although she could not recall a questionnaire being part of the application to ACU, it was possible that it had been a ''clinical assessment tool''.
She said the research had been ''archival in nature'' and examined de-identified files collected by Encompass Australasia through its treatment centre between 1997 and 2004 in order to ''to contribute to an understanding of child sex abuse''.

The involvement of ACU in approving the research work by Encompass Australasia is a further indication of the close ties between the organisation and the Catholic hierarchy in Australia.
The source said at least one ACU staff member allegedly raised concerns about the application with senior university staff on the basis that if clergy answered yes to any of the questions on sexual activity with boys, they would be admitting a criminal offence. It is understood that no members of the ACU ethics committee raised any objections before approving the Encompass Australasia application and subsequent extension.

Dr Taylor said the aim of the project had been to explore ''factors like attachment styles, personality attributes etc of offenders''.
''Researchers did not have access to client identities, demographics or content, therefore reporting issues [to police] were not relevant,'' she said.

Encompass Australasia and certain Catholic bishops hold
thousands of pages of additional documents regarding the psycho-sexual make-up of clergy sent for treatment, including those who had admitted to child sexual abuse but were not reported to police.
An ACU spokeswoman said that national rules governing human research required approval by a human research ethics committee.

''In this case Encompass, which had no HREC of its own, sought ethical approval from the HREC of ACU,'' the spokeswoman said.
''ACU would have agreed to this on the basis of an assessment of the value of the research concerned. The research project was carried out by staff of Encompass Australasia on behalf of Encompass Australasia. ACU's role was to provide human ethics approval.

''ACU is not aware of the extent to which the project actually was executed and any information collated. As to whether any information emerging from that project should have been reported to the police, this would be a matter for the administering staff of Encompass and Encompass itself, acting in accordance with the relevant law.

''As regards ACU, no outcomes of the project ever were in the possession of or came to the attention of ACU. This is not part of the HREC process, which relates to project design, not oversight of the finished research project. Consequently, ACU never had any information to report to police.''
However, the university's terms of reference for its ethics committee states that it is to ''monitor the progress of research projects'' to ensure they conform to ethical principles and meet all Commonwealth and state legal requirements.

The research project was discontinued in June 2008 when the church moved to shut down Encompass Australasia shortly before Pope Benedict XVI's visit to Sydney for World Youth Day.

The organisation accepted about 1100 clergy and lay people for ''assessment'' between 1997 and 2008 to determine their suitability to work with children and vulnerable adults. But several hundred clergy were treated for serious psychosexual problems during that period, including paedophilia.
Encompass Australasia's clinicians also treated patients suffering from depression, alcoholism, drug abuse and other mood disorders. Its clinical program was well regarded.

The Encompass board included high-ranking church figures such as the Archbishop of Adelaide, Philip Wilson, and Father Brian Lucas, general secretary of the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference.