Providence Care is investigating one of its employees after he was called out for making racist comments on social media.

Doug Chapman, who identified himself on his public Facebook page as working in the hospital’s information technology department, commented on a news story about female Muslim members of the RCMP being permitted to wear a hijab while on duty.

“I recall this debate in 1990,” Chapman wrote. “Respect the uniform or f— off.”

Chapman was referring to the national police force changing its policy in 1990 to allow Sikh men to wear turbans while on duty.

“I have no problem with anyone living and working in a multicultural society,” Chapman later wrote in reply to another person’s comment on the story.

“I do have a problem when kids don’t respect their elders … respect the history or f— off and do something else a——-.”

The comments prompted a complaint to Provindence Care, Kingston-area news outlets, including the Whig-Standard, and local politicians.

Rahime Juma contacted the hospital about his concerns with Chapman’s comments.

“I know what our community is like. I’ve lived places where people would yell racial slurs from their cars on a weekly basis. Kingston is not like that,” said Juma, who pointed to the community’s response to the Syrian refugee crisis as an example of Kingston’s tolerant and welcoming nature.

Juma, who has lived here for 22 years, said that in recent months, in the wake of a series of terrorist attacks and the issuing by United States presidential candidate Donald Trump of what Juma described as an “open licence to offend and hate without consequence,” things have changed.

“I know, for sure, that this is not the massive majority of our community, but I also think they don’t know what we’re going through right now,” he said.

“There’s a difference between someone yelling it in a car, sort of anonymously. The people that are doing it online are not using fake names. It’s their real name, with their family pictures, with where they work and it’s not code.”

On Friday, Jenn Goodwin, chief communications officer for Providence Care, said the hospital was notified late Thursday and the issue was referred to the human resources department.

“We do have a code of conduct policy and therefore an investigation is underway,” Goodwin said. “It is something we take seriously.”

Goodwin said the code of conduct is “very clear in terms of how employees are to behave and speak” when they are seen to be representing the hospital, and since Chapman’s profile identified him as a Providence Care employee, his comments are subject to the code.

Goodwin said consequences for breaching the hospital’s code of conduct could be dismissal.

“There is an expectation of everyone who is associated in any way with Providence Care that they both have the right to be treated, as well as the responsibilty to treat other people, with respect and dignity,” she said.

“That is core to our values. That is core to who we are as Providence Care.”

Chapman was unavailable for comment when contacted by the Whig-Standard through the social media site where he posted his comments.

elferguson@postmedia.com