Fewer cases of errant doctors

This is good news. Either that or doctors are more careful on what drugs are being prescribed to whom. An analogy would be speeding offences in a year. Lower offences recorded does not mean actual lower cases of speeding cases because it could also suggest that there was lax enforcement or drivers know when to slow down and when to speed up so as to avoid getting a ticket.

Fewer cases of errant doctors
Stricter measures implemented by MOH and enforcement by the SMC have reaped positive results. -myp
Wed, Oct 20, 2010
my paper

BY JOY FANG

STRICTER measures implemented by the Ministry of Health (MOH) and enforcement by the Singapore Medical Council (SMC) have reaped positive results, with a drastic drop in complaints from patients.

The measures implemented in 2008 by MOH made it a requirement for doctors to be more meticulous in the exercise of their profession.

For instance, doctors were made to document details of their patients' condition and treatments given and keep records to justify why they prescribed certain drugs. They must also inform MOH if they suspect a patient of being addicted to drugs.

So far this year, nine doctors have been subjected to disciplinary action by the SMC, said an SMC spokesman, with the latest case involving a general practitioner found to be lax in prescribing sleeping pills and cough mixture to his patients.

Last year, 96 complaints were lodged against medical practitioners, compared to 138 the year before.

Most cases involved general practitioners, while some involved specialists such as neurologists and surgeons.

Of the complaints lodged with the SMC in 2008, 22 were for the excessive or inappropriate prescription of drugs. There were only seven such complaints last year.

Another 28 complaints received last year were for professional negligence and incompetence while 10 were for unnecessary or inappropriate treatment.

In the latest case, Dr Chua Boon Ling, 43, from the Simon Road Family Clinic in Serangoon faced 14 charges of professional misconduct for dispensing a range of benzodiazepines - or sleeping pills - and medicines which contain codeine without due care.

MOH tightened its guidelines on benzodiazepines in October 2008, following a surge of cases involving doctors prescribing sleeping pills and other drugs too readily. Benzodiazepines are a class of hypnotic drugs which can be addictive.

The disciplinary committee (DC) also found that Dr Chua failed to properly document sufficient details of his diagnoses, patients' symptoms and conditions, and advice given in patient medical records, and failed to refer his patients for specialist treatment.

The DC said that given the extent of the patients' dependence on and addiction to the medications prescribed, they "did not accept that Dr Chua was in a position to continue with his management of the patients".

They added that "such a failure was inappropriate and unprofessional" as the dependency of patients was left unchecked.

A spokesman for SMC said they took action after receiving a complaint against Dr Chua from MOH.

Under the Medical Registration Act, SMC can take action or commence investigations against a doctor only after receiving an official complaint supported by law, said the SMC spokesman.

Dr Chua contested all 14 charges, but was convicted on nine of them. He was suspended for four months, from Oct 12, and fined $5,000. He also had to give a written pledge not to repeat the offences, and bear the costs of the disciplinary hearing.

The SMC has been cracking down on errant doctors, conducting 39 disciplinary inquiries over the past three years.

joyfang@sph.com.sg