The president of the High Court has urged the Medical Council to be "scrupulous" when examining future registration applications after a doctor registered to practise here, who was suspended in England last May for nine months for serious misconduct, allegedly gave different names and dates of birth to the authorities here and in the UK.
It is also alleged, when filling in the annual form to re-register here in 2017 and 2018, that Dr Karim El Awad Mohamed had not declared conditions had been attached to his UK registration pending an inquiry.
The Medical Council's attention was drawn to the doctor through "happenstance" because another consultant obstetrician, Dr Peter McKenna, had, while giving evidence during a High Court case, become aware the respondent doctor was suspended in England and had contacted the Council, Mr Justice Peter Kelly noted.
Following inquiries by the council, it applied last week ex parte (one side only represented) for a suspension order and the judge on Monday continued that. The doctor was not in court and was not represented but the judge was satisfied he was aware of the application.
The order provides the doctor is suspended and prohibited practising medicine pending steps, or further steps, under Part 7, and, if applicable, Parts 8 and 9, of the Medical Practitioners Act
In making the suspension order under Section 60 of the Act, the judge said, while he had heard the application in private, he was giving his ruling in public.
The doctor was registered on the general register here and, while he has worked in a department of obstetrics and gynaecology in Limerick hospital and other public hospitals, he is also free to work in the private sector, the judge noted.
‘Dishonesty’
Given the “dishonesty” to date and the ineffectiveness of just notifying the order to the public health authorities here, he was giving his ruling in public because he was satisfied that was necessary for protection of the public.
The doctor was suspended in England in May 2018 for nine months arising from findings of misconduct against him in disciplinary proceedings. Conditions had been earlier imposed on his UK registration.
Also on Monday, a suspension order was separately made against Dr Patricia Sverani Black, registered to practice medicine here, due to patient safety concerns arising from her alleged prescription practices, including prescribing "very large quantities" of diazepam and dalmane and anti-psychotic medication. The suspension was also sought over alleged breach of an undertaking given by her in June 2018 concerning her prescription practices.
Among the concerns expressed by the Council was that Dr Black was allegedly prescribing large quantities of medication in circumstances where she had no particular qualifications in relation to treatment of people with drug addiction but was providing services to people who travelled long distances to see her.
The judge had made an order ex parte against Dr Black last week and she was not in court or represented when the matter returned before him on Monday. He was satisfied she was aware of the application.
The judge made the suspension order in public, saying that was necessary in the interests of the public and of patient safety. It suspends her registration pending steps under Part 7 and, if applicable, Parts 8 and 9 of the Act.
In his ruling, the judge said there was a clear breach by Dr Black of an undertaking by her not to prescribe a range of drugs and the Council did not accept her explanation she understood the undertaking referred only to “new” patients.
She had also contacted a Medical Council official, referring to him as a “psychopath” and “sociopath” and had sent a “bizarre” letter to a solicitor for the Council, referring inter alia to her concern over the Tuam babies issue and accusing him of being “inhumane” and treating some patients as not worthy of being cared for.
