Doctor suspended for prescribing restricted drug

KUWAIT: The health ministry suspended an Arab doctor at the Chest Hospital for three months and referred him to the public prosecution for allegedly discharging medicine without authority. The interior ministry also placed him on the travel ban list. The doctor is accused of smuggling large quantities of Tramal, which is considered a narcotic. He used to open files for cardiac patients, who were actually healthy, to make use of the medicine dispensed to them.

Health ministry sources said workers at the hospital noticed large quantities of Tramal being dispensed lately, adding that this drug is not prescribed to heart patients, but to those who suffer from severe pain, like cancer patients. Sources added that concerned authorities at the ministry were informed, and a special technical committee was formed and questioned several doctors and pharmacists. They found the medicine was prescribed by an Arab doctor to “non-existent” patients.

The sources added the said doctor prescribed more than 3,000 Tramal tablets last year alone, and the committee discovered his involvement in prescribing these pills since 2014. Sources said Health Ministry Undersecretary Dr Khalid Al-Sahlawi issued an administrative decision to suspend the doctor for investigation, starting from Dec 25, for three months, and he will only receive half his salary from the date of his suspension.

Tramal is a medicine used to reduce severe pain and is available under several commercial names. Its effective ingredient is tramadol, which works by activating the opiate receptors located in the brain. When activated these receptors produce endorphins that lead to sensations of both pleasure and pain relief.