‘Dishonest’ doctor invented patient called Mr M Mouse
A GP created a fake patient called ‘M Mouse’ and made up a string of other appointments so he could lighten his workload, a medical tribunal heard yesterday. Dr Andrew Thomson, 45, had wanted more time for paperwork in the run-up to a merger with another surgery.
Despite being free to see patients, he deleted a number of appointment slots at the Academy Medical Centre in Forfar, Angus, over a five-year period.
He then replaced most of these with a series of ‘made up’ consultations. In one entry on the surgery’s computer, Thomson claimed he had seen ‘Patient M Mouse’ in September 2014.
The Medical Practitioners Tribunal Service (MPTS) in Manchester was told the incidents took place between 2009 and 2014 ahead of plans to merge the medical centre with another surgery in Forfar.
The hearing was told Thomson saw one patient in a home visit but then created 11 false telephone consultations supposedly involving the person.
The unnamed individual, known as Patient A, did not require any consultations but Thomson’s behaviour caused an urgent triage slot to become unavailable.
In the case of another patient, known as B, he changed an appointment length from ten minutes to 20, and in the case of a patient known as C, a telephone slot was extended from seven minutes to 15. A patient, known as E, did not require a consultation, yet Thomson created a 20minute appointment slot, cancelled it then changed it to a ten-minute slot. He also falsely told colleagues that Patient E’s daughter had called to cancel the appointment.
A fifth patient, known as I, was said to have had a consultation with Thomson and even had a home visit when in fact the person was being treated 15 miles away at hospital in Dundee.
Thomson, who is accused by the General Medical Council of ‘dishonest and misleading’ behaviour, admitted 56 miscon- duct charges. But his lawyer, Andrew Hockton, told the hearing: ‘He wasn’t playing golf or undertaking private errands, he was working. The doctor wasn’t skiving off work when he was deleting appointments, he was using the time for training or administration purposes.
‘It is accepted that the doctor had taken on too much and was unable to cope, including taking over the lead for the merger.
‘That has been accepted. He was working at the relevant times of the deleted appointments. Anyone who had looked at the fictional appointment for M Mouse would know that is not a real person or patient.’
The MPTS fitness to practise panel is deliberating on whether Thomson should face disciplinary sanctions – which could include him being struck off.
The doctor is currently a locum GP in Brechin, Angus.
The hearing continues.
‘He wasn’t skiving off work’