The Courier & Advertiser (Angus and Dundee)
Doctor faked illness to practise privately
HEALTH: NHS surgeon who took sick leave to work BMI shifts is suspended
An NHS doctor who faked illness so he could make more money from private practice has been kicked out of medical work for at least a year.
Dr Simon Thomas will only be allowed to resume surgical employment following his 12-month suspension if cleared to do so by a fresh review hearing. The trauma and orthopaedic surgeon at NHS Tayside admitted performing undeclared work at two private hospitals while employed by the health service.
He failed to notify bosses he was practising privately at BMI Kings Park Hospital and BMI Fernbrae Hospital, where he could earn between £82,000 and £110,000 a year. Some of the work coincided with him being on paid sick leave from NHS Tayside.
Dr Thomas, right, has now been suspended by the Medical Practitioners Tribunal Service following an investigation into his actions in April 2019.
The tribunal heard NHS Tayside’s operational medical director, Professor Colin Fleming, held a meeting with Dr Thomas after becoming suspicious of his whereabouts.
Prof Fleming told how when questioned, the moonlighting surgeon had a “swift pinking of his cheeks”.
An NHS Tayside doctor who admitted to pulling ‘sickies’ to work in private clinics has been suspended.
Dr Simon Thomas, a trauma and orthopaedic surgeon at NHS Tayside, admitted to undertaking clinics at two BMI private hospitals while working for the NHS, where he could earn between £82,000 and £110,000 a year.
He had also been placed under practising restrictions by NHS Tayside after a local adverse event review, however he still continued to perform surgeries.
Due to his actions, Dr Thomas has been suspended from the profession for 12 months and will then have to undergo another hearing to review his medical licence.
In order for Dr Thomas to be allowed to continue to work as a surgeon, he will have to show how his fitness to practise is no longer impaired. The decision to suspend Dr Thomas was announced by the Medical Practitioners Tribunal Service (MPTS), following a 10-day hearing.
The majority of the hearing was held in private following a successful appeal by Dr Thomas.
He was brought under investigation by the MPTS for his actions in April 2019 and for failing to inform the NHS about his private clinics.
Operational Medical Director for NHS Tayside Professor Colin Fleming held a meeting with Dr Thomas after becoming suspicious of his whereabouts.
Prof Fleming described him as having a “swift pinking of his cheeks” when questioned.
Dr Thomas had told Prof Fleming that he would be unable to meet him on one occasion as he had to pick up a family member.
However, Prof Fleming was then made aware that Dr Thomas had been at BMI Fernbrae in Dundee performing private clinics that day.
Speaking to the tribunal last month, Prof Fleming said: “There had been an attempt to mislead me.
“I challenged him with additional information on his actual whereabouts and his explanations were muddled.
“There was a swift pinking of his cheeks and a lack of fluency in his voice.”
In his final submissions, Dr Thomas’s legal representative, Duncan Mawby, said that his client had felt a significant degree of remorse and shame.
He regretted his actions and was working out a way to apologise to those who had been negatively impacted by his actions.
Mr Mawby also managed to convince the panel that complete erasure would deprive the NHS and its patients of Dr Thomas’s surgical skills.
Speaking at the tribunal, Dr Thomas said: “I feel horrible about it – and I feel full of guilt and regret.”
Dr Thomas admitted all charges brought against him.
The charges read: “You failed to notify NHS Tayside that you also practised privately at BMI Kings Park Hospital and BMI Fernbrae Hospital.
“You carried out clinics at Kings Park whilst you were on paid sick leave from NHS Tayside on April 4 2019, April 10 2019, April 17 2019 and April 18 2019.
They continued: “You knew that on one or more of the dates set out... you should not have been working at Kings Park as you were on paid sick leave from NHS Tayside.”
Dr Thomas has expertise in elective upper limb surgery and complex upper limb trauma.
He also specialised in general limb trauma.