Clinical officer suspended over Facebook posts
THE clinical officer who photographed and circulated pictures of people living with HIV attending AntiRetro Viral Treatment (ART) session on his Facebook page, has been suspended by the Health Professions Council of Zambia (HPCZ). Two weeks ago, Mwansa Chalwe, caused an uproar with some sections of society demanding that he must be identified, arrested, and fired for breaching confidentiality ethics when he took photographs of people living with HIV seeking Antiretroviral drugs at a health facility he works for and posted on Facebook. Mr. Chalwe circulated on his Facebook wall, photographs of people getting ARV at the clinic with the caption, “#new and better ARVs in Govt institutions #ART clinic. At least I only had 145 clients today.” He, however, later pulled down his post after receiving a social media barrage from his followers and later added “Muller” to his name but forgot to change his profile picture which most people on social media used to identify him. In a statement yesterday, HPCZ senior public relations officer, Terry Musonda, said Mr. Chalwe had been suspended. “It is alleged that Mr. Mwansa Chalwe, posted pictures of clients (patients) during an ART session on his Facebook page which violated their privacy and confidentiality. The alleged action by the Clinical Officer General was unethical and a professional misconduct. Mr. Chalwe has since been served with a letter of suspension of his practicing license while HPCZ conducts further investigations into the matter,” Mr. Musonda said. He said Mr. Chalwe will not be allowed to attend to patients and is not permitted to perform any duty at any health facility until the matter is determined. “The Health Professions Council of Zambia has also written to both the Provincial and District Health Offices in Central Province informing them of this decision. Health Practitioners must desist from capturing and sharing pictures of patients during work sessions and are reminded to uphold the professional code of conduct,” he said.