4 doctors suspended for issuing false medical certificates

In a recent council meeting, the Delhi Medical Council (DMC) has suspended four doctors for allegedly issuing false medical certificates.

Of the four, three had issued certificate of illnesses in exchange for money, with one being a repeat offender. “In fact, one of the doctors issued a medical certificate for 11 months. As per rules, no doctor can issue a certificate for more than 15 days at one time,” said Dr Arun Gupta, president of the DMC.

The three doctors have been removed from the state medical register for one, three and six months. The name of the fourth doctor was removed from the state medical register for one year for issuing a false death certificate. Doctors cannot practice medicine without registering with the state medical council.

A man had come to the hospital with a heart attack probably and there was negligence on the part of the doctor in reading the ECG. After the death of the man, the family had requested the doctor to give a certificate for accidental death as they did not have health insurance, Gupta said.

“A post-mortem could have highlighted the actual cause of death, thereby proving medical negligence. The committee is distressed to note that the focus of the complainant in the current case seems more on the accidental insurance claim and not on the untimely death of the son. This might have been a suitable arrangement for both parties,” the order read.

“Following four cases, we have issued a set of guidelines that doctors must follow when they are issuing medical certificates,” said Dr Gupta. The guidelines say that medical certificate is ‘not valid for legal or court purposes’ is a misnomer as they are legal documents and medical practitioners are responsible for their statements.