Medic suspended for flashing

A CHILDREN’S intensive care doctor has been suspended for a month after exposing himself in an east London cemetery, writes Robert Firth.

Dr Salman Siddiqi received a caution from police after flashing while in Tower Hamlets Cemetery Park in June 2019. He was held down by members of the public before officers arrived, according to documents from a tribunal hearing.

Siddiqi worked at the Royal London Hospital at the time, but failed to tell the GMC [General Medical Council] about the incident immediately. He eventually told the regulator in March 2021, after speaking to a manager at the hospital.

Catherine Stock, representing Siddiqi, said his decision to expose himself was a case of poor judgement. Minutes from a Medical Practitioners Tribunal Service [MPTS] hearing in July read: “Ms Stock submitted the incident that led to the police caution was a one-off incident, a bad judgement call… He has since that time sought support from his superiors at work and his friends.”

A panel accepted Siddiqi appeared to be “regretful and remorseful of his misconduct and caution” but banned him from practising for a month.

Siddiqi qualified as a doctor in Pakistan in 2001 before moving to Ireland for further training in 2011. He moved to the UK in 2012 and worked at the Royal London Hospital between November 2017 and August 2021.