Western Daily Press (Saturday)
Sex addict doctor guilty of misconduct charges
ADOCTOR who slept with multiple women at his GP surgery before blaming it on a sex addiction has been found guilty of several misconduct charges at a tribunal.
Cambridge-educated Thomas
Plimmer, 40, had regular sex sessions at work when he should have been treating patients, the hearing was told.
He faced accusations from half a dozen complainants - including one colleague who had claimed their weekly sex meetings at the practice in Swindon, Wiltshire, were ‘unwanted’ and sometimes forced.
The woman - referred to as Miss A - had told the tribunal she was ‘groomed’ into regular intercourse with Dr Plimmer at his surgery and said felt used as a ‘sex object’ to help his boredom.
Giving evidence at the Medical Practioners Tribunal, Dr Plimmer said all their acts were consensual and argued the context of everything that took place was centred around his sex addiction.
But returning to deliver their verdict on Thursday, the tribunal found the case against Dr Plimmer was “proved and determined” in relation to some of the counts and “not proven” in relation to others.
Dr Plimmer will now face a further hearing in April next year to determine his punishment.
In what the tribunal chair Claire Lindley described as a “complicated outcome,” the tribunal ruled he sent unsolicited video of himself to Miss A engaging in sexual intercourse with another woman while at work.
The tribunal said allegations of kissing, touching, and various sexual offences, all without consent, were not proved.
Threats to disclose information to her husband, slamming a door to hit her arm were also not proved.
The tribunal said the doctor at some point knew Miss A was vulnerable and said an allegation she should visit a ‘Futurama’ suicide booth was also found proved.
Abusing a more senior position and using his power over her were found not to be proved.
In relation to another woman known as Miss B - the doctor had already admitted engaging in sexual behaviour with her in the GP surgery during working hours.
He had also accepted having sexual intercourse with a further complainant Miss C during working hours as well.
He had earlier admitted sending another woman - Miss E - an unsolicited photo of his penis, taken whilst at work, on two different occasions.
In a conversation with Miss D it was also found proven he had threatened Miss F saying he would slit her
throat if she took him to the GMC.
He had already admitted many of the allegations were sexually motivated.
After delivering the verdict, the chair said: “This is a complicated outcome - the determination will be sent to parties but is not yet ready for publication. They will need time to read that material.
“The tribunal will be adjourned in any event to move to stage 2 for a date in April.”
The tribunal was then adjourned until 22 April.
During the hearing itself, Dr Plimmer had tried to blame many of his actions on a ‘sex addiction.
He said: “Seeking out sexual activity felt like a need, and I did lie in order to get that need met, and I was not honest with people to get that need met
“But there was no sense of me enjoying this because I like lying, or it gives me power, or it gives me control, they were all byproducts of trying to meet my need.”
He also acknowledged: “I was a doctor absolutely, and I have a responsibility to be professional and to act in a way that upholds the standards of the profession, and I fell well short of that on many occasions.
“But I never really felt as though I played on that, or used that as a method to pursue people.
“I am sincerely apologetic to everyone I’ve lied to, and the consequences it had towards patients and not being there to care for them.
“I feel immense shame for everything I did.”
The doctor was accused by Mark Monaghan, presenting the case on behalf of the General Medical Council, of “manipulating” people with “charms and lies and anything else in your armoury.”
A total of six women had lodged the complaints.