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Following is a question by the Hon Li Kwok-ying and a written reply by the Secretary for Health, Welfare and Food, Dr York Chow, in the Legislative Council meeting today (December 8):
Question:
Will the Government inform this Council:
(a) of the number and details of the complaints received so far this year against medical practitioners for providing false information about their qualifications and professional practice experience, and how the number compares to the corresponding figures in the previous two years;
(b) of the number of such complaints it investigated in the past three years and the investigation results;
(c) of the mechanism to ensure that medical practitioners provide the public with information which is law compliant, true and not exaggerated; and
(d) whether it will discuss with the Medical Council of Hong Kong the possibility of revising the Code of Practice for Doctors to expressly provide that medical practitioners must provide the public with information which is law compliant, true and not exaggerated, so as to safeguard the interests of the public?
Reply:
Madam President,
The Medical Council of Hong Kong (the Council) is a statutory body established under the Medical Registration Ordinance (MRO) (Cap. 161) to regulate, amongst other things, standard of professional practice and conduct of medical practitioners. The Council has drawn up the "Professional Code and Conduct for the Guidance of Registered Medical Practitioners" (the Code of Practice) to provide general guidance on the standard required and what may constitute professional misconduct.
It is a statutory requirement for any person who wishes to apply for registration as a medical practitioner or a specialist, to supply to the Medical Council his/her personal particulars, academic and professional qualifications, and indicates in the application on whether he/she has been convicted of any offence punishable with imprisonment, and whether he/she has been found guilty of professional misconduct in Hong Kong or elsewhere. In making the application, the applicant is required to make a statutory declaration as to the truthfulness of the information submitted.
The Code of Practice requires medical practitioners to provide only legal, decent, honest, truthful, factual, accurate, and not exaggerated information to patients and the general public.
(a) and (b) The Medical Council is vested with the statutory power to handle complaints against medical practitioners' professional practice and conduct. Complaints concerning medical practitioners making untruthful claims about professional qualifications and specialist status received in the past three years are detailed as follows -
2002 2003 2004(as at 26/11)
Misleading,
inappropriate or
Unapproved
qualifications 2 5 6
False claim of
specialist status 4 3 2
Total 6 8 8
The investigation status of the above complaint cases(*a) are tabulated as follows -
Misleading, inappropriate or unapproved qualifications
2002 2003 2004 (as at 26/11)
Dismissed at
the Preliminary
Investigation
Committee (PIC) stage 2 4 2
Substantiated in an
Inquiry by Medical
Council - 1(*b) -
Pending Investigation
Results - - 4
Total 2 5 6
False claim of specialist status
2002 2003 2004(as at 26/11)
Dismissed at
the Preliminary
Investigation
Committee (PIC)
stage 4 3 1
Substantiated in
an Inquiry by
Medical Council - - -
Pending Investigation
Results - - 1
Total 4 3 2
(c) and (d) The Medical Practitioners (Registration and Disciplinary Procedure) Regulation under the MRO stipulates that an application for registration as a registered medical practitioner or a specialist to be supported by a declaration of personal particulars of and professional qualifications held by the applicant, as well as a statement of evidence of no conviction. Making false declaration is a criminal offence. Sections 36 and 37 of the Crimes Ordinance (Cap. 200) provide that making a false statement in a statutory declaration is an offence, and anyone found guilty of such offence is subject to a fine or imprisonment for a maximum of two years.
Section 27 of the MRO provides that any person who seeks registration as a medical practitioner or a specialist through false or fraudulent representation is liable on conviction upon indictment to imprisonment for three years. Section 28 of the MRO, on the other hand, prohibits people from using the titles of medical practitioners or specialists without registration. Those convicted are subject to a fine and imprisonment for three years.
In addition, Clause 4.2.1 of the Code of Practice requires medical practitioners to provide only legal, decent, honest, truthful, factual, accurate, and not exaggerated information to patients and the general public. Those who violate the Clause could be subject to disciplinary proceedings with sanctions ranging from serving of warning letters, reprimand to removal of their names from the registers.
Information concerning the qualifications and the specialist titles of registered doctors is gazetted on a regular basis for public information, and is accessible from the homepage of the Medical Council so that members of the general public may verify the truthfulness of the information they receive with the record maintained by the Council.
Clear provisions are stated in the MRO and the Code of Practice to prohibit medical practitioners from providing untruthful information to the public. Nonetheless, the Administration and the Medical Council will review the provisions from time to time to ensure their effectiveness in protecting the public.
Notes:
(*a) Complaints against registered medical practitioners touching on matters of professional misconduct are either lodged with or referred to the Medical Council. It is a statutory requirement for a complaint to be first considered by the Chairman, the Deputy Chairman and a lay member of the Preliminary Investigation Committee (PIC) and the full PIC as appropriate, to decide whether the complaint is groundless, frivolous or unpursuable, and whether a prima facie case can be established, before it should proceed to full inquiry by the Medical Council.
(*b) The case concerned a doctor who displayed a signboard which showed that he possessed the qualification of Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS). But the concerned doctor's qualification is in fact Licentiate of Medical Council of Hong Kong (LMCHK). After consideration by the PIC, the case was referred to the Medical Council for inquiry. At the inquiry, the Medical Council was satisfied that in relation to the facts alleged, the defendant doctor had been guilty of misconduct in a professional respect. The Medical Council ordered that a warning letter be served on the defendant doctor.
Ends/Wednesday, December 8, 2004
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