NMC gives 17 doctors the boot

The Nepal Medical Council has suspended 17 doctors who were arrested on charge of obtaining false academic credentials that were used to study medicine. NMC gives 17 doctors the boot

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Manish Gautam

Published at : April 6, 2016

Updated at : April 6, 2016 08:41

Kathmandu

The Nepal Medical Council has suspended 17 doctors who were arrested on charge of obtaining false academic credentials that were used to study medicine.

The council has annulled the registration until the final court hearing on the case. It has also decided not to allow the doctors sit for the NMC licence examination pending the court verdict.

“These persons will be deemed ineligible to practice medicine until the final verdict on the case,” the NMC said in a statement posted on its Facebook page on Tuesday. Under the Nepal Medical Council Act, anyone found practicing medicine during the time of suspension shall be slapped with a three-year jail term. If any patient dies because of the treatment by the suspended persons, they should face a murder trial.

A joint investigation by the NMC and the Central Investigation Bureau (CIB) has found all 17 of them had obtained fake school leaving certificates and higher secondary certificates. They are found to have used the false academic credentials to acquire medical degrees in China, the Philippines and India, among other countries.

The CIB arrested the disgraced doctors under “Operation Quack” in the first week of February. Apart from Dr Sujit Kumar Shrestha, 47, all the others had been released on bail by Kathmandu District Court. Shrestha, who had been working as medical officer of District Hospital, had been sent to judicial custody after he failed to deposit the bail amount.

Informed sources said the NMC and CIB are investigating at least 200 doctors, some of whom are living aboard.

The NMC has also started verifying academic certificates of registered doctors and those who have applied for a licence to practice medicine. The government body that regulates doctors and medical colleges in the country is coordinating with the Higher Secondary Education Board and the Office of the Controller of Examinations to verify the academic credentials of around 17,000 registered doctors. NMC Spokesperson Dr Krishna Adhikari said the verification process is likely to be completed by April-end.

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