Physician demands probe into unfair dismissal

By Pongphon Sarnsamak

The Nation

Dr Kriangkrai Sarakune filed a petition with the Public Health Minister Jurin Laksanawisit and the Medical Council yesterday, demanding an investigation into his unfair dismissal from the Pattana Medical Centre Clinic. He was dismissed over allegations made by the Comptroller-General's office that he had prescribed Bt1.4 million worth of drugs outside the national list to retired civil servants.

"I insist that I had followed the clinical practice guidelines every time I prescribed drugs. Some of them needed medication that was outside the National Drug List," the doctor explained.

Kriangkrai, along with 30 of his patients - most of whom are retired government officials - filed the complaint with the Medical Council, asking it to look into his sacking.

"I have had no conflict with anyone in my workplace. I just wanted to do my best to save my patients' lives. They need different kinds of drugs as they respond to drugs differently and some of them were not included on the national list," he added.

He said the Comptroller-General's Department wants him to return the Bt1.4 million spent on the drugs he had prescribed, and that the Pattana Medical Centre Clinic used this as a reason to ask Kriangkrai to leave.

"Some reasons the Comptroller-General's Department had given me are that they could not read the notes I had made in the patients' medical records, that my handwriting is illegible or they could not find the evidence," he said.

"This is not fair for physicians who provide the best treatment they can to patients, because they will be asked to return a lot of money. Nobody will prescribe drugs or provide treatment if they are afraid of being fined," he added.

Meanwhile, Pattana Medical Centre Clinic's director Dr Luephorn Punnakanta said he had asked Kriangkrai and other physicians who were accused of making irregular prescriptions, to question the allegations and also see if they can correct the mistake.

He said some physicians also did not write down their diagnosis in patients' records when they prescribed some medicines.

"We have found that about 10 per cent of our 200 physicians were found to have irregularities in their prescriptions by Comptroller-General's Department, but the clinic encouraged them to question this and fix their mistakes. Most followed the clinic's instructions, with the exception of Kriangkrai," he said.

He added that the clinic had to strictly follow the regulations set by the Comptroller-General's Department, which requires physicians to comply with clinical practice guideline when they prescribe drugs.

Prajerd Yembamrung, an 80-year-old retired official of the Agriculture and Cooperatives Ministry, said Kriangkrai had been treating him for the past decade for diseases such as heart disorder, gastroenteritis, prostate gland hyperplasia and Alzheimers'.

"I need lots of drugs to treat my illnesses and most of them are expensive, " he said.

Meanwhile, Jurin said Kriangkrai could send his explanation directly to the Comptroller-General's Department.

-- The Nation 2011-02-23

A doctors handwriting illegible? Nah...