Hong Kong will investigate whether any civil servant has been negligent over a 16-year delay in the medical watchdog’s handling of a complaint against a paediatrician found guilty over a blunder that left a boy permanently disabled.
Secretary for Health Lo Chung-mau. File photo: Kyle Lam/HKFP.
Secretary for Health Lo Chung-mau said on Sunday that there were “unjustifiable delays” in the Medical Council Secretariat’s handling of the hearing, adding that the case had been transferred to the Civil Service Bureau.
Under an established mechanism, there are “suitable arrangements” for cases that may involve civil servants whose performance is not up to standard, Lo told a TVB programme.
The health secretary’s remarks came after the council removed paediatrician Sit Sou-chi from the General Register for nine months, having found him guilty of professional misconduct over a blunder that left a boy with cerebral palsy 16 years ago.
The medical watchdog made the decision last week after restarting the disciplinary inquiry into Sit’s case last November. The paediatrician was found guilty of failing to conduct all necessary and immediate investigations after a newborn boy suffered a seizure in December 2009 at Hong Kong Baptist Hospital.
The newborn, Li Yuanjian, is the child of a mainland Chinese couple. The parents filed the complaint in 2010 and an inquiry was scheduled for 2016, but it was postponed after the doctor requested to review new evidence, and the case remained stalled until last November.
After the ruling last Sunday, the boy’s father told reporters that the family waited 16 years for the result.
The Medical Council of Hong Kong. Photo: Supplied.
“Under a fair disciplinary system, complainants should not have to wait for years and go through several setbacks and spark significant public attention before justice is finally served,” he said in Chinese.
Reforms
The government said in a statement that it respected the council’s judgement, adding that it hoped the decision would allow the parents to focus on Li’s care and rehabilitation “while maintaining their confidence in Hong Kong’s healthcare system and institutional framework.”
The blunder prompted the Health Bureau to propose a legislative amendment to reform to Medical Council’s complaint mechanism which would shorten the time needed to commence an investigation by a year, from 3.5 years to 2.5 years.
Lo said on Sunday that unnecessary delays could be prevented, but added that it cannot be promised that “no case will exceed five, seven, or 10 years,” as the council might have to wait for criminal prosecutions or Coroner’s Court hearings to wrap up.
The health secretary also said that the government would consider appointing a directorate-level officer from the Department of Health to lead the watchdog’s secretariat.
Dedicated staff could be assigned as investigators depending on the complexity of the cases, as most of the watchdog’s investigators were administrative staff, he added.