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Doctor fined, censured for failing to consider privacy of minor

SINGAPORE — Well-known plastic surgeon Martin Huang Hsiang Shui has been fined S$10,000 and censured by the Singapore Medical Council (SMC) for breaching ethical code and guidelines by not treating a teenage patient with “the required courtesy, consideration, compassion and respect” over the taking of pre-op photographs of her in the nude.

Dr Martin Huang. Photo: Martin Huang/Facebook

Dr Martin Huang. Photo: Martin Huang/Facebook

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SINGAPORE — Well-known plastic surgeon Martin Huang Hsiang Shui has been fined S$10,000 and censured by the Singapore Medical Council (SMC) for breaching ethical code and guidelines by not treating a teenage patient with “the required courtesy, consideration, compassion and respect” over the taking of pre-op photographs of her in the nude.

He also did not take steps to protect the then-17-year-old patient’s privacy and dignity, said the disciplinary tribunal chaired by retired judge L P Thean that heard the case which happened in 2010.

The patient, who cannot be named, had gone to Dr Huang to remove a scar on her left inner thigh, at about the mid-point between her knees and groin. Before the operation, Dr Huang had asked a nurse to remove the patient’s gowns and underwear for seven photographs to be taken although she was allowed to put on her bra after expressing discomfort. Her mother had signed consent forms prior to the operation, which informed about the photo-taking for confidential medical records.

Less than two months later, the teen sued Dr Huang for emotional distress and personal trauma but the parties reached an out-of-court settlement before hearings started. Despite some disagreements over comments made by the doctor to the media subsequently, both sides agreed in November 2011 that the matter had come to a close.

Based on the grounds of decision released by the SMC yesterday, the teen’s mother lodged a complaint with the regulatory body about a month later. She alleged that her daughter panicked and protested when her underwear was taken off for the photos to be taken, where she reacted out of shock and anxiety by using her hands to cover herself.

The disciplinary tribunal said that Dr Huang did not show any concern of the “deep emotional trauma and distress” the teen was having when she had to appear completely nude from waist downwards in front of strangers.

It added that “a clear message should be sent to the medical profession that treating a patient with courtesy, consideration, compassion and respect and offering the right of privacy and dignity is required of all medical practitioners”.

On the request by the SMC prosecutors for the tribunal to order Dr Huang to issue a letter of apology to the patient, the tribunal said it has serious doubts whether it has powers to do so. In any case, it did not think it should make such an order since Dr Huang had already given the patient a similar remedy when they settled the lawsuit in 2011.

But Dr Huang was ordered to pay 70 per cent of the costs and expenses of the disciplinary proceedings, as well as give a written undertaking to the SMC that he would abstain from similar conduct.

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