South African Radio interview transcript: Questions posed regarding the petition:

Sabc Radio interview transcript:
Questions posed regarding the petition:

#dropitandwait South African doctor’s profession and patient care under threat.

14/01/2020

1) What are your concerns about the arrests of the two doctors?

My main and first concern is that of the poor families that have suffered losses. The bizarre process that has taken place that has lead to the premature criminalisation of the case against both the doctors concerned has created a defensive stance that their medico-legal lawyers will take up.

The answers and information that these grieving families require to allow them to gain closure, curtail their anger and treat their grief will now be even harder to obtain purely because this is now a criminal matter rather than an inquest or medico-legal mediation.

This type of situation required early communication of answers rather than prolonged suppression of questions. #beforeitistoolate

My Second concern is for The Medical fraternity and all healthcare professionals in South Africa. The medical community is broken and paralysed by the calculated attack from certain media outlets. The combination of poorly informed and misunderstood national reporting on this matter can not be understated. Despite numerous attempts to inform, educate and warn the relevant new agencies, their impatience at “getting an up and down story out there” started the vicious cycle of events that has created a fracture in the country’s doctor patient relationship.

Watching two experienced colleagues handcuffed and escorted to court in a police van in full view of the public, for what looks like as per the reports, a medical complication related to medical intervention, has had an unprecedented effect on the medical communities psyche and decision making process with regards to patient care.

We feel betrayed, Broken and bullied by the people we have dedicated our lives to taking care of.

My third concern is related to the NPA, the unprecedented move to prematurely arrest the two doctors concerned and to feed into the anger and grief relating to the families of the patients concerned has now tasked their agency with an extremely complex and sensitive criminal case that has gained world wide attention.

The NPA has chosen to take up the challenge to provide the answers and evidence required for these numerous families. There is a thin line between medical negligence and culpable homicide and the line between medical negligence and unavoidable medical complications is even thinner.

This line is often deliberated and highlighted by the same medical fraternity that has been paralysed and angered by the lack of the prescribed process that should have been followed prior to the arrest.

It is imperative that should the NPA continue criminal legal proceedings against these two doctors, they accept the responsibility to help all the families get the answers that they need, to move on in their grief. Should they fail to do so or not follow through with their promise, it will be a gross injustice on their side to have accepted the task in the first place, before allowing the prescribed medico-legal processes to be followed.

They have accepted the task and everyone is now watching and waiting for the follow-up.

2) What is the current feedback from health professionals after doctor Beale's arrest and court appearance?

Doctors where not to concerned with the initial media reports, we are very used to it, it has become a normal occurrence and well documented internationally that reporters and media outlets always seem to “love the drama and negativity” when it is related to doctors.

Many of us knew or felt that the prescribed medico-legal processes will eventually follow through and a more accurate account would be made available to the public and doctors.

It was only after the actual arrest warrants where granted prior to inquest/medical review and with the video of both doctors being handcuffed and escorted into a police van to attend their court hearing was posted, did it all become apparent that this was a serious issue and we needed to speak out.

The feedback has been united and uniform, across the board. It is evident in every media statement released by our union SAMA, our governing body the HPCSA and every medical fraternity operating within South Africa.

We have major concerns and we need help to stop a disaster.

3) Have doctors noted any trends in complaints, litigation and patients attitude toward them?

If a patient’s family suffers a tragic loss and the family want answers immediately and allow their anger to dictate their decisions, what is stopping them from laying a charge of homicide and expecting the doctor to be arrested immediately without waiting for the inquest or the medico-legal investigation to take place?

Why should that family be treated any different to this case?

This is why we are so concerned that in the event that we do everything we can and a family suffers a loss, their anger now has a channel to directly effect the doctors involved without allowing due, fair and prescribed processes to be followed.

The knock on effect is disastrous:

Medical insurance will rise to include criminal legal fees.

Doctors will be performing more tests resulting in the cost of healthcare rising due the increasing practise of defensive medicine.

Patient’s will be paying more and waiting longer.

But the Most concerning problem is as per the HPCSA:

“If the legal approach used in the case of Professor Beale and Dr Munshi is perpetuated, the board is concerned that medical doctors will in future allow patients to die naturally without their intervention for fear of being criminally prosecuted,”

This can not be stressed any more and South Africa needs to be concerned.

4) Where does this leave doctors and especially specialists?

We don’t know, that is the most upsetting and frustrating thing. Since the arrests in Mid December, the medical fraternity have been looking for leadership from at bare minimum our department of health.

Sama and The HPCSA have also pledged to get us clarity from the department of justice and the NPA but till today, as we speak, there has been no response from any of the four entities cited in the 47000 strong petition.

There has not even been an acknowledgement that they understand the current difficulties doctors, patients and South African healthcare is facing at the moment.

So we wait, put up a brave front and continue trying to treat patients under this dark cloud because if we don’t do it, WHO WILL?