Shrink S One Year Suspension Over Lewd Text Shockingly Inadequate Victim

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A patient who reported her psychiatrist for sending lewd messages in 2019 has found his one-year suspension “shockingly inadequate”.
This is even more so since it took five gruelling years of trying to seek justice before the Malaysian Medical Council (MMC) ordered the suspension.
“While this ruling is an important step, the punishment - a mere one-year suspension of his medical licence - is shockingly inadequate.
“This minimal penalty fails to reflect the severity of his actions and sends the wrong message about the consequences of such behaviour,” the complainant stressed.
She said it would be better if MMC had also included rehabilitation or counselling sessions for the doctor to realise his faults and avoid a recurrence.
Malaysiakini is withholding the identity of the patient, in line with ethical guidelines for reporting on victims of sexual crime.
Professional misconduct
On Nov 19, the MMC disciplinary board found Dr Gurdeep Singh Narain Singh had breached professional conduct by sending lewd text messages to a patient and trying to have a sexual relationship with her.
The psychiatrist, who was sacked from Thomson Hospital over the matter, was found to have sent a series of lewd messages to the patient between June 5 and 10, 2019.
He testified that he was under the influence of alcohol and that the patient had reciprocated his overtures.
However, the disciplinary board noted that this is “irrelevant and does not excuse the respondent’s behaviour” because it is “improper” for medical professionals to engage in sexual or emotional relationships with their patients.
Earlier that year, the woman had sought the psychiatrist’s services for severe anxiety, depression and insomnia, and was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder and prescribed medications.
ADSShe said she was in a poor mental state after she was raped.
Reputational damage, loss of income
Although finding Gurdeep guilty of breaching ethics, the MMC disciplinary board said it is only suspending him for one year.
This is because he had already been charged in court and was acquitted. He also suffered damage to his reputation and loss of income, it added.
The board also said he had expressed remorse for his actions and acknowledged the breach of professional ethics.
Gurdeep was charged with outraging the patient’s modesty in 2020 but was acquitted last year after the prosecution failed to establish a prima facie case.
When contacted on Dec 20, Gurdeep, who was still practising a month after the verdict, said he was appealing the decision.
At the time, he was still listed in the MMC’s registry of practitioners and was accepting appointments with new patients at a Petaling Jaya private psychiatric clinic under the name Dr GS Grewal.
Under the law, he has a month from the notice of the suspension to appeal. The letter sent to him was dated Nov 19.
However, Gurdeep said he only received the letter informing him of the judgement between Dec 9 and 13, so it is still within his rights to appeal.
As of Dec 20, he had yet to file his appeal.
The MMC, in an email to Malaysiakini on Monday, confirmed the finding of “serious misconduct" and that the appeal period was within 30 days of communication of the punishment notice to the practitioner.
The MMC’s Legal and Ethics Division also declined to further clarify if Gurdeep’s suspension is in place, but checks on Tuesday found the psychiatrist was no longer in the MMC’s registry.
‘Traumatising’ road to justice
The patient said her case showed the difficulty that violated patients faced in seeking justice against medical professionals.
She was able to pursue this case for five years because she had the resources, she said, including the ability to attend every hearing and access to a lawyer who acted pro bono.
While a complainant need not be represented by a lawyer during MMC’s disciplinary hearings, respondents usually have legal representation, making it an uneven playing field, she said.
“What has been especially devastating for me - mentally and emotionally - is the toll of pursuing justice. The legal process was gruelling and very traumatising.
“I had to face Gurdeep and his lawyers repeatedly, and be subjected to their abuse and relentless tearing apart of my testimony during cross-examination.
“Every time I was forced to relive the traumatic events and defend myself, it felt like an additional violation,” she said, describing Gurdeep’s lawyer’s attempts to discredit her as “unbearable”.
Unable to miss a single hearing
She also said she had to attend every hearing, even when she was certified ill or had urgent family matters, otherwise her case was at risk of getting dismissed.
“I was told that if I miss a single hearing the case would be thrown out, so imagine if a complainant stays far away from the MMC’s headquarters,” she lamented.
She pointed out that her case highlights the urgent need for systemic reforms in the medical profession.
“Sexual harassment by healthcare professionals is a grave violation of trust, and the punishment should reflect the severity of the crime.
“Medical professionals must face meaningful consequences that go beyond symbolic actions - otherwise, patients will continue to face systemic vulnerability and insufficient protection from those in positions of power,” she stressed. - Mkini

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