A senior medical specialist in the Ministry of Health is under investigation foe allegations of drugs use and addiction while employed by the ministry.

This was confirmed by the Permanent Secretary  for Health and Medical Services, Dr James Fong, yesterday.

Concerns were raised that the medical specialist (name withheld) knowingly hid his addiction to drugs, including methamphetamine, while carrying out his clinical duties.

According to the Medical Practitioner Code of Conduct 2016, medical practitioners must report personal medical unfitness or of a colleague. Dr Fong said the health specialist was put on leave pending investigation since last year.

He said the senior specialist had been going through necessary treatment and was still deemed unfit for duty.

There were also similar cases that were investigated by the ministry, Dr Fong said.

“I haven’t re-employed any unless they’ve been treated, but I’m not aware of any case that’s come back,” he said. The health specialist was sent on leave last year pending investigation. “As far as I am concerned, he’s a patient,” Dr Fong said.

Queries directed to the ministry’s Human Resources Department in Toorak, Suva, indicated that the health specialist was still employed by the ministry. “He’s in the system but he’s been stood down from clinical duties for almost a year now,” Dr Fong said.

Asked on allegations that the said specialist was conducting surgeries despite his addiction, Dr Fong said a formal investigation was launched into the allegations when he was told of the matter.

“There’s another investigation that’s separate from that, but once we got to know, we started activating the process,”Dr Fong said. The specialist will not be re-engaged into the health system any time soon. “It’s going through the formal council (Fiji Medical Council) process.

He is under treatment and there is an ongoing investigation,” Dr Fong said.

“He must undergo full treatment and be deemed fit for duty before we can reengage him.”

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