Former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra criticised the Medical Council today, for not observing its own code of ethics, claiming that some council members had scolded him in their Line group.
His comments were in response to a question from a reporter about the Medical Council’s disciplinary action against three doctors, two from the Police General Hospital (PGH) and one from the Corrections Department’s hospital, who were responsible for his transfer to and treatment on the 14th floor of the PGH for about six months while serving a prison sentence.
He told the media that there was a “leak” from the Medical Council’s Line group, showing some council members scolding him.
This indicates that the Medical Council itself has ethical problems, claimed Thaksin, adding that this situation is affecting all parties concerned. “There would be no problem if there was compliance with the rules and professional ethics,” he opined.
Thaksin also said that he believes Public Health Minister Somsak Thepsuthin, in his capacity as the special chair of the Medical Council, has all the relevant information in hand and must think carefully about whether to accept or to veto the council’s rulings against the three doctors.
The council ruled that the two PGH doctors did not provide correct information about the medical condition of Thaksin and found that a third doctor did not perform her duty in accordance with accepted medical standards.
Regarding the June 13th hearing in the Supreme Court’s Criminal Division for Political Office holders, to consider whether the prison term passed on Thaksin had been enforced by the Corrections Department, Thaksin said he does not expect the matter to be concluded in one session and does not want to speculate about the outcome.
