In a landmark ruling by the Court of Appeal, Dr Low Chai Ling, has won an appeal against SMC’s (Singapore Medical Council), who convicted her of performing aesthetic procedures such as mesotherapy and carboxytherapy in 2007.
These procedures were widely performed by many medical practioners, including government hospitals such as KK Hospital. In addition, guidelines regulating the practice of these procedures only came out in mid 2008. Despite the obvious problems with the case, SMC proceeded find Dr Low guilty and sentence her to a $10,000 fine and order her to pay for 80% of the cost of the hearing.
All of us are so happy that she has won the appeal. Above all, we are so relieved that she does not have to continue undergoing the emotional burden and trauma of having a court case hanging over her head.
Some notable quotes from The Sunday Times ran an article yesterday (23 Sept 2012), titled ‘SMC taken to task over aesthetic doc’s case’:
“It is unsatisfactory that any medical practitioner should be singled out and charged with professional misconduct soley for administering such procedures, which were only clearly deemed by SMC not to be evidence-based well after the alleged transgression.”
“The apparent unjustness of sanctioning the applicant becomes even more plain when the prevalence of the practice of the impugned treatments by many of her contemporaries (some more prominent than her, none who have been taken to task) is taken into account.”
“The charges were for the treatments done before the ministry’s warning letters were sent. The way the charges were framed raises troubling questions as to what she was really punished for.”
Once again, congratulations to Dr Low Chai Ling.
I thought she looked gorgeous in the blue dress by the way, despite facing immense pressure on the day of hearing!
