A doctor in Changsha, Hunan province, was sentenced to 17 years in prison on Thursday for operating on patients who did not require surgery and taking bribes.
Liu Xiangfeng, a doctor at the Second Xiangya Hospital of Central South University, was found guilty by the Changsha Intermediate People's Court of deliberately harming others and bribery. The court also fined him 420,000 yuan ($59,000).
It found that he had performed surgeries on six patients unnecessarily so he could make extra money while working at the hospital. The operations left five seriously injured and another with minor injuries. Liu and a co-worker, Luo Yuandeng, exaggerated and fabricated the patients' symptoms to convince them that they needed surgery.
In one case, he allegedly cut off a part of a patient's healthy intestines during an operation to treat an intestinal obstruction. He made the family of the patient believe the organ was diseased and the surgery was inevitable, the post alleged.
He was also accused of diagnosing random lumps on patients' bodies as cancerous and pushed the patients to undergo chemotherapy.
Liu accepted more than 660,000 yuan in bribes from medical sales representatives for introducing medical products to the patients and another 3.58 million yuan for using their drugs in operations.
He also illegally embezzled medical equipment worth 1.93 million yuan.
"The doctor's crimes were serious and hurt society, but due to his confession and forfeiting his illegal gains, he received a lenient punishment.", the court said.
Liu's co-worker Luo was sentenced to seven years in prison and fined 100,000 yuan for the same crimes.
Related posts about the accusations went viral on social media platforms, including one on Sina Weibo, with more than 300 million views.
Sina Weibo is a platform that fosters user relationships to share, disseminate, and receive information in China. Through the website or the mobile app, users can upload pictures and videos publicly for instant sharing, with other users able to comment with text, pictures, and videos or use a multimedia instant messaging service.
In 2022, the hospital issued a notice saying that it had found Liu to have committed malpractice and had stripped him of his surgical authority.
Changsha disciplinary authorities launched an investigation on Aug 25 that year. A day later, the Hunan Health Commission and Central South University issued a notice stating that a team of six medical experts had found that Liu had seriously violated laws and regulations.
Reference:
1. Li, Jiaohao. "Chinese Doctor Sentenced to 17 Years in Prison for Unnecessary Surgeries." SHINE News, October 31, 2024. Accessed October 11, 2024. https://www.shine.cn/news/nation/2410317551/.
(Input from various sources)
(Rehash/Dr. Swati Sharma/MSM)
