Specialist ousted in research
row
Owen Dyer, London
A British epilepsy specialist has been dismissed after an inquiry
panel appointed by the Singaporean government found that he had
infringed patients' rights and acted unethically while conducting
research as director of Singapore's National Neuroscience
Institute.
Professor Simon Shorvon, 54, was
dismissed from his post last Thursday after conceding in a letter
that the panel's findings were correct. "I accept the report and
the findings therein," he wrote in a letter dated 31 March in
response to the panel's original report, which was released on 21
March.
Mr Michael Lim, chairman of the National Healthcare Group, the
public body that employed Professor Shorvon, wrote to him on 25
March offering him two choices: accepting the findings of the
health ministry inquiry; or facing a commission of inquiry led by a
judge, the equivalent of a public inquiry.
On the same day the panel released a supplementary report that
accused the professor of tampering with patients' records while
visiting the offices of the solicitors advising the panel.
Professor Shorvon has denied these charges, which have been passed
on to the Singapore police.
The inquiry centred on a $6m (£3.8m; a5.6m) government sponsored
study of genetic factors in Parkinson's disease and two other
disorders. When Professor Shorvon and his assistants found
themselves far short of patient recruitment targets for the
Parkinson's disease arm of the study, they obtained lists of
patients from two hospitals. They recruited 127 patients by calling
them directly, bypassing their neurologists.
The patients' neurologists were not informed of the tests that were
done, which in many cases included altering their treatment.
Patients were tested for Parkinson's disease by an L-dopa test,
which usually involved missing one or two doses before testing of
motor function. Missing doses was potentially harmful to patients,
the panel found.
Also, the consent forms signed by the patients made no mention of
the L-dopa test, during which several patients were videotaped.
Members of the study's ethics committee also testified that they
were unaware of the tests.
Professor Shorvon's research assistant and doctoral student Mr
Ramachandran Viswanathan was singled out for especially harsh
criticism by the panel, which said the student had "fled
Singapore." The government has begun procedures to extradite him
from India. The health ministry has also announced plans to
strengthen research ethics committees.
Professor Shorvon left Singapore last weekend and has returned to
his previous job at the Institute of Neurology at University
College London. The university is carrying out its own
investigation of the allegations.
The Medical Protection Society issued a statement on Professor
Shorvon's behalf, saying he could not comment while at least one
formal inquiry is pending. The statement said: "Although he
initially accepted the inquiry's report and its conclusions it was
under exceptional circumstances and there is a great deal in the
report that he is contesting."
Another British neurologist, Professor Nick Wood, also of the UCL
Institute of Neurology, was also involved in the research. He
refused to answer the inquiry panel's questions, but sent them a
message saying he had not helped to formulate the study protocol.
The panel criticised his refusal to appear but refrained from
further comment.
(source: BMJ Journals)
