Doctors Syndicate summons health minister

The Doctors Syndicate’s investigations committee summoned Health Minister Maha al-Rabat for interrogations on March 9 regarding several complaints filed against her by doctors and syndicate officials.

The syndicate’s newly formed general assembly, just established on February 21, pushed for the interrogations, according to a statement published on the syndicate’s official website.

Rabat had said earlier that the syndicate had no right to investigate her, and any interrogation would constitute a political action, according to the privately owned newspaper Al-Masry Al-Youm.

Syndicate board member Amr al-Shora told Mada Masr that first and foremost, the minister is a doctor and a syndicate member, and therefore subject to its disciplinary regulations. 

“The minister tends to personalize matters and use the media in her favor,” Shora claimed.

The syndicate sent Rabat an official letter informing her of the actions taken against her, Shora explained.

“The general assembly represents all doctors nationwide,” and 490 doctors attended the assembly’s meeting, he continued. A quorum of 1,000 doctors is needed for the assembly to vote on taking action, but if that quorum is not met, a second meeting is organized that necessitates a minimum of 300 doctors.

Egyptian law stipulates that any doctor that breaches the code of ethics or fails to respect decisions taken by the syndicate and its general assembly could be disqualified from the syndicate, could be reprimanded, receive a warning, be required to pay an LE200 fine to the syndicate’s treasury and even removed from the ministry’s list of physicians.

Earlier this month, four doctors died of what seemed like the H1N1 virus, according to the syndicate, an allegation later denied by the ministry. The syndicate's Secretary General Mona Mena called for a strike, and the body’s members began to blame the ministry for failing to protect the welfare of medical professionals.