Fake doctor charged after sneaking into emergency ward to diagnose patients
PUBLISHED : Saturday, 18 April, 2015, 3:33pm
UPDATED : Saturday, 18 April, 2015, 3:33pm
Thomas Chan [email protected]
The Accident and Emergency Ward of United Christian Hospital in Kwun Tong, where the fake doctor conducted a check-up on a patient. Photo: Felix Wong
A man who masqueraded as a doctor in a Hong Kong hospital has been charged in court where details of his charade with at least one patient were revealed.
Clad in a black jacket and surgical face mask, Mo Man-yip, 24, a financial investment agent, was charged with one count of pretending to be a registered medical practitioner. Mo did not enter a plea.
Mo had gone to the United Christian Hospital in Kwun Tong, going so far as conducting a medical check-up on a male patient and later calling up the patient’s family to update them on his medical condition.
Laying out the allegations, Kowloon City magistrate Ronald Cheung Wai-tat said that on April 14, at 6.30pm, Mo donned a doctor’s white gown and claimed he was working at the accident and emergency department, where he requested to see a patient.
His request was rejected by a ward manager, who found Mo’s face unfamiliar.
But an hour later, Mo was spotted conducting a check-up on a patient. “At 7.30pm [on April 14], the defendant was conducting a medical check for a patient by placing a stethoscope on his chest,” Cheung said.
The ward manager became anxious about the safety of the patients and alerted hospital security.
Upon viewing CCTV footage, a security manager found that Mo was neither a doctor nor a UCH staff member.
However, it was two days later, on April 16 – after Mo was spotted at the hospital again – that the security officer called police.
“Under caution, the defendant admitted the offence, and claimed he was studying a medical course in Australia, but he failed the course,” magistrate Cheung said. “He admired the doctors’ work very much and thus impersonated a doctor.”
Cheung requested two psychiatrists’ reports to ascertain whether Mo was fit to take plea.
Prosecutor Fanny Toh noted that “during police custody … [Mo] was very emotional and hit his head against the wall”.
The suspect is remanded in jail custody, pending his second court appearance on April 30.
Cheung said that under the Medical Registration Ordinance, Mo could face a jail term of up to three years.
Cheung advised Mo, who was not represented by a lawyer, to seek legal advice as soon as possible.
