Psychiatrist suspended, fined for irresponsible drug prescription

February 22, 2018

Dr. Siew Hin Chin, a 63-year-old in psychiatrist in Singapore, has been suspended for six months and fined $15,000 for prescribing medication to a patient, despite knowing that he was at risk of abusing it.

He also failed to carry out a proper evaluation of the patient's conditions before giving him the drugs, a Singapore Medical Council (SMC) disciplinary tribunal found.

During the time the patient was under Dr. Siew's care, he was prescribed various drugs including antidepressants, anti-anxiety drugs, sleeping pills and mood stabilizers.

The disciplinary tribunal found that Dr. Siew did not check to see whether these drugs were effective, if there were any side effects or if the patient was at risk of developing drug tolerance or dependency.

He also did not implement a plan to wean the patient off his medication or keep proper medical records on him.

Linette Lai, "Psychiatrist suspended, fined for irresponsible drug prescription," Straits Times, 21 Feb 2018, http://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/psychiatrist-suspended-fined-for-irresponsible-drug-prescription.