A GP who worked for an out-of-hours service in Dublin attempted to resuscitate a patient while the patient was sitting in a chair, a Medical Council fitness-to-practise inquiry was told yesterday.
Dr George Dimitrov Georgiev, from South Africa, is facing six allegations of professional misconduct and/or poor performance taken against him by the Medical Council. He was not present at the opening of his case yesterday.
The Medical Council has alleged Dr Georgiev, who worked for Contractors Medical Bureau in Dublin, failed to explain to the family that his patient, John Dunne, was in a critical condition.
He allegedly failed to tell the family how to deal with Mr Dunne once he had passed away.
The doctor also allegedly failed to adequately resuscitate Mr Dunne when he attempted cardio-pulmonary resuscitation (CPR) on him while he was sitting in his chair.
Mr Dunne (65) died in July 2009 after having a heart attack in his Dublin 12 home. His wife, Elizabeth Dunne, and his daughter, Frances Magee, complained to the Medical Council about Dr Georgiev’s behaviour.
Counsel for the doctor, Eileen Barrington BL, told the fitness-to-practise committee that the council’s own expert witness appeared to accept only two of the allegations against her client might constitute poor performance.
In his report, Prof Colin Bradley had said CPR given to a patient in a sitting position was “futile” and “could constitute poor performance”, Ms Barrington said. The doctor’s lack of advice to the family after Mr Dunne’s death could also be poor performance, she said.
She told the committee Dr Georgiev had already offered to give an undertaking never to practise in Ireland again and there was no need for the case to go ahead. If it did go ahead, it should be adjourned until her client could be present or questioned via video link.
She said her client was in South Africa and was not a man who answered his e-mails speedily. He had not yet got a visa to travel to Ireland on his South African passport and his Bulgarian passport had not yet been renewed. He was concerned the case might proceed in his absence, she said.
Solicitor JP McDowell, for the Medical Council, argued the date for the hearing had been set in July and the doctor had adequate opportunity to arrange to be present.
After deliberating, chairman of the committee Dr Danny O’Hare, said he would reluctantly agree to adjourn the case to November. The case would go ahead then whether the doctor was present or not, he said.
