Doctor abandoned anesthetized patient to have relations with a nurse in Manchester hospital
Dr. Suhail Anjum admitted to having sex with a nurse in another operating room, where he was surprised by another hospital employee
Dr. Suhail Anjum was found guilty of gross misconduct after he left the operating room for eight minutes in September 2023, during a procedure at Tameside Hospital, in Ashton-under-Lyne, Greater Manchester. While his patient was unconscious, the doctor entered another operating room where he was caught in a sexual situation with a nurse, whose identity was not revealed. According to the Medical Professional Tribunal Service (MPTS), Anjum asked a colleague to look after the patient, claiming he needed to go to the bathroom. However, he was discovered minutes later by another nurse, who told the tribunal she found the nurse with “his trousers around his knees and his underwear visible” while the doctor tied his trousers drawstring.
The patient was not harmed as a result of the doctor’s absence, according to the tribunal report.
At this week’s hearing in Manchester, the disciplinary panel found that while Dr Anjum’s actions were serious enough to constitute serious professional misconduct, the risk of it happening again was “very low”, and so no discipline was imposed.
“Dr Anjum’s conduct was a significant departure from expected standards,” said tribunal chair Rebecca Miller. “He put his own interests before those of the patient and his colleagues, and the incident had the potential to compromise his medical care.”
However, the tribunal found that the public exposure of the case, coupled with the loss of his job, was sufficient to preserve public confidence in the medical profession, and the anesthesiologist will not face a ban from practicing medicine in the UK.
Speaking before the panel, Dr.Anjum, a married father of three, admitted to having sex with the nurse and knew she would likely be nearby when he left the operating room.
“It was quite embarrassing, to say the least. I only have myself to blame,” he said. “I let everyone down: my patient, my colleagues, the institution, and myself.”
The doctor was dismissed in February 2024 following an internal hospital investigation. He has since temporarily relocated to his native Pakistan, where he continued to practice. He now hopes to return to the UK to continue his medical career and reunite his family.