Doctor Suspended & Fined for Downloading Porn at Polyclinic & Trying to Sell Erectile Dysfunction Drug to Non-Patient

Healthcare workers have a tough job on their hands.

These doctors and nurses head to work every day to treat patients with all sorts of illnesses, risking getting diseases themselves.

Thanks to their selfless efforts, Singapore has a high COVID-19 recovery rate.

While all these doctors have been running around treating critically ill patients, however, one was busy downloading porn in his clinic.

Doctor Downloaded Porn at Polyclinic & Tried to Sell Erectile Dysfunction Drug to Non-Patient

There are good and bad doctors, and then they there are weird ones.

In 2017, the National Healthcare Group (NHG) discovered that a doctor at Choa Chu Kang Polyclinic, Dr Ho Tze Woon, had downloaded pornographic and obscene materials on his computer.

And it wasn’t just on one computer.

Dr Ho had downloaded porn on the computers of six consultation rooms at the polyclinic from October 2014 to July 2016.

Yes, you have a fever and should rest at home. Now if you don’t mind I have some urgent business to attend to.

After conducting investigations into the breach, NHG dismissed Dr Ho in Feb 2017.

But that isn’t the end of Dr Ho’s story.

A few months after being fired, the doctor tried to sell an erectile dysfunction drug to a man.

He first got supplies of the drug, called Cialis, from clinics in Singapore and Malaysia, saying it was for himself.

Cialis, which is the brand name for Tadalafil, is used to treat erectile dysfunction. It can only be given to patients through prescription.

After obtaining the drug, Dr Ho then tried to sell it to a customer who was not his patient.

The deal fell through the first time on the buyer’s demand, as the packaging was damaged. It was also called off the second time they negotiated as both men couldn’t agree on a price.

Received Fine & Suspension 

While it was not revealed how Dr Ho was caught, he admitted to breaching the Singapore Medical Council’s (SMC) Ethical Code and Ethical Guidelines.

The doctor pleaded guilty to two charges of seeking to supply a regulated medicine or drug to someone who was not his patient in May and October 2017.

For his offences, Dr Ho was sentenced in March to a five-month suspension from the register of medical practitioners, as well as a S$2,000 fine.

The sentence was meted out by an SMC-appointed disciplinary tribunal.

The tribunal argued that in trying to sell the drug less than three months after being fired, Dr Ho exhibited a “distinct lack of remorse”.

The tribunal warned other doctors and healthcare professionals not to take the privilege of dispensing regulated medicine or drugs lightly.

Feature Image: Billion Photos / Shutterstock.com