A Health Practitioners Disciplinary Tribunal decision made public yesterday found Ratilal Magan Ranchhod guilty of working without a current practising certificate in 2008 and 2009 and forging one.
Numerous complaints about the doctor were made to the Health and Disability Commissioner by the time Dr Ranchhod's practising certificate expired in December 2008. The commissioner wrote to the Medical Council in December 2007 to warn it about Dr Ranchhod, after the 14th and 15th complaints were received.
"I now hold grave concerns that the public is at risk of harm by Dr Ranchhod's ongoing practice," Commissioner Ron Paterson wrote.
Mr Ryall yesterday asked for an urgent report into why it took the Medical Council a year to cancel Dr Ranchhod's practising certificate, The Dominion Post reported.
Council chairman John Adams said he was not aware of Mr Ryall's request yesterday but stood by the council's actions.
"People felt that there was not a substantive enough background to immediately suspend Dr Ranchhod's [practising certificate] but further measures were taken by strengthening the conditions of his practice.
"As it turned out, with further complaints, the council decided not to renew his certificate."
The council asked Dr Ranchhod to retrain and re-sit the College of General Practitioners' Primex exam to prove his competency.
He failed the clinical part of the exam in December 2008.
A College of GPs spokesman said yesterday that he failed again when he sat the test at the end of 2009.
The tribunal censured him, fined him $7500, ordered him to pay $20,000 in costs, and suspended him from practising for two months.
