ALMOST ALL PATIENTS who walk into a clinic seeking medical help expect their doctor to give them the right diagnosis. To many, it will come as a surprise to learn that doctors regard this as an unreasonable expectation and say they should be entitled to get it wrong.
From the consumer's point of view, it is hard to accept that having spent several hundred dollars on a specialist consultation, the medical assessment of the patient's condition may be incorrect. This was starkly demonstrated by a complaint case handled by the Hong Kong Medical Council last month. Patients may have been puzzled by the statement by council chairman Dr Lee Kin-hung that 'misdiagnosis does not necessarily mean misconduct'.
The case concerned a patient, identified only as Mrs Leung, who could have lost her unborn child as a result of a mistaken diagnosis. Gynaecologist Dr Mak Kit-che wrongly came to the conclusion that the foetus was dead. Mrs Leung discovered the error when she sought a second opinion and found that the baby was still alive. She later gave birth to a healthy boy, who is now 18 months old.
However, the Medical Council disciplinary panel which heard the case found Dr Mak, who admitted being responsible for the wrong diagnosis, not guilty of professional misconduct. Mrs Leung hit out at the decision and said the rights of patients had been ignored. 'If I had not seen another doctor, I would have had an abortion and lost my son forever,' she said. 'He is my greatest treasure.'
Patients' rights activists warned that the council's verdict appeared to send out the message that doctors did not have to pay for their errors. Mrs Leung's experience also prompted concern that no one knows how prevalent misdiagnosis is in Hong Kong.
Her husband said: 'Our case could be the tip of the iceberg. Medical misdiagnosis could be happening every day. It is so troublesome for us to make the complaint. It takes so much of our time and energy, but we don't mind as long as there is justice.'
