Misconduct costs doctors their licenses

Surgeon, physician punished after news of extramarital affair draws ire

Beijing municipal health authority has revoked the medical licenses of a former senior surgeon and a resident physician at a major Beijing hospital for violations of professional ethics and academic misconduct, the National Health Commission said on Thursday.

The disciplinary action follows an official investigation that attracted widespread public attention after the two doctors' extramarital affair and personal misconduct emerged in April. The case has prompted scrutiny of loopholes in surgical oversight, professional ethics and medical school admissions.

According to the commission, the former senior surgeon, surnamed Xiao, arbitrarily left an operating room mid-surgery while the patient was under anesthesia. He departed along with his assistant following an argument with a nurse at China-Japan Friendship Hospital in July.