GP called fellow doctor a wimp after public row

A doctor pressed his surgery panic button when a fellow GP, he had previously had a ‘heated debate’ with, went into his room.

And an industrial tribunal heard that the two were involved in an ‘altercation’ in front of patients.

Dr Mark Struthers, 53, alleged at the hearing that Dr Talib Mearza, a partner at the Flitwick Surgery, had earlier accused him of ‘practising bad medicine’ and not ‘correctly examining a patient’ during a clinical governance meeting last March.

Bedford Employment Tribunal heard that Dr Struthers said ‘stuff it’ and walked out of the discussion held at the practice. He then requested a further meeting with Dr Mearza.

What followed was an incident in the corridor in view of patients and Dr Struthers (pictured right) admitted that when Dr Mearza asked him if he was threatening him he said ‘yes’.

It was said that Dr Mearza had pressed his panic button when Dr Struthers, who was claiming he was unfairly dismissed for gross misconduct from the surgery he had worked at for more than six years, had gone to his room.

However, Dr Struthers said he was just asking for a meeting and Dr Mearza pressed it as soon as he went in.

Peter Graves, chief executive of the Beds and Herts Local Medical Committee, who gave evidence at the hearing, said he had never been in a practice before where a panic button had been pressed.

Sandy Hedges, practice manager and Dr William De Groot also gave evidence for the respondent.

Over the next few days, Dr Struthers sent Dr Mearza a number of emails, one of which referred to him as a ‘wimp’ and a ‘weasel’.

Dr Struthers told the tribunal: “I called him a wimp because he pressed the panic button and I called him a weasel because he played a dirty trick on me.” Dr Struthers, was suspended from the practice pending an investigation and then in April, 2009, he was told he was being dismissed for gross misconduct.

Peter Linstead, on behalf of the claimant, said that there were ‘strained relations between the employer and employee’ and added: “The partners didn’t like the man and there were things brewing in the background.” The court heard that the previous year, Dr Struthers received a letter from Dr Ling, senior partner at the practice, saying that the surgery did not want to be associated with the contents of his letter which had been published in the British Medical Journal.

Then a few months later, Dr Struthers had a meeting with Dr Ling about computer system problems at the surgery.

Dr Struthers said that if the ‘chaos’ continued then he would go home. Dr Ling told him ‘this w as not helpful’. Dr Struthers expressed his concern that there was a ‘culture of discrimination’ against salaried GPs at the practice and said that he became ‘depressed’ after being dismissed.

He said: “I did not consider my actions come anywhere close to gross misconduct.” On behalf of Dr Ling and partners – the respondent – Cyrus Katrak said: “One can imagine the clear message that would have been sent out to doctors in the practice if a doctor was allowed to react in this way at clinical events and walk away from it.

“We say enough investigation had been done and that there was enough evidence to suggest that the sanction was reasonable.” The tribunal heard the case of Dr Struthers’ claim for unfair dismissal on Wednesday and Thursday in Bedford.

A judgement was reserved for a future date.