Sitting in my inbox was an email from my employer. Not thinking too much about it, I clicked on it. I could not believe what I was reading. They were instigating formal disciplinary action against me. Having found gaps in my notes, they were alleging that my general surgical operating techniques were deficient. My eyes flicked down the screen. There was more. My colleagues were concerned about my post-operative complications rate. There were accusations that I was deskilling.

The final point in the email was like a knockout blow. I was restricted to non-clinical duties pending investigation.

I just felt numb. They didn’t really explain the concerns in the email, so I couldn’t even begin to make sense of it. I cancelled on my friends, I couldn’t face socialising, then spent the rest of the day questioning every decision I’d ever made. 

The one positive thing I did do that day was call Medical Protection for support and advice. Straight away, I was assigned a medicolegal consultant – a doctor with many years’ experience, along with legal training. She listened patiently to my garbled version of the situation, then calmly explained what was going to happen.

Just having someone listen, and reassure me, was incredibly helpful at that point. Hearing that there was a structured way forward, with all the support I needed, made it feel less like everything was falling apart. That sounds dramatic, but when you’re a doctor, your job is more than just a job – and your reputation is everything. She got that. 

She was on the case straight away, but despite repeated requests the hospital refused to provide specific details of the allegations against me. I was left questioning my actions for weeks. We had to threaten court action to compel the hospital to comply with fair process. 

Things couldn’t get any worse. But then they did. 

Suddenly, out of the blue, my employer raised fresh concerns about my decision-making regarding patients with breast conditions. I was completely suspended from my duties. 

I always thought it was just a saying, something taking your breath away. But when I got this latest email, it really was as though all the breath had been knocked out of me. 

Medical Protection continued to fight my case. They constantly reassured me – this wasn’t out of the ordinary, it’s not uncommon for things to move so slowly, we would get there. Finally, the hospital particularised the allegations and supplied copies of the relevant patient notes. We now had the answers that we needed to prepare a written statement.

Medical Protection instructed an independent expert surgeon to review a selection of the case notes. His main criticism was in relation to record-keeping, which came as a relief. Of course, record-keeping is vitally important – and I fully recognise that mine could have been better – but in light of the allegations against me, it felt like a hurdle that could be overcome.

My medicolegal consultant continued to engage with the hospital to ensure productive dialogue, and together we helped them to understand the subtleties involved in managing breast cancer patients. 

With her support I also reflected on my record-keeping. Medical Protection have a really comprehensive range of online essential skills courses included in membership, and the modules on record-keeping were incredibly helpful as part of my reflective process. 

In the end, the investigation found that the concerns didn’t warrant ongoing suspension. Further threats of legal action forced my employer to lift the suspension, and finally, I returned to clinical practice.

All of this took two years. I worried all the time. As doctors, we wouldn’t be human if we didn’t. I worry about my patients. I worry about the care I give them. I also worry about the consequences should something go wrong in my practice – adverse outcomes are sometimes unavoidable in healthcare. 

Medical Protection helped me get through what was the most difficult period of my career. I wasn’t surprised at their level of expertise and insight, which comes from long experience of handling countless cases like mine. Through two years of regulatory and legal process, they constantly kept the pressure on the hospital to move forward. But what I didn’t necessarily expect was the warmth and empathy that carried me through those two long years. Without my team, and particularly my medicolegal consultant, I would have been lost. She was always there for me, and it was a big comfort knowing that as a doctor she had walked in my shoes.

This experience has made me a different doctor. A better doctor, I would say. Medical Protection played a big part in making that happen.

Get protection you can depend on from just £549*

This case is based on a real scenario, with some facts altered to preserve confidentiality. Licensed stock imagery has been used for illustrative purposes only and to protect member confidentiality.