A doctor in private practice, who specialises in hand, wrist and upper limb surgery, has written a Straits Times forum letter calling out the negligent and dismissive conduct of military doctors in Singapore.

The doctor, Tan Soo Heong, wrote that he has encountered cases where injured full-time national servicemen (NSF) were given medical leave by doctors outside of the in-camp medical centre, only to have the medical leave revoked.

The soldiers were then made to return to their duties, which aggravated the injuries sustained by them.

NSFs get medical leave revoked

In his letter, published on Oct. 29, 2018, Tan wrote that the Ministry of Defence (Mindef) and the Singapore Medical Council (SMC) "should be concerned that our young and injured NSFs are not given the rest they require to recover".

He also suggested that errant commanders and medical officers should be reported to the Singapore Medical Council (SMC).

As a doctor, Tan said that he has given NSFs "appropriate medical leave" depending on the severity of their injuries.

However, he claimed to have "encountered cases where soldiers have had their medical leave revoked by their camp's medical officer or commanders and were made to return to their duties".

Violation of ethics

Tan emphasised that an injured NSF who is unable to perform his duties should be entitled to medical leave.

Making the injured NSF return to his duties will also reduce his chance of full recovery.

And according to Tan, some of these NSFs who were made to return to their duties had their medical conditions worsen.

Should be reported

In such cases, Tan pointed out that the doctor may be "breaching the SMC's Ethical Code and Ethical Guidelines" by revoking the medical leave given.

For instance, according to the Ethical Code and Ethical Guidelines (2016) it is stated that:

If you are certifying that the patients are fit to return to work but with limitations on their level of activity at work, you must first ensure that the patients’ work conditions allow this and, to the best of your ability, ensure that appropriate light duties are in fact available to the patients at their place of work.

Hence, Tan also suggested that errand commanders and doctors should be reported to Mindef and the SMC respectively.

SAF zero-tolerance approach to abuse of soldiers

Earlier this year in Parliament, Defence Minister Ng Eng Hen said: "The Ministry of Defence and the SAF take a zero-tolerance approach towards any form of abuse of soldiers or personnel, either by their commanders or peers."

Ng highlighted that the safety of soldiers must not be compromised in a soldier's training, and added:

"SAF soldiers are encouraged to report any unauthorised activity or punishment."

[related_story]

Photo from The Singapore Army's Facebook.

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