Essex doctor struck off for writing fake prescriptions Published duration 15 July 2019

image copyright PA image caption Dr Khan said he had a "storm of turmoil going on inside of me" when he worked at Broomfield Hospital, Chelmsford

A doctor was caught writing fake prescriptions when he ordered menopause medicine for a pregnant woman.

Dr Mohammad Khan admitted accessing patient information and writing prescriptions under randomly selected names for the benefit of a family friend living in Pakistan.

Dr Khan was as a locum in the emergency department of Broomfield Hospital, Chelmsford, Essex at the time.

A medical tribunal has now struck him off because of his "unsafe" behaviour.

Dr Khan prescribed two medicines associated with gynaecological conditions under two randomly selected names from the hospital's database on 11 March 2018.

However, he was caught when pharmacists queried why he had prescribed medication normally used to help with the menopause to a pregnant woman.

They also questioned why Dr Khan had written the other prescription for a patient who had not attended A&E for at least five months.

'Kind intention'

During a hearing at the Medical Practitioners Tribunal Service, Dr Khan told the tribunal: "There was a storm of turmoil going on inside of me whether to go ahead and do this."

He added that he was "ashamed" of his actions, was just "trying to help a friend" and his actions had "kind intentions".

Mid Essex Hospital Services Trust, which run Broomfield Hospital, did not conduct an internal investigation because Dr Khan was agency staff, but he was immediately dismissed.

The tribunal criticised Dr Khan's "unsafe" actions that could have caused future medical problems for his friend and the other patients because of inconsistencies in their medical records.