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General Veers
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Wednesday October 13, 2010
Bogus doctors are just a pain
By NELSON BENJAMIN and DESIREE THRESA GASPER
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JOHOR BARU: Bogus doctors and faith healers are advertising their services on the Internet and the vernacular newspapers promising “painless” and “instant” recovery from a surgery. Those conned by them include senior government servants, professionals and businessmen and they were told that they could return to work immediately after the treatment, said state Health Committee chairman Dr Robiah Kosai. “Their selling point is that there is no pain and the patient can go back to work as soon as the procedure is over.
The fees charged can run into thousands of ringgit. Any doctor will tell you that when a surgery is performed, the patient would definitely need some time to recover and heal,” she told The Star. Describing such incidents as being rampant, she said the conmen would do anything to convince their victims, including having an operation theatre in their premises complete with surgical equipment.
Dr Robiah advised people to go to government hospitals or clinics to avoid complications. “Sometimes those who go to bomohs and faith healers only come to the hospital when they are too sick and by then it is too late,” she said. In a related case, an alternative medical practitioner was charged at a Sessions Court here with operating without a licence.
The director of Pusat Jagaan Ambulatori Swasta, Johari Mansor, 52, pleaded not guilty to the offence under the Private Healthcare Facilities and Services Act. He was jointly charged with his wife Rusnani Abd Rahman, 49, with operating the centre without a licence at Jalan Padi Emas in Bandar Baru Uda here on June 9. Sessions Court judge Norazlan Ahmad set Nov 29 for trial.
