Registered acupuncturist suspended for treating fractured arm
Wednesday, Jun 05, 2013
YourHealth, AsiaOne
SINGAPORE - Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) practitioner Sim Pern Yuen has been suspended by the TCM Practitioners Board after being found guilty of several infractions.
Sim, who is a registered acupuncturist at Nam Wah Pai Traditional Chinese Physician Centre located at Yishun Street 11, was accused of having rendered improper treatment to a Primary four pupil who came in with an injured arm on Feb 29, 2012.
The patient had injured his arm in a fall, and Sim subsequently diagnosed him as having sustained dislocations at the elbow and shoulder portion of the arm.
After treating the arm, he gave the patient 56 Chinese proprietary medicine (CPM) tablets in four unlabelled small transparent packets to the patient.
The patient was brought to a polyclinic for X-ray the next day and it was discovered that he had bone fractures in his left arm.
The complainant, the minor's guardian, alleged that Mr Sim should not have rendered treatment to the patient or prescribed and dispensed the CPM tablets to the patient.
An inquiry was conducted and following investigation, the board determined that Sim was wrong in dispensing the tablets and should not have treated the patient when he suspected that the patient had a bone related injury.
The board said that in prescribing and dispensing the medication, Sim acted in contravention of his registration as an acupuncturist under the TCM Practitioners Board Act as well as the profession's ethical code and guidelines.
The board imposed a penalty of $2,000 and ordered him to pay the costs involved in the inquiry before the Investigation and Committee.
Sim's registration as an acupuncturist was also suspended for a period of two months and he was fined $2,000.
In addition, Sim was required to provide a written undertaking to the board that he would not prescribe or dispense medicine to his patients or attempt to treat bone related injuries in the future.
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