The Health Professions Council of South Africa is fretting over a steep rise in the number of doctors on their books who are completely off their faces on dwelms and drink.

Council spokesman Bertha Peters-Scheepers said yesterday: “There is a continuing flow of reports of practitioners suspected of impairment relating to substance abuse, mental illness and physical conditions.”

Impairment, according to the Health Professions Act, refers to a condition that renders a practitioner incapable of practising their profession with reasonable skill and safety.

Most new cases in the latest period were using alcohol (15) or self-prescribed medication (13), including pethidine and benzodiazepines.

One practitioner is being counselled for cocaine addiction. Other drugs abused include Ritalin, Propofol and Temgesic.

An intern at a Gauteng hospital had this to say on the matter:

The drinking stems from medical school and gets worse in their internship years because of the exposure and mixture of prescribed medication and drugs with alcohol. That is the leading cause. Unfortunately, this is barely prevented and usually treated only once it is too late.

Some are excited by earning more money and start spending it irresponsibly, leading to them being in debt. It’s because of this that I recommend urgent financial training for young doctors from as early as medical school.

Shame man, guys. Don’t get drunk and kill us, please? Okay thanks.

[Source : TimesLive]