Great Ormond Street doctor suspended for 'serious' dishonesty

Dr James Ip is a consultant paediatric cardiac anaesthetist at the central London children's hospital

A doctor at Great Ormond Street Hospital has been suspended for six months after he used his wife's free travel card on the London Underground.

Dr James Ip, a consultant paediatric cardiac anaesthetist at the central London children's hospital, was convicted of not having a valid ticket.

He used the pass 55 times from December 2021 to February 2022, which was considered when a £500 fine was issued.

The tribunal stated it was an issue of "serious" dishonesty.

The General Medical Council (GMC) recognised that Dr Ip did not post a risk to patient safety, and is a "well respected and a skilled clinician within the NHS".

But it said that his conviction at Lavender Hill Magistrates' Court on 4 July 2022 impacted professional standards and public confidence in the medical profession.

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The Medical Practitioners Tribunal Service found that his fitness to practise was impaired because of the conviction and that he had breached "one of the fundamental tenets of the medical profession by acting dishonestly".

In a statement, Dr Ip said he started to use the free travel pass because he had a "sense of injustice of having to pay to go to work during a pandemic".

The tribunal noted that it was "unable" to accept Dr Ip's explanation, because there was no lockdown and most people had been vaccinated when he was using the pass.

Less than half of the journeys Dr Ip took with the pass were for his NHS work at Great Ormond Street Hospital. The others were for his private work, and some were not for work reasons, the tribunal also noted.

A spokesperson for Great Ormond Street Hospital said it was aware of the GMC decision.

"We are working with the team to ensure all patient care continues safely and efficiently," they added.

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