Doctor 'traumatised' woman with request to remove veil

Dr Keith Wolverson has worked in Stoke-on-Trent and Derby

A doctor who left a female patient "traumatised" when he told her to remove her veil has an "impaired" fitness to practise, a tribunal ruled.

Dr Keith Wolverson was dishonest in his response to the woman's complaint and also wrote inappropriate comments about several patient's language skills, it was concluded.

At the time, in 2018, he was working as a locum in Derby and Stoke-on-Trent.

Dr Wolverson had denied his actions had impaired his fitness to practise.

Sanctions may now be imposed on his registration by the Medical Practitioners Tribunal Service (MPTS).

The medic had been working in urgent care centres in the cities, having qualified as a GP in 1999.

He admitted recording inappropriate comments about patients' English language skills between January and April 2018, the tribunal said.

They included "I do not understand a word these parents are saying" and "absolutely abysmal English".

While the tribunal found there was no evidence the doctor let his personal views affect his treatment, it decided the patients would have been shocked and upset if they read the notes.

'Traumatised'

Dr Wolverson admitted asking the woman to remove her veil, that he caused her to do so and apologised during the MPTS for any upset he caused her.

The tribunal ruled he made the request despite her objections and knowing her English was not poor but in an email dishonestly claimed he struggled to understand her.

The woman, who wore the veil for religious reasons, said in her evidence the doctor's actions had left her "traumatised".

Several of the allegations amounted to serious misconduct and brought the medical profession into disrepute, the MPTS decided.

They also concluded there was a risk of Dr Wolverson might have repeated his actions.