Dr Mark Dudley welcomes Court advice following Mezey case

Dr Mark Dudley, Senior Medicolegal Adviser at the Medical Protection Society, has welcomed the Court of Appeal's public reminder that suspending medical professionals is not a neutral act, and can be contested by the Courts.

Dr Dudley's statement comes following an important decision made today by the Court of Appeal, as it refused South West London & St. George’s Mental Health NHS Trust permission to appeal against an earlier decision made by Mr Justice Underhill.

The High Court had granted Dr Mezey an interim injunction compelling the Trust to allow her to return to non-clinical work pending a disciplinary hearing. In giving the Court of Appeal’s reasons Lord Justice Sedley said there was no reason in principle why an injunction should not be available in these circumstances and that the suspension from work of a professional person is not a neutral act.

Dr Dudley said: "While patient safety is always paramount, it is vital that employing Trusts behave proportionately. For a long time there has been a fiction that suspension from work on full pay is a neutral act. It is to be welcomed that the Court of Appeal has explicitly confirmed that the suspension of a professional is not a neutral act, and that the Courts can interfere by granting an injunction in appropriate cases, where there is no risk to patients.”

Notes to editors

1. Dr. Mezey is employed by South West London & St. George’s Mental Health NHS Trust as a Consultant Forensic Psychiatrist.

2. Dr. Mezey offered to withdraw from clinical work in November 2006, until the disciplinary process had been completed, following the publication of an inquiry report dealing with a homicide by a patient. However, the Trust’s Chief Executive excluded her from all her work with the Trust.

3. The issue came before Mr. Justice Underhill on 19 December 2006 and he gave judgment in the case on 20 December 2006 and 9 January 2007.  Transcripts of those decisions can be found at 2006 EWHC 3473 (QB) and 2007 EWHC 62 (QB).

4. A further hearing to determine if a permanent injunction should be made has been listed in the High Court for 21 February 2007.