Legal loophole highlighted as drunken doctor escapes prosecution

(Getty Image)

A doctor in his 20s was found to have performed sutures for a facial wound while under the influence of alcohol at a general hospital in Gangdong-gu, Seoul, last week, reigniting controversy over a lack of sanctions for practicing medicine in such a state.

In the recent case, a patient in his 60s reported to police that he suspected the doctor was drunk on Dec. 12, last year, shortly after an operation to stitch up a facial wound. Police visited the hospital and tested the doctor's blood alcohol level.

Although evidence of drinking was found, police were unable to press charges because the medical law does not stipulate any punishment for it.

"There is nothing police can do except to notify the district office, as administrative penalties for drunken medical practice is under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Health and Welfare," a police official said.

Under current law, no regulation specifically states that a doctor is to be sanctioned due to his or her "act of inebriation." Article 66 of the Medical Service Act only stipulates that the minister of health and welfare may suspend medical personnel licenses for up to one year in such a case where a person "severely undermines the dignity" of the profession.

Doctors could face criminal charges for medical malpractice if a patient is injured or dies while being treated by a doctor who is under the influence of alcohol. But it is difficult for prosecutors to press charges, as they have to prove a direct causal link between the doctor's inebriation and the injury or death.

The specialized and closed nature of medical practice makes it nearly impossible for patients to be aware of every process that happens during surgery, leaving law enforcement to rely on medical records created by the doctor.

This is not the first time a doctor has been caught treating patients while drunk.

According to the Ministry of Health and Welfare, nine doctors were sanctioned for practicing medicine while under the influence of alcohol from 2019 to 2023. But in each case, they were only given monthlong suspensions.

In 2020, The National Human Rights Commission recommended that the Ministry of Health and Welfare strengthen administrative penalties by establishing a separate regulation specifically on the use of alcohol. Currently, medical practice while under the influence of alcohol is categorized arbitrarily as "other immoral medical practices" punishable by a "one-month suspension of qualification."

In recognition of the increased social expectations of medical practitioners, the Ministry of Health and Welfare said it was planning to revise the administrative rules with stronger standards.

"In the first half of the year, we will revise the administrative rules with stronger standards by adding provisions for medical practices related to drinking to 'immoral medical practices,'" the ministry official said.

By Choi Jeong-yoon(jychoi@heraldcorp.com)