GP failing to save Zulfarhan: MMA says docs can intervene to help victims

 

The Malaysian Medical Association (MMA) says doctors can act on behalf of their patients if they are believed to have suffered abuse.

MMA president Koh Kar Chai said this in response to the Kuala Lumpur High Court ruling on the death of Universiti Pertahanan Nasional Malaysia student Zulfarhan Osman Zulkarnian who died after being subjected to ragging by his peers.

"Doctors are trained to detect potential victims of abuse when faced with them in the clinic.

"These victims may be of all ages and may present with different signs of abuse and a doctor is trained to be alert to such signs of abuse, be they in toddlers or the elderly etc," Koh told Malaysiakini.

One notable part of the court decision said if the doctor at a private clinic in Bangi had intervened when he treated Zulfarhan, he might not have died.

“The doctor should not have turned a blind eye and believed the deceased was involved in an explosion during training till he sustained burns on his entire body, including his penis and testis, but did not have a single mark on his face,” judge Azman Abdullah said in his ruling.

Zulfarhan eventually died from the 90 burn wounds he suffered from a steam iron used on him by his peers in 2017.

MMA president Koh Kar Chai

Koh said doctors can act on behalf of the victims who are unable or complain or relate the incidents of abuse by making a police report.

"These victims are then treated before being handed over to the appropriate authorities for further action.

"In cases where the abusers are present and may hinder the treatment required, the appropriate authorities will be notified so that protection can be offered to the victims," he said.

The court ruled that Zulfarhan had died from the torture he suffered but found that the murder was not premeditated.

The six accused, Muhammad Akmal Zuhairi Azmal, Muhammad Azamuddin Mad Sofi, Muhammad Najib Mohd Razi, Muhammad Afif Najmudin Azahat, Mohamad Shobirin Sabri and Abdoul Hakeem Mohd Ali were sentenced to 18 years in jail after being found guilty of culpable homicide not amounting to murder.

The court also sentenced the entire group - with the exception of Mohamad Shobirin - along with 12 of his fellow students to three years in jail after being found guilty of causing grievous hurt to the victim. All of the accused are currently 25 years old. - Mkini