SINGAPORE – A cardiologist in private practice has been given a list of things he is not allowed to do for 18 months or until a complaint made against him has been resolved.

An interim orders committee of the Singapore Medical Council (SMC) imposed six restrictions on Dr Wong Siong Sung.

Among the restrictions is one that says he must not “pay commissions, or otherwise offer or provide gratuitous payments, gifts or rewards, to ambulance services (including emergency ambulance or medical transport vehicles) for patients referred to the place(s) at which he practises”.

The SMC, the medical profession’s watchdog, received a complaint against Dr Wong in August 2021 concerning his practice at each of two locations: Healthy Heart Specialist Centre and Somerset Imaging Centre at 111 Somerset.

Dr Wong is the centres’ senior consultant cardiologist and medical director.

In releasing the statement on the interim order, the SMC did not indicate what the complaint was about or who had made it.

As is standard procedure upon receiving a complaint, the council convened a complaints committee to look into the matter.

During its investigation, the committee asked the SMC to set up a separate interim orders committee to decide if steps needed to be taken to protect the public.

This committee was tasked “to determine if it was necessary for the protection of members of the public, or was otherwise in the public interest, or was in the interests of Dr Wong, that Dr Wong’s registration be suspended or be made subject to conditions or restrictions”.

The interim committee did not feel it was necessary to suspend Dr Wong from practising while his case was being reviewed.

However, it decided “that it was necessary for the protection of members of the public and in the public interest” to impose certain restrictions.

These will remain in place until 18 months have passed or until the proceedings against Dr Wong have been concluded, whichever happens sooner.

The restrictions are:

1. He must not manage or treat patients brought by ambulances or medical transport unless a patient is brought to, admitted and managed by a hospital; or a request for his services is made by a doctor at the hospital, or the patient. He may then review the patient in an inpatient setting.
2. He is prohibited from making house calls.
3. Except in an inpatient setting, he must not order diagnostic tests or scans “when managing medically unstable patients or patients with symptoms or a presentation suggestive of a life-threatening or time-sensitive acute medical condition”. The exception is in the event of a medical emergency, when immediate life-saving procedures are needed.
4. He must not pay commissions, give rewards or gifts to ambulance services that refer patients to the place or places at which he practises.
5. He has to tell the SMC of all the places where he practises or intends to work.
6. He has to inform any potential employer for medical work of the conditions under which he may continue to practise.

The statement about the interim committee’s orders was dated May 30, although it was only recently put on the SMC’s website.