Doctor at Peterborough City Hospital who made medical errors and ‘inappropriate contact’ with patient’s daughter given warning

The warning was issued by the Medical Practitioners Tribunal Service to Dr Yordan Raev after the incidents in 2018 at the hospital in Bretton.

The tribunal had previously determined that Dr Raev touched the daughter of a severely ill patient, although it concluded that this was “to indicate organ location, not for sexual motivation”.

It also ruled that he failed to act on the potential diagnosis of ischaemic bowel disease and failed to give the patient a personalised end of life care plan after her condition deteriorated.

However, despite the General Medical Council calling for Dr Raev to be struck off, the tribunal instead decided to issue a formal warning which will be published on the List of Registered Medical Practitioners.

Explaining its reasoning in a written judgement, the tribunal stated that it “accepted the evidence... that although Dr Raev’s actions fell short of the expected standard, they were not seriously below it”.

It also viewed the touching of the patient’s daughter as a “momentary lapse in Dr Raev’s judgement” which was a “single instance” and “out of character”.

It added: “The tribunal accepted Dr Raev’s regret and remorse. It is reassured by the fact that he knows that his actions were not appropriate and had taken steps to educate himself about boundaries and communication, even before this hearing had commenced.

“The tribunal took the view that a member of the public, aware of the full facts of this case, would not lose confidence in the medical profession and the system of regulation if a finding of no impairment was made.

“The tribunal anticipates that the warning will act as a deterrent and reminder to Dr Raev and the profession as a whole that his conduct fell below the standard expected and that a repetition would be likely to result in a finding of impaired fitness to practise.”

During his testimony, Dr Raev said he did not recall the patient or recognise her daughter and relied on his medical notes to answer questions.

He also stated that he did not realise the patient needed end of life care which explained why he recommended blood and stool tests and a CT scan which the tribunal ruled were unnecessary for a terminally ill person.

Dr Raev came to the UK in 2008 after seven years working as a doctor in Bulgaria and held a fixed term locum post at the city hospital from February 2018 where he worked on the Adult Respiratory Ward.

The tribunal noted in its ruling that he gave “clear, believable and credible responses to the questions directed at him whilst under oath”.

And while it accepted claims from the patient’s daughter that he had ushered her into a supplies store room to discuss her mother’s condition, it did not deem this to be inappropriate.

Dr Kanchan Rege, chief medical officer for North West Anglia NHS Foundation Trust, which runs the city hospital, said: “Dr Raev was employed by the trust as a locum doctor at the relevant time. He is no longer working at the trust.”