Clinic ordered to compensate patients for syringe infections

By Lee Kyung-min

The Seoul Central District Court ordered a doctor at a clinic in Seoul, Tuesday, to pay 30 million won ($24,000) to 14 people in compensation for causing infections by re-using disposable syringes.

The court ruled against the doctor, whose identity is being withheld, saying that the infections were caused by the clinic’s failure to meet sanitary standards.

The 14 people who filed the suit were among 61 patients who contracted a number of infections such as festering arthritis and tuberculosis after receiving injections there in 2012 between April and September. The patients visited the clinic to treat joint pain with injections and chiropractic treatment.

“The doctor not only re-used syringes, but also kept bottles of medicine with broken seals right next to beverages in the refrigerator. Due to such poor management, medical equipment and medications could have been contaminated at any given moment,” the court said.

“Furthermore, disease transmission among patients there could have occurred, due the re-use of syringes and the clinic staff’s individual sanitation failures such as not properly washing hands or wearing latex gloves before and after treating patients,” the court added.

The court said although the medical practices were not carried out by the doctor but his subordinate, the doctor should be held accountable for personnel management failure.

Earlier, the doctor was indicted on charges of professional negligence resulting in bodily injury, but was acquitted due to a lack of evidence.

Tuesday’s ruling is expected to produce a large number of class action suits from victims of similar medical malpractice.

Last week, health authorities said that more than 100 patients contracted hepatitis C at a clinic in Gangwon Province after the doctor re-used syringes.

In October last year, 82 among a total of 2,268 patients who had visited Dana Clinic in southern Seoul since 2008 have tested positive for the disease.