A U.K. radiologist who allegedly lied about being a qualified general practitioner on his curriculum vitae (CV) in 2016 and 2017 has been removed from the medical register, according to a report posted on 4 February by WalesOnline.
Dr. David Richard Foster, who worked as a clinical radiologist at the Princess of Wales Hospital in Bridgend, U.K., was found guilty by the Medical Practitioners Tribunal Service in Manchester of dishonest conduct and intentionally misleading people.
Foster had claimed to be a general practitioner (GP) on CVs and reports that were published in 2016 and 2017, but the tribunal ruled that he had never registered as a GP and, thus, was being dishonest. Foster was writing medicolegal reports at the time for a number of different agencies, but he was falsely advertising himself and his services in the hope of gaining further instructions, the WalesOnline article explained.
"Medicolegal reports are the cornerstone of personal injury claims and that the CV of an expert writing these reports is expected to be accurate," the tribunal report stated, according to the article. "They are relied upon by road traffic accident victims, insurers, lawyers, and the courts. Public confidence is bound to be adversely affected by Dr. Foster's conduct as patients attending appointments for their personal injury claims expected to be seeing a general practitioner."
His actions would be considered "deplorable" by fellow members of the profession, particularly given his seniority as an experienced clinical radiologist, the report added.
Initial concerns about Foster were raised with the U.K. General Medical Council (GMC) in October 2018 by a legal assistant from InterEurope AG European Law Service who queried whether Foster was allowed to examine and compile reports for people involved in road traffic collisions, WalesOnline noted.
Also, the tribunal heard that Foster had a history of misconduct. He was suspended for two months in May 2011 following four similar acts of dishonesty, as reported at the time by the Penarth Times local newspaper.
Since August 2017, Foster did make corrections to his CV and issued an apology, but the tribunal concluded that his actions amounted to serious misconduct: "In his CV from December 2, 2016, Dr. Foster claimed to complete 800 medicolegal reports per year and had completed over 5,000 since 1999."
According to documents submitted to Companies House in the U.K., Foster was born in December 1948, making him 71 years of age. He was director of David R. Foster Ltd., formed in 2010 and dissolved in 2016. The company specialized in medical practice and had a turnover of more than 24,000 pounds (28,300 euros) in 2015.
