Durban - Ear, nose and throat specialist Dr Niven Singh had been “quite sorry” about an incident involving a grandmother who claimed she was pushed and verbally abused in his rooms, a Health Professions Council of SA hearing has been told.
Dr Niven Singh, chairman of the management committee of Mount Edgecombe Hospital, from which Singh operated, was testifying on Friday in the misconduct inquiry being held in uMhlanga.
Singh has denied the allegations by the complainant, former teacher, Thaivanamal Naidoo, 52, that he pushed her out of his office so hard she ended up falling.
Meer said it had emerged in an internal hospital meeting held after the incident in July last year that Singh had not been feeling well and had been in a foul mood at the time.
“We tried very hard to resolve the matter,” Meer said of the meeting. He said Singh had told the meeting he might have “touched” Naidoo, but denied having pushed her.
Meer said Singh was prepared to apologise to Naidoo about the incident. However, Naidoo was not interested in an apology and wanted Singh to be punished so that no one else had to go through the pain she had gone through, he said.
Naidoo had taken her 2-year-old grandson to the consultancy after she was referred to Singh by a general practitioner when the boy began experiencing ear problems.
In a previous sitting of the hearing, Naidoo said Singh had been asking her “irrelevant” questions with an “attitude”.
She said Singh asked her where the child’s mother was, and Naidoo told him that her daughter was not available because she was experiencing personal problems. It is alleged Singh then asked if Naidoo’s daughter was “mental”.
Naidoo’s friend, Ranitha Ramraj who was present, then intervened and asked Singh if that was the way a professional was supposed to refer to a possible mental disorder.
Naidoo said Singh told her that, “if you don’t like the way I speak, then take your baby and get out”.
She said when she asked for her money back, Singh took the cash from the secretary and flung it on the floor. She claimed she was walking out of the offices when Singh grabbed her arm and pushed her out.
Naidoo said she suffered from Guillain-Barré syndrome, a disorder in which the body’s immune system attacks part of the peripheral nervous system. She had difficulty balancing and walking without a crutch.
Naidoo said Singh continued to scream at her, drawing the attention of onlookers from other offices in the building.
Singh testified last week that a misunderstanding had led to be breakdown in communication with Naidoo.
“When I was told the child’s mother was not available, I asked if there was a physical or mental reason for that. After they answered, I said, ‘So it is a social reason’.
“My secretary handed me the R500, which I handed to Mrs Naidoo. At no point did I throw it at them,” Singh said. “As she was walking slowly out of the office she may have brushed against me and fell on the floor.”
The hearing is set to continue on Wednesday.
Daily News