Matthew Xuereb
Medical Council fines Frank Portelli €10,000
Former Nationalist Party president and St Philips Hospital CEO Frank Portelli was fined €10,000 by the Medical Council after he was found guilty of making defamatory allegations about former Labour MP Louis Buhagiar, who occasionally worked at the hospital.
The Medical Council ruled that Dr Portelli, who recently contested the June 6 MEP election on a PN ticket, had made allegations aimed at tarnishing Prof. Buhagiar's reputation. It also ruled that if the fine is not paid by October 1, his name would be struck off the medical register.
The case dates back to July 21, 2003, when the Medical Council was informed by Prof. Buhagiar that Dr Portelli had suspended him from working as a consultant at St Philip's Hospital due to "repeated complaints about the professional fees you charge patients".
The council, presided over by Josella Farrugia, heard that that the letter which Dr Portelli had sent to Prof. Buhagiar was copied to all the staff at St Philip's Hospital and to the Medical Association of Malta.
Dr Portelli had also written to Josie Muscat, a director at St James Capua Hospital, asking him to also suspend Prof. Buhagiar from working at his hospital.
Prof. Buhagiar took exception to this and filed an official complaint against Dr Portelli accusing him of spreading false allegations with the intention of damaging his reputation in medical circles. In 2005, the council ordered that an official inquiry be opened against Dr Portelli over the complaints.
Prof. Buhagiar insisted that consultants in private hospitals had the right to charge patients as much as they wanted and that the hospital's management could not instruct consultants what rates to charge. He added that foreign patients were charged international rates.
Dr Muscat testified that, some time before this issue of overcharging surfaced, he met Dr Portelli over a possible cooperation agreement between the two private hospitals. When Dr Portelli suspended Prof. Buhagiar, the former had written to him asking him to also suspend Prof. Buhagiar in the light of the cooperation between St Philip's and St James Capua.
Dr Muscat said he refused because his hospital had no problems with Prof. Buhagiar. He also explained that consultants were independent professionals and that it was normal practice for patients to deal with consultants directly. The hospital had absolutely no control over consultant's fees.
The council accepted these arguments and ruled that it was evident that Dr Portelli's letter, which he had circulated to other people, was aimed at tarnishing Prof. Buhagiar's reputation.
It therefore ordered Dr Portelli to pay a €10,000 fine within three months.
The issue concerning the medical fees charged by Prof. Buhagiar had been raised by The Times after a British tourist, back in 2002, received a bill for Lm674.60 for a 36-hour stay.
She was eventually transferred to St Luke's Hospital because her insurance would not cover the operation she needed.
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Leo Said
Jul 3rd 2009, 13:16
@ Charles Taliana
Hospitals in Germany have tariffs as guide-lines. The tariffs (statutory and private) are agreed upon by various commissions from doctors' representation and insurance confederations. Granted, the system also has specific problems. The DRG remuneration system is in discussion.
cathy mifsud
Jul 3rd 2009, 12:18
“consultants were independent professionals and that it was normal practice for patients to deal with consultants directly. The hospital had absolutely no control over consultant's fees”
This quote above truly enlightens us what is the actual problem in the health services system in Malta. The waiting lists at Mater Dei are a burden to our country because those patients who try to opt for private health care are faced with hefty bills….. not from the private hospital/clinic but from the same consultants / specialists that also receive their wages from Mater Dei.
Azzopardi Alfred
Jul 3rd 2009, 11:53
This case should serve as an eye opener to those who still maintain favour with the stipends system. Citizens are being taxed to support tomorrow's prospective professionals who upon qualifying deem it fit to charge exorbitant fees for their services to society who had supported them to achieve their profession.
Dr Portelli was right in tackling this issue both in the interest of the patient as well as to protect his hospital's image, however his method was unethical and unbecoming from a professional.
Dr Portelli should use his clout within the PN, if he has any, to bring about the necessary changes to protect the ordinary citizen from being abused by the professional class which he forms part of, I personally had several experiences whereby my private medical insurer refused to pay the full amount charged by consultants. He can start by trying to persuade the PM to stop using the stipends issue to get students' votes and to allow private medical insurance costs to be tax exempt similar to private school fees.
Charles Taliana
Jul 3rd 2009, 11:35
How much are international charges and in what schedule internationally do they appear?
Any response? I had the opportunity to work in such a position as a Medical Records Officer
in hospitals in UK and Fed Rep of Germany, and I cannot recall ever having been given a specific list of charges, called The International Charges Rates for Medical and Surgical hospital admissions, always went by the rates the respective governments issued from time to time (not international). You either are covered by travel and medical insurance or not, if not you pay local government rates.
Leo Said
Jul 3rd 2009, 09:43
This unpleasant story, as reported above, definitely highlights one problem of the private-public joint ventures, which have been recommended by political parties as a cure for the ailing health services system in Malta.
P Attard
Jul 3rd 2009, 09:27
"Prof. Buhagiar insisted that consultants in private hospitals had the right to charge patients as much as they wanted .." I assume that the report is faithful to what Prof. Buhagiar actually said. Very interesting.