Asian doctor who sexually assulted patient was let off with warning

Dr Simon Abraham was suspended by officials at East Sussex Healthcare Trust after he fondled a woman’s genitalia. But he was then allowed to return to work with a written warning

• Shajil Kumar
• 05 June, 2024

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By: Shajil Kumar

An Asian-origin NHS doctor who sexually assaulted a patient after promising he could cure her headaches with a ‘specialist’ massage was allowed to return to work with a written warning, Daily Mail reports.

Dr Simon Abraham, 35, a Specialty Registrar in Rheumatology at Eastbourne District General Hospital, was suspended by officials at East Sussex Healthcare Trust after he fondled a woman’s genitalia.

But he was then allowed to return to work with a final written warning and treat women patients till his contract expired.

Police eventually charged Abraham with sexual assault and last year he was jailed for 18 months after a judge from Chichester Crown Court said he posed a ‘medium risk’ of causing serious harm to the public.

He was later released in April.

Abraham had initially lied during his first police interview and insisted he had not accessed Patient A’s contact details. He later conceded that he had attended her home and telephoned her later but did not sexually touch her.

When he was later jailed, Abraham was also ordered to sign the Sex Offenders Register for ten years and was banned from contacting the victim for five years under the terms of a restraining order.

Dr Abraham was involved in the female patient’s initial treatment. But a few days after she was discharged, he accessed her contact details from her confidential medical records.

He told the patient that he had learned about this message technique in India and the victim allowed him to visit her house.

Abraham encouraged her to undress before he began massaging her thighs, and then touched her private parts over her clothing.

An unexpected visitor’s arrival forced Abraham to leave the house in a hurry. He later tried to contact the victim.

The victim reported the matter to his bosses at the hospital.

The Medical Practitioners Tribunal Service (MPTS) had removed Abraham from the medical register.

MPTS chairman Malcolm Dodds told the tribunal that Dr Abraham “showed a deliberate disregard for his professional obligations and duties. His abuse of trust was particularly serious because Patient A was vulnerable.”

He said that Abraham continues to deny the assault despite having been found guilty by a jury and has expressed no remorse or empathy for the victim.