- Consultant paediatrician Sam Lingham, 78, pocketed £11,960 for the surgery.
A leading Harley Street pediatric doctor has been suspended for prescribing millions of pounds worth of drugs overseas in the mistaken belief that he was on a “humanitarian” mission to help Third World countries.
Consultant paediatrician Sam Lingham, 78, was awarded 299 prescriptions for powerful cancer and HIV drugs after agreeing to act as an intermediary between pharmaceutical companies and London’s King Edward VII Private Hospital. was approved.
Over 15 months, Russian-born Ms Lingham, of Potters Bar, Hertfordshire, pocketed £40 each time she approved potentially deadly prescriptions for people she had never met. .
The 78-year-old, who arrived in Britain as a refugee in 1970 before working at London’s Great Ormond Street Hospital, believed the drug was meant to be given to poor patients in Africa, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh. Went to first world countries including. Canada And Australia.
The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) eventually opened a criminal investigation into the incident after receiving complaints about Mr Lingham, who ran the Medical Express Clinic in Harley Street.
It emerged that he had already been warned twice by the General Medical Council (GMC) and the British Medical Association (BMA) for issuing similar “third party prescriptions”.
Inquiries revealed that the pharmacy company he was doing business with, Cool Pharma, had rented the basement of his clinic.
Investigators also found that some of the patients Ringham wrote prescriptions for did not even exist, while some drugs, such as chemotherapy drugs, are so toxic that they can kill patients if administered incorrectly. We also discovered that it is possible to
The MHRA concluded that, without Mr Lingham’s knowledge, Cool Pharma obtained prescription drugs in the UK and sold them overseas at “significant cost”.
His prescriptions alone are said to have amounted to “millions of pounds worth of drugs”. From his own rackets he pocketed £11,960 and at one stage he even earned £960 in one day.
When questioned, Lingam claimed, “I was just a pawn in this matter.” I really thought I was providing humanitarian aid to people suffering in other countries.
“There was no intent to defraud. It was never intended for financial gain. It was nothing but helping from a humanitarian standpoint, and that’s always been in my mind.”
At Manchester Medical Practitioners’ Tribunal (MPTS), Mr Lingham was accused of a “blatant attitude” towards prescribing medicines, and following a nine-year investigation, he was suspended from practicing medicine for 10 months.
The previous disciplinary panel in 2022 had allowed him to continue working under supervision, but the High Court remanded it to the MPTS following an appeal. He retired as director in 2018.
The investigation began following concerns about Lingham’s personal prescriptions, which did not include patient addresses, in 2015 after a new pharmacy director was appointed at King Edward Hospital, where many senior members of the royal family are patients.
Managers were told that Medical Express was assisting patients overseas and that the prescriptions had been written and collected by Cool Pharma employees.
However, it was discovered that Mr Lingam had been prescribing “vast amounts” of drugs without ever being given the patient’s gender, medical history, GP contact details or even proof of identity.
Although he was a pediatrician, he was not an expert in the relevant field and therefore was not considered competent to prescribe certain “hospital-only” prescription drugs.
Experts involved in the investigation said the suspect was “prescribing large quantities of potentially toxic drugs to patients he had never met before and was unlikely to ever see again.” .
These drugs were often “high value” used in inpatient settings such as intensive care units, but included an “extremely high likelihood of death” if treatment was not properly monitored. A serious risk was exposed to the patient.
The MHRA interviewed Mr Lingam and two other doctors at the clinic in 2019, after General Medical Council (GMC) investigators concluded that the doctors had been “deceived” by Cool Pharma staff. , no criminal action was taken.
Cool Pharma was found to have falsely claimed to King Edward VII Hospital that the medicines were not being provided to patients overseas and that the patients were visitors to the UK. However, the license was suspended but later lifted.
During the court session, Lingam claimed he was “in the humanitarian business” and believed medicines should go to “people who otherwise wouldn’t have access to them.” He said he was told by Cool Pharma that African countries wanted access to these products and was happy to approve them because they were from poor countries.
After introducing Kool Pharma to King Edward VII’s Hospital, staff said they could provide the company with hospital-specific medicines only if Lingam prescribed them.
He agreed to create a personal prescription that was a “transcription” of the information he received through Cool Pharma. He said Cool Pharma had “deceived” him and his colleagues by claiming he had no vested interest or financial interest in it.
“I was convinced that I was helping someone recover, even if I didn’t have a patient in front of me. That’s a doctor’s job,” Lingam said at the hearing. If you can help and believe you can help, that’s what you do.
“We thought we were doing a great thing for people with incurable and difficult conditions. Some of these drugs are very expensive drugs that are difficult to obtain in many countries. Yes, and the UK is at the forefront of this.
“I’ve done stupid things, made mistakes, and let myself down. I’ve dedicated my life to medicine. I’m the first to arrive at work in the morning and the last to leave. I served, taught, helped international students enter UK medicine, provided work experience for future doctors and trained three pharmacists.The suspension was a huge embarrassment for me and my family. It’s the right thing to do.”
“We thought we were doing a great thing for people with incurable and difficult conditions. Some of these drugs are very expensive drugs that are difficult to obtain in many countries. Yes, and the UK is at the forefront of this.
Previously speaking to the GMC, Saul Brodie said: “Professor Lingham had a cavalier attitude towards remote prescribing and there was a real risk that his actions could cause serious harm or death to patients.” Stated.
“He doesn’t know where the drugs went or if there were any harmful consequences. He also doesn’t fully acknowledge the gravity of his illegal actions, nor does he acknowledge the risk and accept responsibility. , is instead trying to shift the blame to Cool Pharma.”
MPTS chair Helen Potts said: “The tribunal found that Cool Pharma’s purpose in obtaining hospital-only medicines was to enable patients in developing countries to obtain European-branded medicines that were not available domestically. “Professor Lingam admitted that he had taken the explanation at face value.” own country.
“This was consistent with his desire to be helpful, and the court deemed it to be naive but genuine.” However, his actions exposed patients to the unwarranted reality of causing serious harm and even death. expose you to the risk of
“By his own admission, his actions were reckless and, in the court’s view, his approach to remote prescribing was even more reckless.”
He added, “Prescribing is a privilege that comes with responsibility, and the public expects doctors to prescribe responsibly and safely.”
“The court believes that the public should know that doctors, especially those of Professor Lingam’s experience and position, have ignored basic safety precepts and put so many patients at risk of harm or death. I thought they would be appalled by the prescription. ”
