A surgeon based in Reading who lied about making a mistake in theatre will return to work.

Dr Zulfiquar Rahimtoola was suspended for nine months in December after cutting into the wrong part of a patient’s wrist on April 8, 2019.

He lied to the patient and denied any error, suggesting he had always intended to explore the radial side of the patient’s wrist because she had told him her ‘whole wrist’ was painful, according to a tribunal.

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A review by the Medical Practitioners Tribunal on August 30, 2022, found the consultant orthopaedic surgeon a was no longer impaired by misconduct, and revoked his suspension.

Undertaking the review, Miss Gillian Temple-Bone said that while the initial suspension was necessary to maintain professional standards and uphold public confidence, the tribunal found there was no significant risk of repetition.

She referred to the incident as isolated and over a short period of time, and pointed to Rahimtoola’s extensive apologies and efforts to remediate.

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He has subsequently arranged four clinical attachments, attended conferences and surgical workshops, and has been working in the Netherlands since 2 June 2022.

The doctor underwent counselling, mindfulness, and made use of a mentor.

“To that extent he has provided sufficient evidence to demonstrate he has completed both of the recommendations made by the Tribunal in December,” wrote Miss Temple-Bone.

The Dutch Regulator allowed Dr Rahimtoola to practice from June 2022 as a Senior Orthopaedic Hand Surgeon, undertaking outpatient consultations and performing hand surgery at all levels of competency, including supervising junior surgeons.

A letter from the Consultant Orthopaedic Surgeon and Chief Medical Officer at Eisenhower Kliniek where Dr Rahimtoola has practised confirmed there have been no complaints or complications and he continues to deliver an excellent level of patient care.

Between 2006 and 2020, Dr Rahimtoola worked at the Royal Berkshire Hospital Foundation Trust in Reading, the Spire Dunedin Hospital in Reading and the Ramsay Berkshire Independent Hospital.

During the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020, he led the hand surgery service at the Royal Berkshire.