Carl Clinton was found by a medical tribunal to have abused his position as an experienced consultant and to have brought the profession into disrepute in relation to five incidents spanning three years.
The findings come after the former Hospital doctor, who also worked from the private Dongola Road Sports Injury Clinic, was cleared in 2014 of sexually motivated conduct in relation to two other female patients. At that time the panel found that although he had failed to ‘communicate adequately’ they did not find his actions amounted to misconduct and concluded it was not appropriate to issue him with a warning.
Mr Clinton, a well-known Island rower who has not worked as a doctor since 2012, was found by the Medical Practitioners Tribunal Service to have behaved in a sexually motivated way towards the three ‘young women’ and to have ‘concealed his intentions by masking them as part of an appropriate and thorough clinical examination’. The incidents took place between 2002 and 2005.
The tribunal found that Mr Clinton asked Patient A to remove her bra when it was not ‘clinically indicated’, exposed and touched her breasts, and used an inappropriate technique to listen to her chest.
Patient A’s mother accompanied her to one of her appointments. The tribunal said it found it ‘significant’ that after the appointment her mother expressed surprise that a consultation for the purpose of examining her daughter’s shoulder had included an unexpected breast examination.
‘Patient A’s own reaction was simply to say “but he’s a boob man”,’ a report by the tribunal states. ‘In other words, Patient A knew very well that Dr Clinton was examining her breasts for his own sexual satisfaction and not for any therapeutic reason.’
In regards to Patient B, Mr Clinton got her to put a gown on the wrong way round when it was ‘not clinically indicated’. He told her to take off her gown so he could look at her back and examined her ankles, legs, breasts and chest.
He failed to get appropriate permission for the examination of her ankles, legs, breast and chest and failed to provide her with adequate covering for the exposed parts of her body during the examination.
Patient B told the tribunal that she believed Mr Clinton was ‘getting off’ and ‘enjoying the power he had’ while she was standing with her back to him wearing only her knickers.
In relation to Patient C he was found to have pulled her underwear to one side to expose her genitals and then used a finger to prod into her groin when it was not ‘clinically indicated’, to show her where an injection would go.
Patient C told the tribunal that she felt ‘uneasy and violated’ by what occurred during her appointment.
The report adds: ‘In relation to all three patients and all five incidents, the tribunal found conduct which was demeaning, embarrassing, humiliating and distressing.
‘There was an element of deceit on Dr Clinton’s part as he took advantage of his position of being an experienced consultant and concealed his intentions by masking them as part of a legitimate thorough examination. They all felt reluctant to complain at the time, given his position and his standing in the community. They described feeling guilt at not having done so.’
The report adds: ‘The tribunal accepts the evidence from all the patients that Jersey is a small island, where the choice of consultant is very limited and, in Patient A’s case, she was willing to tolerate Dr Clinton’s behaviour because in other respects she found him to be more understanding of her overall medical conditions than most other doctors.’
Mr Clinton, who did not present evidence, maintained his denial of sexual motivation and the tribunal accepted that the likelihood of repetition was low as he had no current licence to practise.
However, the report, which was published in December, says: ‘The tribunal determined that in order to protect patients, maintain public confidence in the profession, and declare and uphold proper standards of conduct and behaviour, erasure from the register is the only appropriate, proportionate and sufficient sanction.
‘It accordingly determined that Dr Clinton’s name be erased from the medical register.’
