Kerala Medical Council Suspends Doctor for 3 Months Over Unapproved Qualifications

Speedy Summary

• The Kerala State Medical Council (KSMC) removed Dr. Collin Alphonse’s name from the State Medical Register for three months and fined him ₹1 lakh for practising medicine using unrecognised and unregistered qualifications.
• Dr. Alphonse displayed credentials such as MD (Medicine),PG in Diabetology,and FCCM that were not recognised by India’s National Medical Commission (NMC).
• A complaint against Dr. Alphonse was filed in 2022, wherein the Ethics Committee found his qualifications misleading as NMC does not issue equivalency certificates he claimed to have applied for.
• Despite being fined ₹50,000 earlier in 2022 and receiving directives to remove these qualifications from his professional materials, he continued using them.
• Dr. Alphonse blamed hospital administration but admitted to using unregistered qualifications elsewhere under the assumption that council rules were hospital-specific.
• The KSMC deemed his repeated non-compliance a neglect of professional duty and issued further penalties while prohibiting him from claiming specialist status without appropriate recognition.

Published: July 16, 2025

Indian Opinion Analysis

This disciplinary action by the Kerala State Medical Council highlights an essential step toward maintaining ethical standards within India’s medical community. By enforcing penalties on practitioners who misrepresent thier credentials, regulatory bodies aim to protect public trust in healthcare institutions while deterring similar violations nationwide.

Dr. collin Alphonse’s case underscores potential gaps in awareness about proper conduct among registered medical professionals regarding foreign qualifications-a concern requiring clarity on permissible certifications through more robust interaction channels between regulatory bodies like NMC/KSMC and practitioners.

Furthermore, this enforcement sets a precedent emphasizing accountability regardless of intent or administrative errors cited by medical practitioners or associated establishments when questioned on compliance issues. Such measures safeguard patient rights and ensure openness across evolving healthcare frameworks shaped by global credentialing complexities.

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