Dr. Lee Yi-tsang (李易倉) -- an ear, nose and throat specialist at Taipei Municipal Hoping Hospital (TMHH) -- yesterday morning returned to the hospital for enforced quarantine after Taipei Mayor Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) ordered health authorities to invoke police powers to detain him, the Chinese-language media reported.
According to TMHH, Lee worked part time in the hospital's otolaryngological department. The hospital was sealed off last Thursday due to an outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS). However, Lee and some other hospital staff refused to return for quarantine.
According to the hospital, Lee even continued practicing at his private Taipei clinic after he disobeyed the quarantine order.
PHOTO: LIAO CHENG-HUEI, TAIPEI TIMES
"Lee has broken not only the Communicable Disease Prevention Law (傳染病防治法) but also the Doctor's Law (醫師法) and the Medical Treatment Law (醫療法)," Taipei City Government spokesman Wu Yu-sheng (吳育昇) said on Monday.
Wu said that Ma was furious after he heard that Lee had put his patients in danger. The mayor then ordered health authorities late on Monday night to use police measures to detain Lee.
Although Lee returned to the hospital yesterday morning, Taipei's Bureau of Health Director Chiou Shu-ti (邱淑媞) yesterday said that the doctor will face a fine of NT$60,000, according to the Communicable Disease Prevention Law.
A total of 975 hospital staff have been ordered to undergo quarantine at TMHH after it was temporarily closed down. According to Chiou, however, four of them are still missing while another four are in self-imposed quarantine in their homes.
The Bureau of Health decided to publish the names of the four missing staff in a bid to make them return.
The staff will be fined between NT$60,000 and NT$300,000.
They were Dr. Chou Ching-kai (周經凱), dean of the general surgery department, nurse Hsieh I-chun (謝宜君), contracted treatment assistant Lin Jui-yung (林瑞詠) and contracted administration assistant Chen Mo-jen (諶模珍).
Taipei City Government health bureau announced yesterday that the police issued a warrant for the arrest of the four runaway medical staff.
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