High Court backs Medical Council's suspension of GP over Covid stance
Whitethorn Clinic in Celbridge, Co Kildare, where Dr Gerard Waters practised. Picture:Gareth Chaney/Collins
The High Court has backed the Medical Council's decision to suspend a Co Kildare GP for refusing to send his patients for Covid-19 tests and failing to adhere to public health measures.
Dr Gerard Waters, of Whitethorn Clinic, Celbridge, Co Kildare, was suspended from the Register of Medical Practitioners at the beginning of March.
The full judgment, granting the Medical Council's application, was published on Thursday, after the council made an application to the High Court.
The application came after a banner appeared on the wall of the Whitethorn Clinic which stated: "Dr Waters has been suspended from the Medical Register because he refused to give the Covid-19 vaccine and objected to the Covid-19 lockdowns."
The council, concerned that this banner misrepresented the basis for the suspension, asked that the full report be published and that the banner be removed.
An order, suspending Dr Waters, came after a patient complained about him, saying that upon entering the doctor’s practice, they were treated to a “barrage of nonsense about the ‘hoax that is Covid-19'”.
The patient, who was attending the practice following complaints of chest infection, claims Dr Waters said the mask he was wearing was responsible for his illness, pointing at it and referring to it as “that silly f***ing thing".
In the application by the council to suspend Dr Waters, pending an investigation, it was said the doctor was not adhering to public health measures.
It was said Dr Waters did not wear a mask, nor did his staff, and patients were not encouraged to. The Medical Council also expressed its “great concern” that he had not referred any patient for a Covid-19 test. The GP also stated he would not administer the vaccine.
Ms Justice Mary Irvine, High Court president, said the council was justified in bringing an application for the suspension under Section 60 of the 2007 Medical Practitioners Act, which it can do if it believes it is necessary to protect the public.
Ms Justice Irvine said the doctor’s failure to refer patients for Covid testing has the potential to have serious consequences for not only his patients but also for the wider community.
She added that the manner in which Dr Water’s practice is managed places all who currently attend there at unnecessary risk, in particular, the elderly, those who have serious underlying medical complaints, and those who live or work with people who may be particularly vulnerable.
Dr Waters has claimed his concerns about the virus, as well as the vaccine, are protected by his right of conscientious objection.
However, the judge said the doctor's failure to carry on his practice in line with public health measures and his failure to refer patients for Covid-19 testing, would be difficult to “defend on the basis of conscientious objection or indeed any other basis".
The judge said that in circumstances where Dr Waters does not deny that Covid-19 can kill and he does not deny that Covid-19 is contagious, he "will have difficulty in relying upon his rights in that regard".
The council said it understood that an appeal to the Court of Appeal against the suspension has now issued on behalf of Dr Waters, with the matter still being considered by the Medical Council.
