Australia: Convicted Indian doctor drops practice

An Indian doctor, the first to be convicted of performing an illegal abortion in New South Wales, has withdrawn her name from the Register of Medical Practitioners in New South Wales.

The withdrawal, effective from Thursday, means that Suman Sood, 56, can no longer practise as a doctor in the country's most populous state, a news channel reported.

Sood, who could get a 10-year jail term, is due to face a hearing before the state medical tribunal next month. Last week, the New South Wales Supreme Court held Sood guilty of illegally administering a drug to a pregnant woman, intending to carry out a miscarriage. Sood was also charged with manslaughter of the woman's infant which was born dead, but was acquitted by the jury.

After the verdict, it was reported that Sood had been investigated five times by the state's medical board and sued for damages by six women, in cases settled out of court. Sood released a statement saying she had "voluntarily withdrawn her name from the medical register of NSW ... and apologised for any inconvenience caused to her patients as a result of the withdrawal".

"I have taken this extreme action in the best interests of my patients. My court proceedings and recent media frenzy have been distressing. Many of my patients have been disturbed by media coverage which contained inaccuracies and distorted accounts of my treatment of some patients," she said. "By withdrawing my name from the register, I will be able to fully concentrate on my forthcoming court hearings without exposing my patients to any further uncertainty about their future medical care," Sood added. The NSW Medical Board could not be reached for comment.