A British doctor has been struck off the medical register after she repeatedly asked a Muslim patient to remove her hijab during a consultation and then continued her work despite being suspended.Dr Keith Wolferson was previously suspended for nine months after being found guilty of multiple misconduct charges linked to incidents which occurred between January and May 2018 while he worked as an assistant at urgent care centers in Derby and Stoke. One of the most serious incidents occurred on 13 May 2018 at Royal Stoke University Hospital, where a woman, called Ms Q, was asked to remove her niqab three times during an appointment.The patient initially refused, citing religious reasons, but later withdrew it after repeated requests. Dr Wolferson later claimed he made the request because she “spoke poor English” and he was “struggling to understand her”, adding that he was “trying to look at her mouth movements to help communicate”. But the court found her English to be fluent and called his explanation dishonest.The patient later said she felt “victimized and racially discriminated against.”
It also emerged that Dr Wolferson had refused to engage with her husband during the consultation, and later said he found his manner “aggressive and intimidating”. His legal representative admitted that the doctor’s behavior was “insensitive.”Further concerns were raised about his behavior in other cases, where he recorded comments about the ability of 15 patients and their relatives to speak English, describing it as “unacceptable” and “not good enough”.Although he was suspended in 2022, it later emerged that Dr Wolferson continued to undertake temporary work during that period, despite clear instructions not to practice. This violation, coupled with his failure to attend subsequent court hearings, led to renewed scrutiny.At a review hearing in 2023, Dr Wolferson said he reflected on his actions and “deeply regrets the comments he made in medical notes to patients”.
He also said that continuing his suspension would be wrong given “such serious shortfalls within the NHS currently”.The court concluded at the time that his fitness remained impaired but chose not to extend the suspension, instead placing conditions on his registration for a further 12 months, including supervision. He then returned to work under those conditions.However, a subsequent hearing found that he had “withdrawn” from the regulatory process and demonstrated a “continuous and blatant disregard” for its requirements.
The court also raised concerns about his lack of consistent practice and the risks this posed to patient safety.Emma Gilbertthorpe, who is chairing the Medical Practitioners Tribunal hearing, said: “Dr Wolferson has failed to use previous suspension periods constructively, has remained aloof throughout, and has demonstrated a continuing and flagrant disregard for the regulatory process.”She added that any lesser penalty would not adequately protect the public or reflect the seriousness of the misconduct. “The court concluded that any lesser sentence would fail to address the current and continuing risks to public protection,” she said.Dr Wolferson has now been struck from the medical register, bringing the case to an end.