Surgeon who sent wound photos on WhatsApp has suspension extended

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By Daniel Pye

A plastic surgeon who sent photos from his phone of a patient’s open leg wound has had his suspension from the medical register extended.

The doctor was initially suspended for six months at a medical tribunal in February after police officers saw the two images, which identified the patient, when searching his phone for an unrelated offence.

Now a Medical Practitioners Tribunal Service review hearing has found Dr Isa Alalwani has not engaged with the regulatory process and suspended his licence for a further year.

The clinical fellow and registrar, who worked at Southmead Hospital in Bristol, provided Avon and Somerset Police with the pin to his mobile phone as he believed it would assist his case.

But a detective constable who was checking the device found the photos sent on WhatsApp in July 2022.

Alalwani had sent two images of a person with a large open leg wound, with a virtual display unit that could identify the patient visible in the background.