Court dismisses discrimination claim by wheelchair doctor

A claim of discrimination filed by a doctor in a wheelchair against the Committee for the Approval of Specialists has been dismissed by the courts after it was established that the doctor did not qualify for registration as a specialist. Dr Naged Megally told the court, presided over by Mr Justice Anthony Ellul, that he held the post of resident specialist in the Obstetrics and Gynaecology Department of Mater Dei, and claimed that he was the only doctor in that hospital who was specialised in foetal ultrasound. In 1986, Dr Megally was diagnosed with muscular dystrophy and became wheelchair bound. He applied to the committee to be registered as a specialist in Obstetrics and Gynaecology but his application had been dismissed. According to Dr Megally, this refusal was discriminatory. The minister, the Chief Government Medical Officer and the Attorney General all pleaded that they ought not to have been made a party to the suit, and their plea was upheld by the court. On its part, the committee pleaded that no discrimination had taken place and that it was Dr Megally who was trying to take undue advantage of his disability. According to the committee, Dr Megally was only qualified in...