An elderly village medic in Tbong Khmum province was charged with manslaughter and practicing without a license on Wednesday after a patient in his care died after receiving a trio of injections on Monday, a police official said.
Pich Nhor, 71, went to the home of Em Thuol, 46, who had been suffering from breathing problems, blackouts and excessive perspiration, according to Suong City police chief Chhorn Sokthun, and administered three injections: camphor to increase blood flow, a vitamin B complex to boost metabolism and hydrocortisone to reduce inflammation.
But Em Thuol’s symptoms only worsened, and he died en route to a local clinic, leading police to arrest Mr. Nhor at his home. The medic was sent to the provincial court on Wednesday afternoon, said Pin Socheatra, deputy chief of the city’s serious crimes section.
“In the file that I sent to the court, I [recommended] charging him with manslaughter,” Mr. Socheatra said. “He was…charged with opening a clinic without a license and with intentional murder.”
Mr. Socheatra later clarified that Investigating Judge Louch Lao charged Mr. Nhor under Article 207 of the Criminal Code, which refers to unintentional murder, punishable by up to three years in prison.
According to Mr. Sokthun, Mr. Nhor had been practicing without a medical license for decades and worked at the Kompong Cham provincial referral hospital between 1979 to 1992 before establishing himself as a home-care practitioner in Suong City’s Suong commune.
Local and national-level health officials declined to comment on the case on Wednesday.
The Ministry of Health vowed to crack down on unlicensed clinics and doctor across the country following a massive outbreak of HIV in Battambang province in December 2014. Yem Chrin, an unlicensed medic blamed for the outbreak, was later sentenced to 25 years in prison after being found guilty of spreading the virus to more than 280 people by reusing needles and syringes.
