NAIROBI, Kenya, Mar 21 – The Kenya Medical and Practitioners and Dentists Council (KMPDC) Friday fined Avane Limited Medical Clinic Sh500,000, further suspending its operating license for six months for running deceitful adverts on coronavirus test kits.
The decision followed a raid by
KMPDC Chief Executive Officer Daniel Yumbya and the police on Monday at the
clinic’s Yaya Center facility.
The was found to be selling coronavirus
testing kits at Sh3,000.
In the advertisement the clinic
claimed it was selling COVID-19 rapid results self-test kits, stated Yumbya.
In the statement signed by KMPDC Chairperson
Eva Njenga, the council also suspended Doctor Pranav Pancholi’s practicing
license for a period of six months.
“In addition to the above,
the advertisement urged members of the public to place orders at a rate of Sh3,000
to not only avoid hospital queues or crowds but also because there were only
400 remaining of the 1000 stock unit,” the finding of the council read in
part.
The clinic provided a mobile money
till number – 465339 – was provided.
Among its findings, KMPDC’s
Disciplinary and Ethics Committee made on the allegations against the medical
practitioner include: an admission that the advertisement was placed on social
media platforms on March 15, 2020 at arou2 10.30 am.
The committee found Dr Pancholi committed an act of professional misconduct pursuant to Rule (2) of the Medical Practitioners and Dentist (MPD) rules 2016.
It was also established that he
had already paid USD 3,750 for the importation of the said kits which were to
be delivered to his facility.
On Monday, ten employees of the
clinic were arrested in the multi-agency raid led by after an advertisement
claiming that the facility was selling the kits went viral on social media.
The ten recorded their statements
at the KMPDC offices.
