Healthcare group accused of employing unlicensed doctors

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A listed health checkup company in China has been accused of employing unlicensed doctors to diagnose customers getting health checks at the group's clinics.

Since last Sunday, articles criticizing the Meinian One Health Healthcare Group for employing unlicensed doctors to perform checkups have been spreading on Chinese social media, where customers shared their varied experiences of checkups – some vastly different than others.

Meinian One Health Healthcare Group /VCG Photo

A source who claimed to be a former employee of the group in Guangzhou told Chengdu Business Newspaper that she was fired after she expressed her concern about the quality of the group’s health checkups.

“I was told that a customer was diagnosed with terminal cancer by two hospitals in Guangzhou, but the checkup results showed the customer was in good condition. I contacted the customer and got the medical result and health check result,” the source named Cui Xiang said, and detailed that she found on many of the results the name of a doctor who had quit.

“Meinian asked the unlicensed doctors to use this name and I also found 70 percent of results signed with this name. Some even used the name of a doctor who had never come down to the branch clinics to do any tests for customers,” Cui added. “Some mammary gland reports were even found signed with the name of a male doctor.”

A health checkup result seen with a signature of a doctor who had quit. /Photo via Chengdu Business Newspaper

Facing the accusations, the group on Monday issued a statement, denying all accusations, stating that the stories are intentional attempts to smear the company. The group also stressed that all paramedics working for the group are licensed and the ones mentioned in the accusations are staff members who are only responsible for reviewing the reports.

Meinian One Health Healthcare Group is one of the country’s two private healthcare companies, the other being iKang. Established in 2004, the company owns some 400 health check centers in about 200 cities nationwide.

In fact, it is not the first time that accusations against the company have been spread on Chinese social media. In a secret interview by China’s Hunan TV, the program reported five out of seven doctors conducting MRI scans in Changsha City were unlicensed. There were also numerous complaints from customers regarding incorrect checkup results.

The Meinian group with its subsidiary companies is seen at an exhibition. /VCG Photo

The local health watchdog immediately stepped in to investigate and confirmed the TV program's report.

According to the newspaper, Guangzhou health authorities have started an investigation into the claims. The Shenzhen Stock Exchange has also responded to the widely spread criticism against the company and ordered the company to review credentials of all staff and licenses and reply by August 1.

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