Polarizing brain surgeon Charlie Teo claims he is the victim of ‘medical bullying’ because he makes Asian and other doctors ‘look like idiots’.
Dr. Teo, 65, has a reputation for his willingness to perform risky surgeries on brain tumors considered inoperable by other doctors, but has come under constant criticism from the medical establishment for his controversial practice.
This week, a lengthy medical tribunal ended Dr Teo’s career in Australia by ruling that he can now only perform his brand of high-risk, high-reward operations if he receives written permission from another experienced neurosurgeon.
He denied all allegations that he had done anything wrong and told Sunday 7 News Spotlight a voice of neurosurgeons was ‘seeking to destroy me, my reputation and ability to practice in Australia and around the world’.
When probed as to why the medical community is supposed to get him, Dr Teo said it could be due to jealousy, as well as his Chinese-Singaporean heritage.
Polarizing brain surgeon Charlie Teo (pictured with partner Tracy Griffiths) claims he is the victim of ‘medical bullying’ because he makes Asian and other doctors ‘look like idiots’
‘I’m sure my personality doesn’t help, being Asian probably doesn’t help.
‘I understand the attitude of other surgeons against me. Some call the tumor inoperable.
‘They come to me and I say it works. I figure it out, everything goes fine. I can understand why that surgeon didn’t like me, because it made him look stupid.’
He went on to claim that the tribunal had made it up to make it seem as though I was reckless.
‘There are many other neurosurgeons before me who have been victims of medical bullying. This is medical bullying at its worst.’
His downfall in Australia stems from two major complaints which saw the Healthcare Complaints Commission (HCCC) hold hearings in March over two surgeries carried out in 2018 and 2019, which left female patients aged 41 and 61 with catastrophic brain injuries.
Dr Teo spent an emotional two months fighting the allegations on the stand – telling a medical panel why he cut too far into one patient’s brain and why he removed more than nine centimeters from another.
On Wednesday, the HCCC found him guilty of unsatisfactory professional conduct. The ruling means he is barred from working unless a credentialing committee approves him.
A lengthy medical tribunal ended Dr Teo’s career in Australia by ruling that he could now only perform his brand of high-risk, high-reward operations if he received written permission from another experienced neurosurgeon.
Dr. Teo is pictured performing brain surgery on a two-year-old child in India
The troubled brain surgeon is now set to continue his career abroad after getting a chance to work in a hospital in China.
‘I’ve been crucified here, it doesn’t seem to have affected their decision, so I’m going to go over there and check the facilities, to make sure they’re OK, they’ve bought the latest MRI for me,’ he said. The Daily Telegraph.
Dr Teo said he chose China because they were ‘committed to me’ and would continue to perform occasional surgeries in parts of Europe and Southeast Asia.
Meanwhile, the devastated family of one of Teo’s patients, Ellie Middleton, have broken their silence on how Dr. Teo’s operation changed their lives.
Miss Middleton’s sister, Sarah Bone, a hairdresser in Molong, told the Sydney Morning Herald that she ‘wanted Charlie Teo to come to our house and look after my sister’.
In December 2008, Teo told the then 20-year-old and her family that if Ellie was his daughter, he must undergo an operation to remove a brain tumor that other neurosurgeons said was inoperable.
The operation was a disaster and for the past 15 years Ellie has spent her days confined to a wheelchair and requiring 24-hour care.
When probed as to why the medical community is supposed to get him, Dr Teo (pictured left with wife Tracy Griffiths) said it could be due to jealousy as well as his Chinese-Singaporean heritage.
His family said he can’t walk, talk or feed himself and is now blind.
His mother, Vicky, said: ‘He has no value in life, none.
At just seven years old, Eli was diagnosed with an astrocytoma, a slow-growing brain tumor that was considered inoperable due to its location.
Despite the family’s skepticism about his ability to operate successfully, Eli convinced his family to take him to Sydney to see the famous neurosurgeon.
‘I remember Charlie saying, if I had a daughter I’d have the operation,’ Ellie’s sister said.
Dr Teo indicated he was considering an appeal against the investigation which effectively ended his career in Australia.
‘I could have appealed, I think I would have won. He said that he cannot prove all the allegations against me beyond reasonable doubt, as they are not true.
‘But I’m not sure I have the strength to appeal. Besides, I don’t have the money to do that.’
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