Medical register insights
Why UK doctors are struck off
This analysis groups published doctor erasure determinations into broad reason categories using the regulator-described charges, findings, and summaries indexed by MedicWatch. The figures describe MedicWatch's indexed corpus of published regulator determinations, not all healthcare misconduct.
60
published erasure determinations analysed
60
matched at least one specific reason category
12 May 2025
earliest decision date in this view
9 September 2026
latest decision date in this view
Cite this: https://medicwatch.co.uk/insights/why-doctors-are-struck-off#dataset-summary · download the underlying data (CSV).
Interactive chart
Categorised reasons in published erasure decisions
Records
31 of 60
51.7%
Criminal conviction
30 of 60
50%
Clinical care
25 of 60
41.7%
Sexual misconduct
19 of 60
31.7%
Workplace conduct
19 of 60
31.7%
Patient safety
18 of 60
30%
Dishonesty
15 of 60
25%
Consent and dignity
12 of 60
20%
Medicines and drugs
10 of 60
16.7%
Health and substance
10 of 60
16.7%
Non-engagement
6 of 60
10%
Category table
| Category | Count | Share | What this includes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Records, paperwork, and administration | 31 | 51.7% | Findings involving record keeping, notes, paperwork, documentation, or administrative compliance. |
| Criminal conviction or caution | 30 | 50% | Findings where the published determination refers to a criminal conviction, caution, court sentence, or criminal offence. |
| Clinical care and competence | 25 | 41.7% | Findings involving clinical care, treatment, diagnosis, competence, performance, or professional skill. |
| Sexual misconduct and boundaries | 19 | 31.7% | Regulator-described findings involving sexual misconduct, sexualised behaviour, or professional-boundary violations. |
| Workplace conduct and colleagues | 19 | 31.7% | Findings involving colleagues, workplace behaviour, bullying, harassment, or employer-related conduct. |
| Patient safety and safeguarding | 18 | 30% | Findings involving patient safety, safeguarding, vulnerable people, child protection, or risk of harm. |
| Dishonesty and false records | 15 | 25% | Findings involving dishonesty, fraud, forged documents, false statements, or misleading records. |
| Communication, consent, and dignity | 12 | 20% | Findings involving consent, communication, dignity, confidentiality, or patient information. |
| Medicines, prescribing, and drugs | 10 | 16.7% | Findings involving prescribing, medicines management, controlled drugs, medication errors, or drug misuse. |
| Health, alcohol, or substance concerns | 10 | 16.7% | Findings involving health concerns, alcohol, substance misuse, or health-related impairment. |
| Non-engagement with the regulator | 6 | 10% | Findings involving failure to engage, non-compliance, breach of conditions, or failure to cooperate with the regulator. |
Example source-backed determinations
Records, paperwork, and administration
20 August 2026Medical Practitioners Tribunal ServiceDoctor
The MPTS tribunal directed Dr Walid Ahmed's removal from the medical register following his conviction for controlling or coercive behaviour. The criminal court had imposed a prison sentence of two years and eight months and a ten-year restraining order. The tribunal found impaired fitness to practise, no evidence of insight or remediation, and a high risk of repetition. It also imposed an immediate suspension order.
12 June 2026Medical Practitioners Tribunal ServiceDoctor
The MPTS tribunal found that Dr Richard Bowley, a doctor, dishonestly claimed payments under an income protection insurance policy by declaring on a claim form that he had not worked and could not work as a GP, when he had in fact been working as a locum GP. It found his fitness to practise impaired by misconduct. The tribunal, which also reviewed an existing suspension for improperly accessing a colleague's medical records, directed that his name be erased from the Medical Register.
12 November 2025Medical Practitioners Tribunal ServiceDoctor
The MPTS tribunal found that Dr Masud Prodhan self-prescribed medication by issuing prescriptions to a close personal contact on seven occasions over nearly four years, then denied this in a formal NHS investigation witness statement and again in a subsequent interview. His practices also had multiple CQC regulatory failures. The tribunal found his fitness to practise impaired and, despite his admissions and personal circumstances, determined that his persistent dishonesty and limited insight made erasure from the Medical Register the only appropriate sanction. Dr Prodhan has lodged an appeal.
Criminal conviction or caution
20 August 2026Medical Practitioners Tribunal ServiceDoctor
The MPTS tribunal directed Dr Walid Ahmed's removal from the medical register following his conviction for controlling or coercive behaviour. The criminal court had imposed a prison sentence of two years and eight months and a ten-year restraining order. The tribunal found impaired fitness to practise, no evidence of insight or remediation, and a high risk of repetition. It also imposed an immediate suspension order.
26 June 2026Medical Practitioners Tribunal ServiceDoctor
The MPTS tribunal found that Dr Deepu Alkere Nanjundaswamy's fitness to practise was impaired by reason of a conviction and misconduct. It found he had been convicted of a drink-related driving offence, failed to tell the GMC, consumed alcohol while on duty in an emergency department, slapped a woman while intoxicated in breach of interim conditions, and then left the UK while facing a criminal charge. The tribunal erased his name from the medical register.
12 June 2026Medical Practitioners Tribunal ServiceDoctor
The MPTS tribunal found that Dr Salah-ud-Din Taj had criminal convictions in Australia for 14 offences over four months, including a threat to kill, stalking and breaching court orders. It also found he dishonestly failed to declare these convictions when applying to the GMC in 2018 and to an NHS trust in 2019, and misrepresented his work history. The tribunal decided his fitness to practise was impaired and erased his name from the medical register.
Clinical care and competence
9 September 2026Medical Practitioners Tribunal ServiceDoctor
The MPTS tribunal found Dr Surrayya Najeeb's fitness to practise impaired by dishonesty and deficient professional performance. It found that she misrepresented her role, performance concerns and qualification status. On 9 September 2026 it ordered erasure and immediate suspension, concluding that conditions or suspension would not adequately protect the public. The tribunal accepted that actual serious harm had not been caused, but found insufficient insight and remediation and a risk of future harm.
20 August 2026Medical Practitioners Tribunal ServiceDoctor
The MPTS tribunal directed Dr Walid Ahmed's removal from the medical register following his conviction for controlling or coercive behaviour. The criminal court had imposed a prison sentence of two years and eight months and a ten-year restraining order. The tribunal found impaired fitness to practise, no evidence of insight or remediation, and a high risk of repetition. It also imposed an immediate suspension order.
17 August 2026Medical Practitioners Tribunal ServiceDoctor
The MPTS tribunal directed Dr Jairon Majdneya's removal from the medical register at a review of an earlier suspension. The previous tribunal had found dishonest practice as a GP after her licence was withdrawn. The review found that fitness to practise remained impaired, with no evidence of insight, remediation or maintained clinical skills. It concluded that further suspension would not adequately protect the public or maintain confidence.
Sexual misconduct and boundaries
21 August 2026Medical Practitioners Tribunal ServiceDoctor
The MPTS tribunal directed Dr William Smerdon's removal from the medical register after finding sexual misconduct involving two vulnerable patients. This included a sexual relationship with one patient and non-consensual kissing and touching of another. It imposed an immediate suspension, finding limited insight and a continuing risk of repetition. Allegations that he controlled or manipulated the first patient were not proved, and several other allegations were also rejected.
10 June 2026Medical Practitioners Tribunal ServiceDoctor
The MPTS tribunal found that Dr Elliot Burns, a GP, engaged in an improper emotional and sexual relationship with a vulnerable patient between July 2013 and March 2015, including exchanging sexualised messages and images and three instances of sexual activity while she was his patient. The tribunal decided his fitness to practise was impaired by his misconduct and ordered that his name be erased from the medical register.
9 June 2026Medical Practitioners Tribunal ServiceDoctor
The MPTS tribunal found that Dr Matthew Jones, a GP, carried out sexually motivated examinations of two patients in 2015 that were not clinically indicated, touching their genital areas, and that one patient was vulnerable due to her mental health. It also found he took sexual photographs of himself on a hospital landing in 2019. The tribunal decided his fitness to practise was impaired by misconduct and ordered that his name be erased from the medical register.
Workplace conduct and colleagues
21 August 2026Medical Practitioners Tribunal ServiceDoctor
The MPTS tribunal directed Dr William Smerdon's removal from the medical register after finding sexual misconduct involving two vulnerable patients. This included a sexual relationship with one patient and non-consensual kissing and touching of another. It imposed an immediate suspension, finding limited insight and a continuing risk of repetition. Allegations that he controlled or manipulated the first patient were not proved, and several other allegations were also rejected.
26 June 2026Medical Practitioners Tribunal ServiceDoctor
The MPTS tribunal found that Dr Deepu Alkere Nanjundaswamy's fitness to practise was impaired by reason of a conviction and misconduct. It found he had been convicted of a drink-related driving offence, failed to tell the GMC, consumed alcohol while on duty in an emergency department, slapped a woman while intoxicated in breach of interim conditions, and then left the UK while facing a criminal charge. The tribunal erased his name from the medical register.
12 June 2026Medical Practitioners Tribunal ServiceDoctor
The MPTS tribunal found that Dr Richard Bowley, a doctor, dishonestly claimed payments under an income protection insurance policy by declaring on a claim form that he had not worked and could not work as a GP, when he had in fact been working as a locum GP. It found his fitness to practise impaired by misconduct. The tribunal, which also reviewed an existing suspension for improperly accessing a colleague's medical records, directed that his name be erased from the Medical Register.
Patient safety and safeguarding
9 September 2026Medical Practitioners Tribunal ServiceDoctor
The MPTS tribunal found Dr Surrayya Najeeb's fitness to practise impaired by dishonesty and deficient professional performance. It found that she misrepresented her role, performance concerns and qualification status. On 9 September 2026 it ordered erasure and immediate suspension, concluding that conditions or suspension would not adequately protect the public. The tribunal accepted that actual serious harm had not been caused, but found insufficient insight and remediation and a risk of future harm.
21 August 2026Medical Practitioners Tribunal ServiceDoctor
The MPTS tribunal directed Dr William Smerdon's removal from the medical register after finding sexual misconduct involving two vulnerable patients. This included a sexual relationship with one patient and non-consensual kissing and touching of another. It imposed an immediate suspension, finding limited insight and a continuing risk of repetition. Allegations that he controlled or manipulated the first patient were not proved, and several other allegations were also rejected.
20 August 2026Medical Practitioners Tribunal ServiceDoctor
The MPTS tribunal directed Dr Walid Ahmed's removal from the medical register following his conviction for controlling or coercive behaviour. The criminal court had imposed a prison sentence of two years and eight months and a ten-year restraining order. The tribunal found impaired fitness to practise, no evidence of insight or remediation, and a high risk of repetition. It also imposed an immediate suspension order.
Methodology and limits
This page analyses published erasure and voluntary-erasure determinations in the MedicWatch indexed corpus. It does not claim to measure all misconduct in UK healthcare or every regulator decision ever made.
MedicWatch applies a fixed taxonomy to regulator-derived charges, findings, and plain-English summaries. A determination can match more than one category, so category percentages may add up to more than 100%. The denominator for each percentage on this page is 60 published determinations.
Categories describe broad themes in the regulator's published findings. They are not new allegations by MedicWatch. Follow the linked source determinations for the full wording and context.
For citation, describe this as “MedicWatch analysis of its indexed corpus of published UK healthcare regulator erasure determinations”. Do not describe it as a measure of all UK healthcare misconduct.