Doctor fights back after being accused of praying with patients

A British medical authority has ruled against a secularist group that filed a complaint against a Christian doctor for praying with his patients.

The General Medical Council found no evidence that Dr. Richard Scott had done anything wrong, reassuring physicians in the United Kingdom that they can share their faith in the workplace without fear of losing their jobs.

In June, the GMC informed Scott it had received "some information" from the National Secular Society and was planning a "fitness to practice" investigation.

The complaint expressed concern that Scott was "continuing to pray and promote Christianity during consultations in an attempt to convert patients."

The GMC investigated for three months and determined "there was no case."

"There is no first-hand account or complaint from any patient about Dr. Scott's practice," the GMC said. "The NSS sent an anonymous hearsay account about how Dr. Scott expressed his religious beliefs to a 'highly vulnerable' patient," and "there is no convincing evidence that Dr. Scott imposes his personal religious beliefs upon potentially vulnerable patients."

Scott, in a statement released by the U.K.'s Christian Legal Center, said the complaint "should never have got to this stage."

"It was clear from the outset that the NSS was targeting not just me and the practice, but also the freedom of Christian professionals across the U.K. to share their faith in the workplace," he said.

"The toll placed on my family and me, as a result of one spurious complaint, was totally unnecessary. Yet it is my hope that this outcome will mean other Christian practitioners will not have to go through similar experiences."

Andrea Williams, director of the Christian Legal Center, said the outcome of the case "not only gives reassurance to Christian doctors and professionals across the U.K. that they can share their faith in the workplace, but also clear guidance on how they can share it without fear of losing their jobs."

"The agenda of the National Secular Society to remove Christian witness from the workplace is clear," she said. "Yet this guidance from the GMC should now provide more protection, allowing doctors, like Richard, to get on with their jobs without fear.

Williams said Scott "is a brilliant doctor, loved and respected in his community and especially by his patients."

"It is because of his Christian faith that he is motivated to look after the person well beyond the consulting room," she said.

The GMC found: "There is no evidence that [Dr Scott] discusses faith in situations where the patient has stated that they do not wish to discuss these matters or that he has continued to discuss faith after a patient has indicated that they do not welcome such a discussion."

The GMC noted Scott's medical practice declares to patients that "the majority of the partners are Christians and that this faith guides the way in which they view their work."

The NSS had claimed it had heard from "a member of the public who was concerned because an acquaintance whom she describes as 'highly vulnerable' is being treated at the practice' and claimed that the patient 'does not feel able to express discomfort at the use of prayer.'"

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