AfricaPress-Kenya: Kenya Medical Practitioners and Dentists Board (KMPDB) has slapped Avane Cosmetic Dermatology Clinic proprietor with a Sh500,000 fine for putting out a fake advertisement on coronavirus testing kits.
In a statement by KMPDB, Pranav Pancholi, a surgeon by profession, was found guilty of gross misconduct, operating unregistered clinic and having committed the same offence before.“Dr Pancholi is hereby admonished for allowing his institution to publish a deceitful, erroneous and misleading advertisement,” KMPDB Chairperson Eva Njenga stated.The board also suspended Pancholi’s practising licence for a period of six months and the operating licence for his clinic over gross misconduct.
“Dr Pancholi’s practising licence and the operating license of the clinic be suspended for a period of six months,” the board said.Avane, based at the Yaya Centre in Nairobi, had claimed to sell coronavirus rapid test kits, that could be used in self-testing as well as early diagnosis of the coronavirus.KMPDB officials raided Pancholi’s clinic following the advertisement that Avec had safe testing kits for coronavirus at Sh3000 each and that only 400 kits were left from a stock of 1000.
The clinic also provided mobile money till number for would- be clients to use for placing and paying their orders.During the raid, KMPDB official apprehended advertisement material on the kits and 12 staff who were all not qualified medics but were working at the clinic.
One of the women, since identified as Sylvia Kalevi, was caught performing a non-invasive procedure.Pancholi and Kalevi were charged with illegally authorising, designing and uploading a misleading advert about the availability of coronavirus rapid test kits.Kalevi was charged with performing a procedure without proper training.They both denied the charges and have been freed on Sh150,000 bail.
