Life Healthcare Group suspends Peter Beale following allegations of negligence

Life Healthcare has suspended Professor Peter Beale, a paediatric surgeon accused of negligence.

In an internal letter to staff, Life Healthcare Group’s regional manager, Jayesh Parshotam, said the company had “taken the decision to suspend Professor Peter Beale’s administration privileges”, adding that the decision “will be revisited at an appropriate future date when a final decision will be made”.

News24 is in possession of the letter.

Beale has faced a number of negligence accusations, the most recent being from the Sayed family whose 10-year-old son, Zayyaan Sayed, died this month after a routine operation by Beale at Netcare’s Park Lane Clinic in Johannesburg.

Life Healthcare Group is the third known hospital to suspend Beale, who had previously been suspended by Mediclinic Morningside, and recently also by Netcare, along with the operating anaesthetist, Dr Abdulhay Munshi, pending an investigation into the Sayed boy’s death.

A number of families have come forward to tell their stories of how they lost their little ones, who allegedly died under Beale’s knife, or whose children have impediments after surgery by Beale.

The Sayed family has taken the decision to pursue criminal charges against Beale as well as Munshi.

“As a hospital group, we remain dedicated to ensuring that we provide quality care to our patients and our primary focus will always be the well-being and safety of those entrusted to our care,” Parshotam said of Beale’s suspension.

Zayyaan’s father, Mohammadh Sayed, told News24 that the suspension was not enough.

“It’s is too little too late,” he said, adding that he felt the suspension was about damage control.

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