Local business leaders and the HPCSA have urged doctors and practices to tighten measures to avoid illegal access to their prescription and ‘sick note’ pads, and for employees to be on guard when checking these ‘certificates’ and to report infringements immediately.
The SA Medical Association (SAMA) has warned that doctors who knowingly issued false or misleading notes should also face legal consequences.
In one case in Pietermaritzburg, employers had became suspicious after receiving numerous certificates all purportedly issued by a legitimate healthcare company called Med24 – which has since raised the alarm.
Med24, a reputable Pietermaritzburg medical centre specialising in injury on duty and acute cases, said it had received repeated inquiries from employers seeking to verify certificates submitted by their staff – all of which had allegedly been issued by Med24. The problem had persisted for almost two years, with enquiries coming from large retailers, chain stores and other businesses.
Some companies said they received more than five such certificates in a single month, Med24’s manager said.
“We then took a look at these certificates and found that the sequence number was the same but different names were used. The signature used was not recognised as any of the doctors who practice at the centre, the doctors listed at the bottom were no longer practising at the centre, the format of the note was no longer in use, and the phone numbers were not in use.
“The notes were clearly fraudulent. The certificates purported to justify sick leave of between two and five days, with the reason simply listed as a ‘medical condition’.”
The centre was told that two employees had apparently obtained their certificates from a shopping centre in Pietermaritzburg.
Med24 said it had since strengthened its internal controls by linking certificates to patients’ clinical notes to help prevent fraudulent documents being circulated in its name.
The practice has prompted warnings from the Health Professions Council of South Africa (HPCSA), SAMA, and business leaders, who say the misuse of medical certificates is placing additional pressure on employers and undermining trust between employers and employees.
The HPCSA said the circulation and use of these documents undermined the integrity of the healthcare system, compromised public trust in registered medical practitioners, and exposed employers to operational and financial risks.
It said employees who knowingly submitted fraudulent documents could face disciplinary action or dismissal by their employers.
It advised medical practices to safeguard prescription pads, sick-note books, stamps and other official stationery that could be used to impersonate practitioners or produce false certificates.
“Recommended measures include secure storage, restricted access, stock and serial-number registers where applicable, regular reconciliation of unused stationery, and prompt reporting of missing or stolen documents.”
Where a practice finds its certificates or stationery have been stolen or reproduced without authorisation, it should preserve relevant evidence, notify affected parties where appropriate, report the incident to the SAPS and alert the relevant professional or regulatory authorities.
Pietermaritzburg and Midlands Chamber of Business CEO Melanie Veness said fraudulent medical certificates imposed significant and avoidable costs on employers, particularly small businesses that could ill afford unexpected staff shortages.
She said the consequences extended beyond immediate financial losses, damaging the relationship of trust between employers and employees. Employers also face a difficult trust issue: false documents can undermine confidence in the people involved, as well as in the sick-leave processes, creating additional scrutiny for staff who are genuinely ill.
SAMA chairperson Mvuyisi Mzukwa said the production, sale and use of fraudulent medical certificates threatened the credibility of legitimate practitioners and exposed both those producing fakes and employees using them to possible legal action.
“Medical certificates are professional documents, not commodities to be traded or tools for workplace deception. The theft and reproduction of a …medical certificate book for sale to employees is a serious matter that warrants investigation and decisive action,” he said.
Those who forged, reproduced, distributed or sold fraudulent certificates could face legal consequences, as could doctors who knowingly issued false or misleading ones, Mzukwa warned.
See more from MedicalBrief archives:
Plague of ‘useless’ sick notes impeding judicial processes
HPCSA investigating doctors issuing false sick notes