A disturbing case of medical misconduct has resurfaced in the UK after it was revealed that a consultant anaesthetist abandoned a patient under anaesthetic mid-surgery to engage in sexual activity with a nurse.
According to the BBC, which first reported the incident on 11 September 2025, 44-year-old Dr Suhail Anjum left the operating theatre at Tameside Hospital in Greater Manchester in September 2023. He told colleagues he was taking a “comfort break” but was later discovered in a “compromising position” with a nurse, identified only as Nurse C, in another operating room.
The misconduct has since sparked outrage online, with social media users condemning the breach of trust and questioning whether Dr Anjum should ever be allowed to practise again. A shocked nurse who stumbled across the pair “quickly walked through the theatre to the exit doors,” said Andrew Molloy, representing the General Medical Council (GMC), during a tribunal.
Dr Anjum was absent for about eight minutes before returning to finish the procedure. While no harm came to the patient, the GMC argued that his behaviour carried a serious potential risk. The case came to light during a fitness-to-practise hearing after Dr Anjum, who had been living in Pakistan, applied to resume work in the UK.
Admitting the misconduct, Dr Anjum described his behaviour as “shameful” and a “one-off error of judgment.” He apologised, saying, “I only have myself to blame. I offer my sincere apologies to everyone involved, and I want the opportunity to put this right.”
He also cited personal pressures at the time, including family and marital strain, but acknowledged he had let down both colleagues and the NHS trust.
The hearing, which continued on 12 September, has not yet reached a conclusion on whether Dr Anjum will be deemed fit to return to medical practice in the UK.
