OSLO, Aug. 5 (Xinhua) -- A doctor in Norway got a warning from Norwegian Health Authorities after repetitively talking negatively about Muslims and their religion, newspaper Aftenposten reported Monday.
According to a report by Norwegian Board of Health Supervision (Helsetilsynet), the doctor has "broken the requirement for soundness and caring help and talked negatively about Islam and Muslims to many patients, relatives and colleagues".
On a number of occasions, the physician had not asked patients why they were coming and did not examine them well enough.
"This made patients unwell, and they felt that it took time away from the reason they came to the doctor for," Helsetilsynet wrote.
In at least one case, the patient was in a serious condition requiring prompt hospitalization, the report said.
"Derogatory talk about other people and religion has no place in the medical practice. What happened weakened confidence in the doctor and the health service," Helsetilsynet wrote.
"The patient's quotes are not correct and have been taken out of context," the doctor complained, adding that such small talk can be misinterpreted, and that he will exercise caution in future.
Vigdis Malt Maroy, Helsetilsynet's Sector Manager, told Aftenposten that this is a rare case.
"However, it is difficult to measure this. We regularly deal with cases where caring help is part of the case, and it is usually about inadequate or lack of communication between health care personnel and the patient. Not like in this case, where religion was the topic," she said.
