An eye specialist has been found guilty of professional misconduct for endorsing an eyedrop in newspapers and magazines.
Dr Samuel Hui Tak-wing (pictured) had failed to prevent the printing of an interview that endorsed the Alcon product in five publications, the Medical Council concluded yesterday.
Hui, who has practised for two decades, will be sent a warning letter and the order will be published in the gazette.
But the ophthalmologist, who claimed he did not know the eyedrop's name would appear in the article, was spared from having his name removed from the doctor's register.
In 2004, the doctor was approached by the manufacturer for an interview on eye allergies. The article was published in the Apple Daily, Headline Daily, TVB Weekly, Parents Magazine and Life Style Plus in 2004 and 2006.
His name, his title as ophthalmologist and his picture appeared in the article, which also carried the name and picture of the eyedrop, Patanol, legal officer Matthew Leung said at a disciplinary hearing.
'New drugs are strong in their effects. [The users] only need to use them once in the morning and once at night,' the article quoted the doctor as saying.