Lewisham surgeon suspended after patient harm and drinking alcohol on duty

A consultant surgeon has been suspended from medical practice for 12 months after a tribunal found that he injured a patient during surgery, left a junior colleague to complete the procedure and later drank alcohol while still on duty.

Dr Aleksandras Uzkalnis was working in general surgery at University Hospital Lewisham when the incidents occurred in February 2024. The Medical Practitioners Tribunal Service concluded that his fitness to practise was impaired because of misconduct. His suspension began on 15 October 2026.

During one operation, Dr Uzkalnis took over a planned hernia repair but continued after it became apparent that the patient did not have the suspected hernia. The patient suffered injuries to the small bowel. Dr Uzkalnis then handed the operation back to the doctor he had been supervising and left the theatre instead of remaining to complete or oversee the complex procedure.

The tribunal also found failings in an earlier gallbladder operation that day, during which Dr Uzkalnis decided to abandon the procedure without first scrubbing in and taking over from the junior surgeon. Following the second operation, he did not discuss the complications with the patient or their family or offer an apology.

Dr Uzkalnis admitted that after leaving the operating theatre he went to his office, made coffee and added brandy, which he consumed while on duty. Although colleagues reported smelling alcohol during surgery, the tribunal was not presented with evidence proving that he had consumed alcohol before operating.

The panel upheld allegations concerning the bowel injury, his management and abandonment of the procedures, leaving the theatre and drinking while on duty. The Medical Practitioners Tribunal Service has confirmed the 12-month suspension, although its full written determination has not yet been published.

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