3-month suspension, fine for TCM practitioner who forgot to remove needle from patient's buttock
The patient complained of a sharp pain in his right thigh after sitting down.
PHOTO: Unsplash
PUBLISHED ONJanuary 21, 2026 9:20 AMBYDana LeongA Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) practitioner will serve a temporary suspension and pay a fine after forgetting to remove an acupuncture needle from a patient.
The TCM Practitioners Board announced the suspension of Zhao Ying on Monday (Jan 19), after it conducted an inquiry following a complaint by Zhao's patient in 2021.
According to the board, Zhao's patient had visited on April 24, 2021, seeking acupuncture treatment for pain in his back, shoulder and neck.
After the treatment, he did not remove a needle at the lower half of his patient's buttock, resulting in a "sharp pain and numbness that pierced through his inner thighs, quads and legs" upon sitting down.
The patient also reportedly removed the needle by himself and subsequently felt giddy for a short period of time.
The board's investigation found that Zhao had violated multiple regulations in the TCM's terms of reference — professional guidelines that practitioners are expected to abide by.
The board found that he had not provided proper clinical care and did not record key details of the patient's injury like the duration, history of the injury, and the possible cause of the injury suffered.
Additionally, Zhao failed to obtain informed consent and appropriate post-treatment care, especially after discovering the unremoved needle.
As such, he was fined $5,000 and and his licence suspended for three months, effective 40 days after the date of the Board's decision.
He will also be censured and will have to avoid making such mistakes in future.