The HPCSA is conducting a disciplinary hearing into a doctor who falsely claimed that COVID vaccines were a deliberate mass poisoning designed to kill people. The disciplinary hearing against “anti-vax” doctor Shankara Chetty got underway in Durban this week, after changes to the charge sheet were made. This comes after Chetty asked that the charges be dismissed or revised - or he would approach the high court for relief. The charges are based on allegations by Francois Venter, a medical professor at Wits University who was at the forefront of Covid research in South Africa. He said Chetty was practicing “pseudo-science” at the height of the pandemic, with Chetty claiming that vaccines made no sense. Chetty’s argument, in the main, focusses on his right to freedom of expression and claims that expressing a view is not a violation of the ethical guidelines of the Health Professions Council of South Africa (HPCSA). His lawyers argued that the charges should have been dropped. Instead, the disciplinary committee ordered that they be amended. In this conversation, we speak about medical ethics, the misalignment of medical practice and personal belief and importance of medical being prepared to set aside their religious and other personal beliefs if these compromise the care of patients. President of the African Medical Association and Former President of the Health Professions Council of South Africa Dr. Kgosi Letlape joins Lerato Mbele for the conversation.