by Hayley Robinson

A doctor who fraudulently prescribed sex drugs to poor patients has had his conditions of registration extended.

General Medical Council chiefs agreed that 13 conditions imposed on GP Dr Valiyakalayil Ramu by a fitness to practise hearing in 2009 should continue for a further 12 months.

The conditions confine his medical practice to NHS posts.

He cannot carry out any private practice, work as a locum or undertake any out-of-hours work, and must work under supervision to train in medical ethics and issues of risk and patient safety.

Dr Ramu, from Borden, must also inform any potential employers that his registration is subject to conditions.

The case will be reviewed before the end of the period of conditional registration.

A letter to Dr Ramu said: "The panel accepts that you have made considerable efforts to keep your medical knowledge up to date and it notes that you have done so at your own financial expense.

"However, it remains concerned that you have not been in medical practice for almost four years."

Concerns were also raised about the vagueness of his proposed training arrangements at the St George's Medical Centre in St George's Avenue, Sheerness.

It said: "It is not clear who exactly your supervisor will be and when your training is likely to start."

Dr Ramu, who practised at the surgery in The Crescent, Halfway, Sheppey, was suspended for a year before returning to work as a GP in 2009 with conditions.

It followed his conviction in October 2007 of two offences of obtaining anti-impotence pills from the NHS by deception and one offence of fraud by false representation.

Two further offences of fraud by false representation were taken into consideration.

He was sentenced to a 12-month community order, 200 hours of unpaid work, and £600 costs.

Sittingbourne Magistrates' Court heard that on five occasions, Dr Ramu wrote prescriptions for Cialis, a drug used to treat erectile dysfunction, using the name of a patient.

He gave them to other patients who could not afford the drug, making no record in their medical notes.