Accused of falsification of a thesis certificate, illegal practice of medicine and endangering the lives of others, Rawane Hassan, a 6th year medical student, faces a two-year prison sentence. The revelations of The Observer shed light on an affair that is shaking the Senegalese capital.
Rawane Hassan, still a final year medical student, saw her career change when she falsified a thesis defense certificate to get a job at the Océan clinic. Faced with financial difficulties, she presented this document to Ms. Saba, deputy director of the establishment, who then hired her as an intern while awaiting official validation of her qualifications.
The young woman would have provided consultations and on-call duties, tasks normally reserved for qualified doctors. At the insistence of her superior, she finally presented the falsified certificate, which, after verification with Euromed University, turned out to be a fake.
Rawane claims that the document was sent by her mother from Ivory Coast and that she was unaware of its fraudulent nature. This argument, however, did not convince the public prosecutor, who also noted his lack of cooperation during the investigation.
The prosecutor stressed the seriousness of the accusations, including the use of forgery, the illegal practice of medicine and endangering the lives of others. “She received a salary of 200,000 FCFA while performing medical procedures for which she was not qualified,” he declared, requesting a two-year prison sentence.
Rawane Hassan’s lawyers argued for leniency, describing their client as an isolated young woman, without family support in Senegal, and simply seeking to support herself. Me Danfa insisted that she acted under the supervision of a qualified doctor and had never endangered the life of a patient. Me Camara, for his part, underlined: “She is one step away from realizing her dream. Imprisoning him for a mistake dictated by necessity would be unfair. »
The court will deliver its verdict on January 22, a decision that will not only determine Rawane Hassan’s future, but could also serve as an example to deter any attempts at fraud in a sector as sensitive as medicine.
