Two psychologists agreed on Tuesday in the Durban magistrate's court that Dr Lloyd Daniels, who had been convicted earlier of indecently assaulting a pregnant teenager, showed "little risk" of re-offending if he were allowed to continue his work.
Daniels, 26, of Woodview, Phoenix, appeared on Tuesday before acting Magistrate Mike Lasich for sentencing, but the matter was adjourned until Wednesday. He was found guilty in December of indecently assaulting the pregnant 17-year-old girl on September 25, 2001 at RK Khan Hospital while examining her.
On Tuesday Professor Lourens Schlebusch, head of Behavioural Medicine at the Nelson R Mandela School of Medicine, and psychologist Dr Abdulla Khan, presented their reports after assessing Daniels, in mitigation of sentence.
Schlebusch, who assessed Daniels after two consultations, said: "He (Daniels) had been exposed to a lot of stress because of his work. He was unduly stressed on the day of the incident (indecent assault) and suffered behavioural discontrol (where somebody knows what they're doing but cannot control it)."
Schlebusch said as Daniels was not an aggressive person, his behaviour on the day of the indecent assault was "completely out of character". He said that given appropriate psychological treatment, he would be able to cope with the stress and would pose no danger if he continued to work at a hospital."
Daniels presently works in the outpatients' ward at Osindisweni Hospital in Verulam, but has also had stints in the female surgical ward.
Khan, who counselled Daniels after he had been charged, said the loss of control due to stress had been Daniels's main problem and that he had been making "gradual but good progress" in dealing with this.
Khan said he had passed the Wisconsin Assessment of Offender Risk Treatment, a test taken to predict the future behaviour of an offender. He said the discontrol Daniel had suffered had not re-emerged since his employment at the Osindisweni Hospital, where he had had the opportunity to work in the women's surgical unit.
He said psychological treatment away from a prison environment would help in rehabilitating Daniels.
However, state prosecutor Aida van Vuuren said the larger community would be disturbed if Daniels were allowed to work in a female surgical ward. The community would want him to be "severely punished".