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Case ref:201301078
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Date:February 2014
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Body:A Medical Practice in the Greater Glasgow and Clyde NHS Board area
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Sector:Health
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Outcome:Not upheld, no recommendations
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Subject:clinical treatment / diagnosis
Summary
Ms C complained that doctors at the practice did not recognise multiple chemical sensitivity (MCS) as a medical condition and had refused to supply her with a doctors note for a housing application she had made. Ms C said that the practice only provided consulting rooms which were heavily perfumed through the use of air fresheners, and that they had focused unreasonably on her illness being psychological.
During our investigation we took independent advice on Ms C's complaint from one of our medical advisers. We found that MCS is not a recognised medical condition, so the doctors were not able to certify Ms C as suffering from it. We found no evidence that the rooms at the practice were over-perfumed or that the use of air fresheners by the practice was targeted at Ms C. Given that MCS is not a recognised medical condition and in view of the symptoms she was displaying, we found that the doctors had acted responsibly in suggesting that Ms C might benefit from accessing mental health services.