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bstetrician-gynecologist Dewa Ayu Sasiary, who was acquitted by the Supreme Court of malpractice on February, said Wednesday that any malpractice allegations would be better settled by medical councils.

Before Constitutional Court justices, Ayu said her legal case was solid proof that broad interpretations of alleged malpractice could lead to legal uncertainty for the profession and create fear for doctors.

'€œI became more cautious in my medical practice after I was released from prison. I even apply defensive medicine for my patients now, because I do not want to be imprisoned twice,'€ she said, referring to a safe medication method used by doctors to avoid harm in patients, but not effectively cure them.

In November last year, Ayu and her two colleagues, Hendry Simanjuntak and Hendy Siagian, were put behind bars for the death of Julia Fransiska Makatey in 2010, after she suffered a cardiac embolism during a caesarean section at Kandou Malalayang Hospital in Manado, North Sulawesi. The patient had reportedly suffered a miscarriage without any medical assistance.

In February, the Supreme Court acquitted the doctors, finding they '€œhad not violated any regulation while performing the disputed operation'€. The case had sparked protests by doctors across the country, who at the time staged street rallies, calling it the criminalization of the medical profession.

On Wednesday, Ayu testified in the Constitutional Court as a witness for the Indonesian Doctors Union (DIB), which filed a judicial review of Article 66 paragraph 3 of Law No. 29/2004 on Medical Practice.

The article stipulates that a malpractice report to the Indonesian Medical Disciplinary Honorary Council (MKDKI) does not eliminate the patient'€™s right to report the alleged malpractice to law enforcement institutions.

The DIB said it wanted the court to review the article as it made the medical profession prone to criminalization and potentially caused legal uncertainty.

'€œWe want to stop malpractice criminal reports being filed if the MKDKI does not find any disciplinary violation. In my experience, legal enforcement officers do not understand medical terms. That caused lots of problems for me,'€ Ayu said.

During Wednesday'€™s hearing, Suharyono, a doctor who was also involved in drafting the law, said the article did not intend to create any discomfort for medical professionals, but was created to provide legal protection for the public.

'€œThe article gives the public access to file a criminal report against any doctors who do not perform their job in a professional manner. Every doctor will be protected by the law provided they do not do anything wrong,'€ he said.

On Sept. 26, the House of Representatives passed the Health Workers bill into law despite resistance from the doctors'€™ association. The newly passed law also includes prison sanctions and punishment for malpractice.

Article 84 of the new law stipulates that health workers may face up to three years in prison if found guilty of negligence leading to severe injury, while Article 85 proposes a maximum prison term of five years for proven negligence resulting in a patient'€™s death. (idb)