A family doctor convicted of drink-driving and assaulting a police officer faces being struck off the medical register after a General Medical Council panel concluded her behaviour amounted to serious misconduct, impairing her fitness to practise.

The GMC fitness to practise panel, sitting in Manchester, made its determination against Dr Jane Hornsey on Tuesday after a month-long hearing and is now considering what sanction she should face.

As well as her convictions, the panel heard how Dr Hornsey, 53, of Arncliffe near Skipton, self-prescribed medication potentially putting patients and herself at risk of harm and gave a level of patient care which fell below an acceptable standard on a number of occasions.

She also abused her position of privilege and trust by dishonestly asking a member of staff to shred hospital correspondence.

Dr Hornsey, who is currently suspended, was employed as a General Practioner at North Street Surgery, Keighley.

The panel heard how over a 20-year period Dr Hornsey, a mother-of-four, was self-prescribing medication and in the view of the panel, still failed to appreciate the seriousness of her actions.

Dr Hornsey admitted she used the name Margaret Hornsey as the name of the patient on the prescriptions, which were then signed by herself as Dr Jane Hornsey.

The panel’s determination states: “It is of the view that you abused your position as a medical practioner when you self-prescribed in such a manner, potentially putting both patients and yourself at risk of harm.”

The panel considered the standard of Dr Hornsey’s care in relation to a number of patients.

It found her treatment of a two-year-old suffering from an asthma attack “unacceptable” after she called a blue-light ambulance for the child but left the practice before it arrived, delegating responsibility to non-clinical staff.

She told the mother of one child suffering with recurrent tonsillitis she would refer the child to hospital, but failed to do so for five months and the panel accepted evidence she was “a bit” aggressive during a consultation with a patient and her husband.

In respect to a further four patients who required home visits which were not carried out, including one elderly patient suspected of suffering from the potentially life-threatening condition of DVT, the panel found Dr Hornsey’s care was below an acceptable standard and in breach of good medical practice.

The panel further determined Dr Hornsey acted dishonestly in asking a member of staff to shred hospital correspondence relevant to an ongoing investigation by the primary care trust.

The determination states: “These matters are so serious that the panel has determined that your fitness to practise is impaired by reason of your misconduct.”

The panel also considered Dr Hornsey’s convictions for the offences of assault occasioning actual bodily harm and drink driving, resulting from an incident on October 18, 2009, when she crashed her car. Dr Hornsey bit a PC so forcefully on the arm he required hospital treatment.

The panel’s determination against Dr Hornsey states: “The panel is of the view that these convictions bring the profession into disrepute and undermine the confidence that the public places in it.

“In all the circumstances, the panel has determined that your fitness to practise is impaired by reason of your convictions.”