GYNAECOLOGIST Richard Neale confessed yesterday he had carried out a vaginal hysterectomy on a patient without her consent.

Mr Neale, 54, admitted that with hindsight he should have checked that the patient, known only as Mrs G, had agreed to a vaginal hysterectomy rather than an abdominal operation.

The operation was carried out at The Friarage Hospital, in Northallerton, North Yorkshire.

"A woman came into hospital to have her womb removed and was not overly concerned about the technical detail," he told the General Medical Council's (GMC) professional conduct committee.

Looking back, however, he now realised he should have checked documentation to ensure that consent for the operation had been obtained.

Mr Neale, of The Firs, Langthorpe, Boroughbridge, North Yorkshire, said: "I now accept that a surgeon should check to ensure a correct consent in writing has been obtained before a hysterectomy is performed.

"At the time, I relied on others, such as anaesthetists."

Mr Neale, who now faces independent investigations into his conduct as a gynaecologist in Canada, denies neglecting his patients, abusing his skills and damaging the reputation of the medical profession.

Mr Neale who worked as a consultant in obstetrics and gynaecology at The Friarage, left the hospital in 1995, then worked elsewhere in the UK.

He admits failing to perform pre-operative x-ray or post-operative mamogram to ensure microcalcifications had been removed from a patient, known as Mrs A, at The Friarage.

However, he denies misconduct over the treatment of 12 other patients, and of submitting a false curriculum vitae to the GMC for a job involved in weeding out incompetent doctors.

Mr Malcolm Fortune, counsel for Mr Neale, submitted that his client had made an understandable diagnosis of unusual period pains before she took advice and reported the matters to the GMC.

He submitted that expert evidence would show that the diagnosis made by Mr Neale was justifiable and he was not to blame for failing to diagnose a recurrence of endometriosis _ a disease which can lead to infertility in women.

Blonde former actress model Mrs B who is attending the hearing, is a co-founder of a group from Canada and this country who are leading a campaign against Mr Neale.

The hearing continues on Sunday and afterwards on a date to be fixed.