Medical Council Warns Public Not to Attend Bray GP Practice After Suspended Doctor Continues to Operate
The Medical Council has issued an unusually direct public warning advising patients in the "strongest possible terms" not to attend the Silver Oak Family Practice in Bray, County Wicklow, or to request appointments or prescriptions from Dr Regine Grah, after evidence emerged that the GP was continuing to practise medicine despite a High Court order suspending her registration — an order obtained by the Medical Council following grave concerns about her prescribing of controlled drugs.
Background
The Medical Council is the statutory body responsible for the regulation of medical practitioners in Ireland. Its primary function is to protect the public by ensuring that doctors on the Irish Medical Register meet the standards of competence, conduct, and character required for safe medical practice. The council has the power to apply to the High Court for the suspension of a doctor's registration where it believes there is an immediate risk of harm to the public — a power that is used sparingly and only in cases of serious concern.
The Silver Oak Family Practice is a general practice located in Bray, County Wicklow, serving patients in the town and surrounding areas. Dr Regine Grah, who qualified as a doctor in 2018, has been operating the practice and treating patients under the General Medical Services scheme, which covers medical card holders. The concerns about her prescribing practices were first raised by pharmacists in Wicklow and south Dublin, who reported unusual patterns in the prescriptions they were receiving from the practice.
The High Court granted the Medical Council's application for suspension in July 2026, following a hearing at which Judge David Barniville found the evidence presented by the council to be strong. The court permitted the publication of Dr Grah's name specifically to protect the public, citing the potential for serious consequences to patient safety if she continued to operate without authorisation or insurance.
Key Developments
The Medical Council's public warning, issued in August 2026, was prompted by reports that Dr Grah was continuing to practise medicine despite the July court order. The council described this as a matter of the utmost seriousness and urged any patient who had received a prescription from the practice since the suspension order to contact their pharmacist or another GP immediately.
The concerns about Dr Grah's prescribing practices centred on the high volumes and large quantities of controlled drugs — specifically benzodiazepines and "Z-drugs" — that she was prescribing without establishing clear treatment plans for withdrawal or reduction. Pharmacists reported that she had sent identical prescriptions to multiple pharmacies, potentially enabling patients to obtain medication more frequently than prescribed, and that she had issued high-dose prescriptions to individuals with known histories of substance misuse. Evidence presented to the court showed that between December 2025 and February 2026, three related patients were repeatedly prescribed substantial quantities of Xanax and diazepam.
Why It Matters
The case raises serious questions about the oversight of prescribing practices in Irish general practice. Benzodiazepines and Z-drugs are among the most commonly misused prescription medications in Ireland, and their inappropriate prescribing contributes to addiction, overdose, and death. The Irish College of General Practitioners has clear guidelines on the prescribing of these medications, including requirements for regular review, dose reduction plans, and careful monitoring of patients with histories of substance misuse. The allegations against Dr Grah suggest a systematic departure from those guidelines.
The fact that a doctor was able to continue practising despite a High Court suspension order is also deeply concerning. The Medical Council's ability to protect the public depends on its orders being respected and enforced. The council has indicated that it is taking all available steps to ensure compliance with the court order, but the case highlights the practical challenges of enforcement in a system where a determined individual can continue to operate a practice even after their registration has been suspended.
Local Impact
For patients of the Silver Oak Family Practice in Bray, the situation is deeply unsettling. Many will have been attending the practice for months or years and will now need to find alternative GP care — a significant challenge in a county where GP capacity is already stretched. The Medical Council has advised affected patients to contact the HSE's GP Assignment Office for assistance in registering with an alternative practice. Patients who have received prescriptions from the practice and are concerned about their medication should contact their pharmacist or present to their nearest GP surgery or urgent care centre.
What's Next
The Medical Council is pursuing all available legal remedies to ensure compliance with the High Court suspension order. A fitness-to-practise inquiry is expected to be initiated in due course, which could result in the erasure of Dr Grah's name from the Medical Register. The council has also referred the matter to An Garda Síochána. The case is expected to prompt a review of the mechanisms available to the Medical Council for enforcing suspension orders, with a view to strengthening the regulatory framework.
