The Ecuadorian doctor who was criminally charged by the Ministry of Health for cheating on the residency exam saw his score plummet on the new exam he had to take, along with 116 other doctors: from the 92 points he earned on July 1, he dropped to 63 on Thursday's exam.
This Friday, at a press conference, presidential spokesman Manuel Adorni confirmed that none of the 117 medical residency applicants who had to retake the exam due to suspected fraud were able to revalidate their original score.
Among them is the Ecuadorian doctor whom the government filed a criminal complaint after a video emerged showing him cheating on the single residency exam, which he took in Parque Roca. He did so using Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses. He filmed the test sheets, and then another person, with the appropriate bibliography, sent him the correct answers in some form, yet to be revealed.
The residency scandal erupted on July 21, when the Ministry of Health reported that it had detected irregular results in approximately 200 resident exams. They demonstrated, it explained, inconsistencies with the historical parameters of the universities from which these doctors come and the average score for their degree program compared to other exams the same students took.
Nine days later, the Health Department filed a criminal complaint against him. However, the doctor was able to testify again this Thursday at the Palacio Libertad, where he did so under strict supervision and measures.
According to all the candidates interviewed by Clarín upon leaving, Thursday's exam was"a firing squad," much more difficult than the one on July 1st. Some said the test was between 80% and 85% more complicated."It was an exam for residents, not for residency applicants," said one of the doctors.
Of the 117 who retaken the exam, the Ecuadorian doctor placed in the top ten: with a score of 63/100, he is seventh among those with the highest scores. And of the 11 professionals who had obtained 92/100 on the single exam, he now has the highest score.
But he also improved his own performance compared to last year: this is his second consecutive admission to medical residencies. In 2024, he had achieved a score of 43/100, the Ministry of Health previously reported.
