Jim Wolstenholme, former chief executive of the Miramichi Hospital in northeastern New Brunswick, told the inquiry Tuesday that when he arrived at the hospital in 2001, he was "surprised" to find Dr. Rajgopal Menon was chief of pathology.

"I had been aware, not in any detail, but I had been aware that there were issues during his earlier practice at other locations in the province," Wolstenholme told the Commission of Inquiry into Pathology Services in the Miramichi.

"It did surprise me to learn that he was a member of the medical staff at the Miramichi."

Nevertheless, it wasn't until 2004 that Wolstenholme said he was able to act on persistent concerns about the pathologist's work habits and dismiss him as chief of pathology services.

Wolstenholme said Menon, who had been chief since 1995, was too slow in performing his duties, had removed patient slides from the hospital and was frequently absent from the job.

"He was seen in Fredericton on numerous occasions during regular business hours of the hospital by myself and others," Wolstenholme said during his testimony.

He said Menon had business interests in Fredericton.

Wolstenholme said removing Menon as chief was the first step in what he hoped would lead to the cancelling of Menon's privileges and his dismissal from the hospital.

"It was time to stand up and do something," he said. "Quite frankly, I figured enough was enough."

However, Wolstenholme was removed as CEO by the provincial government shortly after he dismissed Menon as chief pathologist. Wolstenholme's dismissal was not related to the Menon case.

Menon, 73, worked as a pathologist at the Miramichi Regional Health Authority from 1995 until February 2007, when his licence was suspended by the College of Physicians and Surgeons following complaints about incomplete diagnoses and delayed lab results.

Close to 24,000 of Menon's cases from 1995 to 2007 are now being reviewed by an Ottawa laboratory. The audit includes about 100 tests carried out in Edmundston, N.B., in 2002, when Menon worked there.

Last week, members of both the Health Department and the Miramichi health authority testified about Menon's absenteeism and incomplete documentation.

Officials also have pointed out the dire shortage of pathologists in Canada and noted that the Miramichi was having great difficulty hiring a pathologist when Menon took the job in 1995.

"I was borderline desperate," John Tucker, former CEO of the Miramichi Regional Hospital, told the inquiry earlier.

The inquiry into Menon's work was triggered by a review in February of 227 pathological tests for breast and prostate cancers conducted by Menon in 2004-05.

The results found that 18 per cent of the readings were incomplete and three per cent were incorrect.

A peer review of Menon's work, released publicly in March, indicated the elderly pathologist had health problems, such as cataracts and hand tremors, that may have affected the quality of his work.

Menon, slightly built and bespectacled, attended the hearing as usual on Tuesday, accompanied by his wife Annie.

He is expected to testify later in the month.

Menon has defended his work, calling the review "unjustified and unfair." He has also filed a civil suit against the regional health authority.

The inquiry has adjourned until next week when witnesses will include officials from the New Brunswick College of Physicians and Surgeons.