What is the scope of cancellation of registration when a practitioner is registered in more than one health profession?

by | Feb 12, 2017 | Health Blog

In HCCC v Sheldrick (No 2)[2017] NSWCATOD 24 the Tribunal was required to consider the penalty to be imposed on a midwife found guilty of professional misconduct in the course of two homebirths.

The HCCC sought deregistration of the practitioner as both a midwife and as a nurse. It argued that the findings concerning the practitioner’s conduct as a midwife were equally applicable to her knowledge and skills in the practice of nursing.

The Tribunal noted that the HCCC had referred only to the practitioner’s conduct in midwifery in the complaints and had only raised the issue of cancellation of the nursing registration 3 weeks before the penalty hearing when it served its submissions. The practitioner therefore had not addressed the issue or been given notice of any issue with her nursing registration until that time.

In making its finding the Tribunal commented that the question of how to address the issue of deregistration when the practitioner holds registration in more than one health profession is not self-evident, and is complicated in this case by the lack of notice to the practitioner and the fact that a single Board governs both nursing and midwifery, leading to them often being regarded as a single form of registration when they are in fact separate registrations.

It noted that there were no findings or allegations of unethical or dishonest conduct or of a lack of capacity of professional judgment which would necessarily translate across to nursing practice, particularly in the more structured setting of a hospital.

Therefore the Tribunal found that the protection of the health and safety of the public did require cancellation of the practitioner’s midwifery registration but not of her nursing registration.

To read the full decision, click here.

Gemma McGrath

Gemma McGrath