The patient suffered from epilepsy due to an antenatal stroke. At age 21, she underwent telemetry testing to determine her eligibility for surgical intervention. The testing required her brain activity to be monitored during a seizure. Whilst under Hospital care and...
Health Blog
The duty of the court to self-represented litigants
In late 2008, the applicant noticed swelling on the left side of his face and neck extending along the jaw line to a point near the left ear. Following an ultrasound examination, the applicant was referred to hospital. He attended the hospital on 12 February 2009 and...
Professional Services Review Annual Report 2015-16
In 2015/16 there was an increase in the number of investigations of Chronic Disease Management and MBS Health Assessment items. Many practitioners providing high numbers of these services were found to use computer-generated templates leading to plans with minimal...
Fake Nurse convicted and ordered to pay over $40,000
Two separate actions were brought against Nicholas Crawford by the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Australia, one in Queensland and one in Western Australia in relation to 14 offences arising from his falsely claiming to be a registered health professional. Mr Crawford...
Doctor suspended for falsifying medical records
In a recent Tribunal decision, the Medical Board’s decision to take immediate action against a practitioner by suspending his registration was upheld because the Tribunal considered the practitioner’s dishonest and unethical conduct in falsifying medical records meant...
Bleach treatment of elderly patient leads to disciplinary action
A NSW Professional Standards Committee recently found a Registered Nurse guilty of unsatisfactory professional conduct in relation to a complaint about her care and treatment of a patient in an Aged Care Service. The patient was an elderly lady with deteriorating...
Patient who suffered a stroke fails in her medical negligence claim against cardiologist
In September 2006, the patient was referred to the cardiologist for investigation of possible involvement of her heart in neurological symptoms which she had recently experienced. In her claim the patient alleged the cardiologist failed to carry out sufficient...
Amendment of patient medical records under the FOI Act
Under the Freedom of Information Act 1992 (WA), a person has the right to apply to a government agency to amend any inaccurate, incomplete, out of date or misleading information personal information in their medical records. An agency may amend personal information by...
State Administrative Tribunal Annual Report 2015-2016
Vocational Regulation matters, which include disciplinary and professional regulation of health practitioners, lawyers, security agents and real estate and settlement agents, comprised only 3% of matters in the Tribunal for 2015/16 period, with 80% of those matters...
Alleged failure to diagnose melanoma
The New South Wales Supreme Court (NSWSC) has found that a doctor did not breach his duty of care in his diagnosis of the presence of a plantar wart instead of melanoma in the deceased's foot. The Court accepted that at the times the treating doctors saw the lesion on...