Professional misconduct could lead to medical negligence claims

While Australian healthcare standards are generally high, instances where medical practitioners fall short can occur, potentially leading to professional misconduct charges and medical negligence claims. PK Simpson offers expert legal guidance in these cases.

There have been several examples of medical negligence heard by courts in New South Wales over recent weeks, showing that it is possible to take legal action against any wrongdoing.

Persistent complaints

In many instances, a medical practitioner will be found to have provided sub-standard care to a number of patients. This was the case in the recent court hearing of the Health Care Complaints Commission, which took action against a retired doctor.

Dr Alex Sharah was found to have shown examples of professional misconduct against seven of his patients. Even though he has now retired, a successful case was nevertheless heard in the Civil and Administrative Tribunal court of New South Wales.

Among the claims made against Mr Sharah was that he failed to prescribe any medication for some of the ailments his patients described. On a number of occasions, the defendant imparted his religious views on many of his patients, rather than offering any medical solutions to their problems.

He has been disqualified from re-registering as a medical practitioner and will now have to pay the costs faced by the seven claimants.

Further examples of professional misconduct

This is one of many cases where medical experts have been found guilty of misconduct. The Health Care Complaints Commission also recently dealt with a case where a Wagga Wagga doctor was found to have prescribed drugs to patients who were known to be dependent on the substances. This was carried out without performing the necessary assessments, and in many cases, Dr Saldevar did not keep the appropriate medical records.

Meanwhile, a Doctor Lingathas has been prevented from performing biliary surgery without the necessary supervision at Campbelltown Hospital. The Commission found he did not use the correct techniques on some occasions and had failed to carry out a proper pre-operation assessment of his patients.

Pursuing your medical negligence claim

As these cases highlight, there are various ways in which medical negligence can arise. If your life has been negatively impacted by the standard of care you have received from a medical professional, we advise that you get in touch with our team of compensation lawyers.

“$222,200 in general damages and $236,039 for past and future medical expenses”

— PK Simpson InjuryLaw (@PK_SimpsonAU) May 1, 2017