Panegyres v Medical Board of Australia

[2020] WASCA 58

Western Australia Court of Appeal

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Interrogate

Catchwords

1. Administrative Law
2. › State Administrative Tribunal
3. › Vocational regulation
4. › Medical practitioner
5. › Professional misconduct versus unprofessional conduct
6. › Whether conduct substantially below standard
7. › Adequacy of reasons for finding of professional misconduct
8. › Health Practitioner Regulation National Law (WA) Act 2010, s 5
1. Administrative Law
2. › State Administrative Tribunal
3. › Vocational regulation
4. › Medical practitioner
5. › Code of conduct
6. › Financial exploitation of patient
7. › Whether ethical standard in cl 3.2.6 of Conduct Code dependent on subjective intention
8. › Whether overcharging mentally incompetent patient constitutes financial exploitation
1. Administrative Law
2. › State Administrative Tribunal
3. › Vocational regulation
4. › Standard of proof
5. › Briginshaw standard
6. › Whether Tribunal misapplied standard of proof in finding charges for services not provided were not established
1. Administrative Law
2. › State Administrative Tribunal
3. › Adequacy of reasons
4. › Whether reasons disclosed intellectual process
5. › Duty to give reasons for findings of professional misconduct and costs quantification

Quick Take

Financial exploitation of a patient under cl 3.2.6 of the Good Medical Practice Code of Conduct is assessed objectively and does not require proof that the doctor subjectively intended to exploit the patient. A tribunal finding professional misconduct (as distinct from unprofessional conduct) must disclose the intellectual process by which it concluded the conduct was substantially below the relevant standard. Where a practitioner's conduct involves no conscious impropriety, moral turpitude, fraud or dishonesty, and concerns a single patient in unusual circumstances, it will be difficult to sustain a finding of professional misconduct. Costs orders in SAT proceedings must be supported by reasons disclosing the basis for quantification.