The Tribunal found the respondent nurse guilty of professional misconduct under paragraphs (a) and (c) of the definition in s 5 of the National Law and ordered a reprimand. The misconduct consisted of falsely implicating a colleague in the provision of falsified medical certificates during employer and AHPRA investigations, then persisting with the fabricated account over time. Significant mitigating weight was given to the respondent's voluntary self-reporting of the dishonesty in circumstances where it was otherwise unprovable, demonstrated insight and remorse, career progression, and delay in the regulatory process. The Tribunal confirmed that dishonesty in dealings with employers and regulators is serious misconduct but that a reprimand — not suspension — sufficed where the practitioner's own confession was the sole basis for proof and specific deterrence was unnecessary.
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