The Tribunal found the respondent osteopath engaged in professional misconduct for failing to hold appropriate professional indemnity insurance for nearly two years and for recklessly making false declarations about PII coverage when renewing registration; a reprimand was imposed together with conditions requiring annual provision of a certificate of currency for PII, subject to a five-year review period. The case confirms that practising without PII, even through inadvertence by a new graduate, will almost always constitute professional misconduct under the Health Practitioner Regulation National Law, and that reckless (as distinct from knowing) false declarations to the regulator are sufficient to ground misconduct findings. Self-reporting, obtaining retroactive cover, and demonstrating insight and remorse were treated as significant mitigating factors warranting conditions rather than suspension.
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