Tribunal cautions Queensland doctor for unprofessional conduct

17 Jan 2024

A tribunal has cautioned a medical practitioner for unprofessional conduct after he accepted a person as a patient, having had a personal relationship with them.

The Queensland doctor, whose name has been suppressed by the Queensland Civil and Administrative Tribunal (the tribunal), was referred by the Medical Board of Australia (the Board) for alleged professional misconduct, namely:

• entering into a treating relationship with the patient when he had a personal relationship with the patient
• propositioning the wife of the patient to engage in a sexual relationship, and
• misusing personal information obtained as part of his treating relationship with the patient to proposition the patient's wife.

On 31 March 2023, the tribunal decided that the practitioner’s conduct, in accepting a person as a patient with whom he previously had a personal relationship, amounted to unprofessional conduct.

After considering the circumstances, the tribunal decided the practitioner had no case to answer on the two other allegations.

On 26 July 2023, the tribunal ordered that the practitioner be cautioned for his unprofessional conduct.

The tribunal commented that it did not regard this matter as a serious example of unprofessional conduct and accepted that the doctor had shown remorse and insight into why his conduct was unprofessional.

The tribunal also said it was appropriate to take into account a five-month period of suspension (which was set aside by an earlier tribunal) as a sanction already served.

Read the tribunal’s full decision on AustLII, delivered on the following dates: 31 March 2023 and 26 July 2023.