Australian health ministers propose three amendments to protect patients from sexual misconduct by practitioners.

Australian health ministers are considering three amendments aimed at protecting patients from sexual misconduct by health practitioners. The proposals, which seek to address the power imbalance between practitioners and patients, include allowing the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (Ahpra) to disclose the full regulatory history of practitioners found guilty of professional misconduct for sexual violations or convicted of sexual offenses in a criminal court, raising "red flags" on the public register that patients can access. The reforms also aim to harmonize the process of reinstating deregistered health practitioners and prohibit health practitioners from using non-disclosure agreements to prevent patients from reporting misconduct.

February 09, 2024
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