Roman Hasil and the Whanganui DHB - Health and Disability ...

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Health and Disability Commissioner Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists I recommend that RANZCOG develop guidelines on the process for laparoscopic tubal ligation quality audit, with consumer input, and consider whether photographs are an effective quality tool and, if so, when and how they should be used. Council of Medical Colleges I recommend that the Council of Medical Colleges review the role of medical colleges in the supervision and oversight of medical officers working in specialty areas, and the accreditation of provincial hospitals as a training post suitable for trainee registrars. FOLLOW-UP ACTIONS • A copy of this report will be sent to the Minister of Health, the Director-General of Health, the Medical Council of New Zealand, the Medical Council of Tasmania, the New South Wales Medical Board, the Medical Practitioners Board of Victoria, the Medical Board of Queensland and Queensland Health. • A copy of this report will also be sent to the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, the Council of Medical Colleges in New Zealand, the New Zealand Medical Association, the Association of Salaried Medical Specialists, the New Zealand Nurses Organisation, the New Zealand Resident Doctors Association, Quality Health New Zealand, the Quality Improvement Committee, the Medical Training Board, the District Health Boards New Zealand Workforce Group, District Health Boards New Zealand, and all district health boards, as well as being placed on the Health and Disability Commissioner website, www.hdc.org.nz, for educational purposes. ______________________________________________________________________ NON-REFERRAL TO DIRECTOR OF PROCEEDINGS Having found that Dr Hasil and Whanganui DHB breached the Code of Health and Disability Services Consumers’ Rights, I am required to consider whether either party should be referred to the Director of Proceedings to decide whether further proceedings are warranted. When a provider breaches the Code of Health and Disability Services Consumers’ Rights, and in doing so has fallen well short of the mark, a referral to the Director of Proceedings may well be indicated. Accordingly, I invited further comment on the matter. Dr Hasil Dr Hasil’s lawyers stated: “There is, it is submitted, very little that would be achieved by referring Dr Hasil to the Director of Proceedings. He has no intention of practising in New Zealand, and it is not in the public interest to do so. The effect on Dr Hasil’s health, of such proceedings, would be substantial.” 92 February 2008
Opinion 07HDC03504 Dr Hasil is believed to be residing in Australia. Accountability of health practitioners via disciplinary proceedings is an important consideration. But Dr Hasil has already suffered the ignominy of media exposure and the public sanction of this inquiry and the findings that he breached the Code. I can see little point in expending public resources in pursuing disciplinary proceedings against a doctor who is no longer resident in New Zealand and is unlikely to work here again. Accordingly, I have concluded that the public interest does not require referral of Dr Hasil to the Director of Proceedings. Whanganui District Health Board In this case, there is major corporate responsibility for the deficiencies in the care provided to patients at Wanganui Hospital. Systems flaws at the DHB were a significant cause of the sluggish identification of and response to Dr Hasil’s shortcomings. The DHB submitted that it should not be referred to the Director of Proceedings, and noted: Whilst there have been areas where WDHB has fallen short, a further “ consideration by the Commissioner of this matter, including taking into account the matters referred to in [the DHB’s response to the provisional opinion], ought to lead the Commissioner to conclude that the failings are not sufficiently serious to warrant referral for consideration of further action; • There is no public interest in further investigation. There is ample opportunity for WDHB and other DHBs to learn from this case from considering the Commissioner’s detailed final report, without the circumstances being traversed in detail further in another forum; • The public interest is best served by allowing WDHB to move forward and concentrate on the delivery of quality health services to the people of the Whanganui region; • Patients A, B and C will be able to take great comfort from the Commissioner’s final report insofar as learning more about the circumstances relating to their treatment, and from WDHB’s acceptance that they did not receive services of an acceptable standard. These patients have clear avenues open to them, either through the Accident Compensation Corporation or through the courts, if they wish to pursue other entitlements.” Whanganui DHB has been subject to extensive reviews. It has acknowledged its shortcomings in relation to Dr Hasil, and is taking appropriate steps to address the deficiencies. It seems that many of the systems and practices at Whanganui DHB were no different than those of other DHBs at the time. In my view, the public criticism of the DHB’s systems in this report and the finding that the DHB breached the Code is a sufficient form of accountability. I do not consider that the public interest requires referral to the Director of Proceedings for potential further proceedings. February 2008 93
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Roman Hasil and the Whanganui DHB - Health and Disability ...

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