When the Health Practitioners Disciplinary Tribunal chose not to strike off Dr Nalendra Appanna after he completed an STI test on his date and recorded himself performing sex acts on her at his clinic, the woman was “dumbfounded”. But Appanna’s penalty, largely consisting of a three-month suspension, censure, supervision and an order to pay costs, does not appear to be out of step with the dozens of other rulings handed down to doctors by the regulatory body in the past five years . Many patients may also never know if their doctor has been reprimanded for bad behaviour as nearly half of those with tribunal charges upheld against them during the period were granted name suppression.
Auckland Women’s Health Council’s Sue Claridge doesn’t believe any doctor who has committed sexual misconduct or physical offending should be allowed to practise again. “I know we really struggle with doctors, we’re short of doctors, but we shouldn’t accept doctors whose behaviour is that bad.” “The bar needs to be higher for doctors than for many other professions, in the same way is if an accountant had been convicted of a financial, a theft crime, a dishonesty crime, you wouldn’t want to go to an accountant who had that sort of background.
” Claridge said at the “very least” doctors who continue practising should have to disclose the charge to patients, with a caveat that a line could be drawn with conduct that doesn’t directly impact patients, such as drink-drivi.
