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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 2004 Week 07 Hansard (Thursday, 1 July 2004) . . Page.. 3187 ..

Health profession boards under this legislation are expected to become largely financially self-sufficient and to exercise their functions with an appropriate level of independence. The legislation specifies what functions a health profession board is required to undertake and sets out an expectation that a board exercise its functions diligently. A board must report on the exercise of its functions to the minister and, where a board fails to act diligently, the minister can take action, including, as a last resort, asking the Assembly to approve the discharge of a board.

People who have met the suitability to practise requirements of the relevant profession, who have an adequate level of knowledge of written and spoken English and who hold any required professional insurance are entitled to apply for registration as a professional. A board may register a professional conditionally or unconditionally. A board may review the ongoing performance of a professional and, if considered appropriate, treat the performance review as a report concerning the standard of practice of that person. Within the regulations, generic standards of practice are set out. A professional who breaches these standards of practice may be found not competent to practise in a profession or have conditions placed upon them.

The use of the term “report” has been introduced within this legislation to describe an expression of concern about the performance of a professional. The choice of the term “report” has been deliberate, both to encourage persons to make an early and potentially remedial report about the safe standards of practice of a person and to separate the term from some of the fault and settlement issues that could surround the making of a complaint.

The legislation sets out the requirements of a report and the requirements for the joint consideration of all reports by the relevant health council and the Community and Health Services Complaints Commissioner. The legislation intends that the commissioner and the health board would jointly manage each report and, where there are opposing views, the most serious of those will prevail.

The legislation provides for a number of outcomes that may arise from the management of a report. These options include seeking an emergency order in relation to a health professional’s registration or the making of a decision not to investigate a matter further. A matter may also be referred to a panel hearing conducted by the relevant health board.

The legislation provides for the hearing of a report by one of two panels that may be established by a board. The first of these panels is a personal assessment panel intended to inquire into the mental or physical health of a professional. The second is a professional standards panel whose purpose is to inquire into a health professional who has or is contravening the required standard of practice or does not satisfy the suitability to practise requirements for the profession.

Both panels have been established with a legislative framework to ensure certainty, accountability and procedural fairness. The policy intention underlying the panels is that they operate with the cooperation of the health professional involved and seek as far as possible to protect the public through early intervention and remedial strategies.

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