Panel hearing summary 2024.0926

Decision of the Medical Radiation Practice Board of Australia

Performance and professional standards panel

Jurisdiction: Western Australia 
Date of Decision: 3 December 2024

Classification of Notification

Boundary violation - Inappropriate sexual contact

Summary

The Board referred allegations about the Practitioner's professional conduct to a performance and professional standards panel (the Panel). The Panel concluded:

1. In relation to the Allegations at Paragraphs 3.2.b.i, 3.2.b.ii, 3.3.b.i and 3.3.b.ii , the Panel finds under section 191(1)(b)(ii) the Practitioner has behaved in a way that constitutes unsatisfactory professional performance because the judgment possessed, or care exercised by, the Practitioner was below the standard reasonably expected of a medical radiation practitioner of an equivalent level of training and experience.
   
   
2. The Practitioner failed to communicate effectively with the patients and failed to confirm that each patient had understood his instructions about their state of dress for the x-ray, in breach of 2.2(g) and 3.3(f) of the Code of Conduct and clauses 1(b), (e) and (f) of Domain 3 of the Board’s Professional Capabilities.
   
   
3. Upon realising each patient had unrobed, the Practitioner should have immediately directed them to re-robe before proceeding with the x-ray.
   
   
4. As such, the Practitioner failed to provide the patients with dignity, failing to recognise and evaluate the socio-cultural factors that may influence the patients’ attitudes and responses to medical radiation services, failed to apply the principles of cultural competence and culturally safe care to practice and failed to display appropriate professional behaviour in the patient interaction in breach of 2(a), (b) and (c) of Domain 2 of the Board’s Professional Capabilities. The Panel determined under section 191(3)(c) of the National Law to caution the practitioner.