Bogus doctor could have slipped the net

AUSTRALIA: A fake doctor who worked for more than a decade in Sydney and on the New South Wales Central Coast is believed to have fled the country.

Shyam Acharya allegedly used another person’s name and medical qualifications to become registered in NSW.

He worked at Manly, Hornsby, Wyong and Gosford hospitals from 2003 to 2014 after assuming the identity of doctor Sarang Chitale.

Acharya allegedly stole documents while living in India and used them to register with the Medical Board of NSW, the NSW Health deputy secretary Karen Crawshaw revealed on Tuesday.

Acharya has been charged by the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency and may be fined up to $30,000.

However, it was not clear if he would face court because it was believed he was overseas, Health Minister Brad Hazzard said yesterday. It was ‘‘disturbing’’ Acharya got through border protection with a false passport after assuming the identity of a doctor in India, Hazzard said.

He would ensure checks and balances are in place at a national level so the ruse can’t be repeated.

The Australian Medical Association NSW president, Prof Brad Frankum, said it was ‘‘a worry [Acharya] was able to fool the system for so long’’.

Frankum said the accreditation process from medical colleges today was very rigorous for doctors from overseas.

NSW Health would not say whether Acharya had any medical experience before working in Australia, but his status as a junior doctor with limited registration meant he was subject to supervision, Crawshaw said.

Acharya was involved in one critical incident where there were concerns about a patient’s treatment, but only as one of several people on the clinical team.

NSW Health received no further complaints about him. Australia’s Health Practitioner Regulation Agency advised NSW Health it was investigating Acharya in 2016 - more than two years after he left the state’s public health system. - AAP