New laws on health safety

THE public would be warned about doctors who are under investigation or subject to disciplinary proceedings under new laws aimed at strengthening safety and confidence in health services.

The move, which would allow health agencies including the Ombudsman to publish public statements, would apply to all health practitioners across the public and private sectors whose conduct posed a serious risk to health and safety.

Health Minister Yvette D’Ath said an example of this could be if an investigation revealed that a practitioner routinely failed to follow sterilisation procedures and potentially exposed patients to an infectious disease.

“These warnings could result in people receiving early treatment to mitigate risks to their health that they otherwise would not have known about,” she said.

The new law was included in a Bill that Ms D’Ath introduced to Queensland parliament on Wednesday which implements the second stage of nationally agreed reforms to the national registration and accreditation scheme for health professions.