The Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA) regulates all registered health practitioners in Australia. It has a wide range of powers to investigate and take action in respect of a wide range of conduct and other matters. When someone lodges a complaint or concern with AHPRA, it's called a notification. This blog is a guide to the first steps a health practitioner should take if they receive a notification from AHPRA.
Contact by AHPRA regarding your professional registration is likely to set alarm bells ringing, whether it be a vexatious complaint by a patient or a serious allegation of harm or misconduct.
Regardless of the content of your AHPRA notification, what you do next can have a significant impact on your registration and, therefore, on your ability to work in your chosen field.
Here, we set out a step-by-step guide on how to best navigate the situation after receiving an AHPRA notification.
Practical steps if you receive an AHPRA notification
- Act promptly. Do not let matters languish to the last minute. If you intend to seek legal advice, do this quickly.
- Be clear as to what you are being asked by AHPRA to do, if anything. In many instances, you will be asked to take action, for instance, by attending an interview, providing further information and/or documentation, or drafting a written response to specific queries. In many cases you are not required to respond if AHPRA is inviting you to provide a submission. You should obtain legal advice about if you are required to, or should, make a response to the notification.
- Carefully consider the potential consequences in any response you provide. Weigh up whether providing a response is in your best interests. For instance:
- if you attend a meeting, you may say something that can be taken out of context and will worsen the situation;
- if you admit to certain conduct or behaviour orally or in writing (even if you feel you have a good excuse), this could potentially lead to disciplinary or criminal charges being brought against you; and
- whether or not a well-thought-out response that appropriately tells the full story of what has happened and sets out any mitigating factors is likely to reduce potential sanctions or even exonerate you fully.
- Generally, you will be given a date by which you are required to substantively reply to an AHPRA notification. Do not miss this deadline. A failure to reply by the due date may be taken as concession the allegations are not contested. It will also reflect badly on you and your professionalism. That said, the deadline is not always absolute and may be subject to an extension in the event you are not able to reply in time.
- The AHPRA process and associated disciplinary processes can take many months or even years, and memories can fade over time. Ensure that you preserve all documentation that relates to the matter. You may also wish to record straight away your recollections of what happened (including your understanding and reasons for the decisions you made) in a memo to yourself. This can be helpful reference material in the future.
Ensure you have support
Ensure that you have a support network. Even when you feel that you are not rattled enough to seek professional help, such as counselling or medical treatment, there is no doubt that an AHPRA notification is often stressful. At the very least, the process will cause inconvenience and take time away from your other responsibilities.
Just having a friend or trusted colleague to speak to is sometimes enough emotional support, however, if you feel you need further support, some of the free resources available to health professionals are:
The wide range of practitioner support services listed on AHPRA's website
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.
