His intervention comes afterThe AgeandSydney MorningHerald revealed concerns about the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA) in recent weeks,including chronicunder-resourcing,bullying and a “toxic” culture,systemic racism,delays and lack of transparency while investigating misconduct.
Butler said AHPRA and the national boards operate independently under a regulatory and legislative framework that is the responsibility of all states and territories,as well as the Commonwealth.
“But if that framework is falling short of protecting patient safety,then Australians rightly expect governments at all levels to work to strengthen it,” he said.
“I am writing to the chair of the Health Ministers’ Meeting to put this issue on the agenda at our next meeting,including a rapid review of the response by jurisdictions to previous reviews.”
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Last week,this masthead revealed AHPRAdeclined to suspend the registration of Perth optometrist David Tidman after he allegedly sexually harassed a teenage patient during two routine eye tests in 2020 and 2021.
Responding to questions about this case and a range of other topics about AHPRA,Butler said Australians “rightly expect their health practitioners to be held to the highest standard and expect regulators to protect and uphold those standards”.