One in five health practitioners who received an allegation of sexual misconduct against them had reoffended, according to a recent study.
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Research released in August this year showed that 1507 practitioners received a notification of sexual misconduct in the period from 2011 to 2016.
Of those practitioners, 208 were named in more than one allegation and eight were the subject of five notifications or more.
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Analysis in the study showed that the likelihood of a complaint was higher for men aged 36 or over than others.
The study was undertaken by researchers from the university of Melbourne and used data provided by Australian health industry watchdog AHPRA.
The lead researcher of the study, Dr Marie Bismark, is also Associate Professor of law and public health at the University of Melbourne.
Dr Bismark said the study showed, "the risk of repeat offending was quite high".
The numbers in the study are probably the tip of the iceberg.
- Lead researcher Dr Marie Bismark
Dr Bismark said when a practitioner is named in the media they typically received several more complaints.
"There is a sense that there should be some more information about notifications [against practitioners]," Dr Bismark said.
"We need robust information about the effectiveness of regulatory interventions for preventing recurrent sexual misconduct," the study said.
"Patients, health care practitioners, and the public deserve focused efforts to prevent sexual misconduct in health care," it concluded.
The latest report from AHPRA revealed that 331 notifications were made against health practitioners in Tasmania.
A total of 290 Tasmanian health professionals received notifications from 2018 to 2019, meaning 41 allegations were made against a practitioner who had already received one.
When an allegation is received, AHPRA will investigate and have a number of options.
AHPRA can choose to take no further action, hand out a fine, accept the surrender of a registration, suspend a registration or cancel and disqualify a registration.
AHPRA said the timeframe for their investigations of sexual misconduct vary.
"46.6 per cent of investigations are closed in less than three months, with a further 21.6 per cent concluded between three and six months," a spokesperson for AHPRA said.
"More complex matters may take more time to resolve, with 16.6 per cent of investigations taking 12 months or longer to resolve."
"National Boards are able to take action in the public interest to prevent practice when allegations are made pending the outcome of investigations."
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