APS Response to Ahpra Draft guidance: Sexual misconduct and the National Law

The APS welcomed the opportunity to respond to Ahpra’s targeted consultation regarding its Draft guidance: Sexual misconduct and the National Law. The primary purpose of this draft guidance relates to National Law changes which require that additional information will be published permanently on the National Register when a practitioner is found by a tribunal to have engaged in professional misconduct involving sexual misconduct. We recognise that the Ahpra and the National Boards’ main guiding principle, when determining whether conduct is sexual misconduct following a tribunal decision, will be the protection of the public and public confidence in the safety and services provided by registered health practitioners and students. The APS urges Ahpra to balance the need for greater protection of the public and transparency provided on the National Register with fair treatment and support for practitioners. 

The APS recommended that Ahpra provide as much clarity as possible in the draft guidance to enable health practitioners to better understand their obligations, such as the inclusion of additional examples illustrating scenarios where sexual misconduct occurred in a context not directly related to the practitioner’s profession.  We also urged Ahpra to consider how the principle of procedural fairness will be upheld during its review process, and include information about this process in the draft guidance. 

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