Disgraced doctor working interstate, inquiry reveals
Jeremy Roberts
March 16, 2006
A FORMER South Australian doctor who allegedly infected a dozen patients
with hepatitis C using syringes he had also used on himself is working in
NSW without restrictions.

A South Australian parliamentary inquiry committee, which condemned the
conduct of the state's Medical Review Board in its interim report, said it
was "horrified" to learn that Stephen Rabone, who settled out of court with
the 12 patients in 2004, was still practising.

The report said Dr Rabone worked at the Barmera District Hospital in the
Riverland during the early 1990s and it was alleged he "infected a number of
patients with hepatitis C".

"Amidst suspicions of missing saline, syringes and drugs, it was also
alleged by nursing staff that Dr Rabone would order a drug, leave the room
momentarily taking the drug with him, self-administer the drug out of sight,
then return and inject the patients with the same syringe," the report,
released yesterday under parliamentary privilege, said.

Dr Rabone had since moved to NSW and the state's Medical Board confirmed
yesterday he was registered to practise medicine and had a postal address in
the Sydney suburb of Lane Cove.

The report said Dr Rabone was also listed as a regional chairman for NSW on
the Australian Faculty of Occupational Medicine and on the Board of Censors
and the Board of Continuing Education.

The parliamentary report also recommended the South Australian board be
stripped of its legal powers to investigate doctors after evidence it
ignored complaints and failed to properly report disciplinary actions.

It recommended the board not ignore concerns about a doctor raised in a
coronial inquest and it demanded "zero tolerance" for drug-taking doctors,
as well as random drug testing of doctors and interns.

The inquiry followed a series of embarrassing revelations in 2004 and 2005
that the board had failed to act against doctors whose drug addictions had
led to serious errors in the treatment of patients.



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