A doctor has been suspended after performing sexual acts with a patient in his Canberra surgery during Medicare-billed consultations.
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Dr Maged Khalil, 53, began work as a general practitioner at the Belconnen Medical Centre in February last year, after previously practising overseas and in Wagga.
He met the patient soon after, treating her for anxiety and insomnia and diagnosing her with a depressive illness.
The pair began dating in April that year, despite the doctor continuing to see her as a patient.
They performed sexual acts at the surgery a number of times between May and August, and the patient paid the medical centre for the consultations and claimed it back from Medicare.
The fling ended in October 2012, and both sought treatment for depression over the break up.
The Medical Board of Australia received a complaint about the conduct and suspended Dr Khalil in May this year.
The matter went before the ACT Civil and Administrative Tribunal, and Dr Khalil signed an agreement this week in which he conceded he was guilty of professional misconduct. Dr Khalil was officially reprimanded and banned from practising medicine for nine months, until February next year.
Upon returning to work, he will be supervised for the first six months, and monthly reports will be lodged with the board.
He was also ordered to work with a board-appointed mentor and see a psychologist.
Tribunal member Professor Thomas Faunce endorsed the terms of agreement after accepting it would provide adequate safeguards for public protection and act as a deterrent from other practitioners engaging in similar conduct. Professor Faunce said the deal would help the doctor return to work with the support to avoid the mistakes which led to the misconduct.
“As part of these orders I have asked [Dr Khalil] to reflect that in this community the principles of professional conduct must become, through consistent application in the face of obstacles, a cherished part of a medical practitioner’s character,” he said.
“I have also emphasised that the public funds made available to medical practitioners in Australia through schemes such as Medicare should be respected as received on trust from the collective resources of all citizens in this country.”
