What Canberra doctor Nathem Al-Naser said to one female patient during a breast examination and did to another that caused him to be banned from practising medicine for two years
A doctor has been banned from practicing for two years after telling a female patient that “your boyfriend is very lucky” during a breast exam and for “inappropriate physical contact” with another female patient.
Dr. Nathem Al-Naser was deregistered for two years by the ACT Civil and Administrative Tribunal (ACAT) following a hearing into his conduct following allegations from the Medical Board of Australia.
From a 2020 complaint, the tribunal heard that a woman went to the doctor, who owns and works at two GP practices in Canberra, to ask for a prescription for a contraceptive pill.
The tribunal found that Dr Al-Naser carried out a breast examination on the patient ‘without taking procedural steps to ensure that (her) dignity and privacy were respected and maintained’.
Dr. Nathem Al-Naser has been deregistered by the ACT Civil and Administrative Tribunal for two years
In doing so, he crossed professional boundaries, including sexual ones, by remarking that the ‘woman’s boyfriend is lucky’.
Dr. Al-Naser also failed to keep adequate records of how and when diagnoses were made or a treatment plan.
The tribunal noted that Dr. Al-Naser had been restricted by the Australian Health Practitioners Regulation Agency’s medical watchdog earlier in 2019, following a complaint from a female patient.
During that hearing, Dr. Al-Naser was forced to deny allegations that he kissed the patient in 2013 and discussed his sex life with her.
Regarding that incident, Dr. Al-Naser told ACAT that the woman asked him for the opioid painkiller drug OxyContin, which she said all her “friends were taking.”
Dr. Al-Naser claimed that it was his refusal to comply with this request that led to the complaint against him.
The tribunal (pictured) ruled that Dr Al-Naser crossed ‘professional boundaries’ in the way he dealt with two female patients
However, he admitted that he had “a degree of familiarity with (the female patient) and that some of our communication was of a personal nature.”
This included sharing intimate details of his sexual relationship with his wife and asking the woman about sex toys.
The tribunal ruled that the doctor did not respect professional boundaries in these incidents and also made inappropriate physical contact with the patient.
In imposing the two-year ban, the tribunal noted that Dr Al-Naser had “a long and unenviable disciplinary history of sanctions or restrictions imposed” and questioned his level of remorse or insight into his actions.
The tribunal highlighted the doctor’s comments which they said downplayed the seriousness of his offences.
Accordingly, the ban was intended to impose “personal and financial fraud.”
Dr. Al-Naser has been practicing for 24 years and previously worked as a senior medical officer in the emergency department of Calvary Hospital.
Although he cannot perform any medical duties during the period of his deregistration, he can still participate in the management of his two practices.