NEWS HR
March 30, 2020
The Southland Housing Action Forum (SHAF) has appointed Anna Stevens to the role of Housing Champion.
March 16, 2020
John Macaskill-Smith, chief executive of Pinnacle Ventures has announced he will be leaving to take on new challenges.
February 24, 2020
Wellington’s Regional Healthy Housing Group has appointed it’s first Executive Officer. Amanda Scothern, who is currently the Programme Manager for Timor Leste with the International Women’s Development Agency in Melbourne will take up the role in early April.
February 13, 2020
The ACT Health Directorate has a s.739 (Application to deal with a dispute) on its hands before Deputy President Kovacic in Meeting Room 3 in Canberra (Farrelly).
February 5, 2020
The Rotorua retirement village resident who died in hospital after being hit by a car last month has been named by police. She was 85-year-old Rotorua woman Shirley Anne Grieve – a resident of Glenbrae Village Resthome and Hospital, which is owned by Arvida. One patient was taken to Rotorua Hospital and died the following morning. This morning, a police spokeswoman said no arrests had been made in relation to the incident, but “inquiries are ongoing”.
February 4, 2020
The Hon David Cunliffe has been appointed as Chair of The Selwyn Foundation Board of Trustees.
January 24, 2020
A Canterbury doctor who indecently assaulted patients has been struck off the register, nearly two years after being convicted. Rakesh Kumar Chawdhry, 64, was jailed for four years, four months in 2018, after he was found guilty of 13 charges of indecent assault and one of sexual violation against patients. He assaulted 10 male patients, aged between 17 and 35, in clinics in Amberley and Riccarton from 2012 to 2015. Chawdhry only served a third of his sentence and has been on parole since July 2019. Chawdhry lost his doctor’s registration in November, after a hearing before the New Zealand Health Practitioners Disciplinary Tribunal. The tribunal released its decision on Thursday. “These offences were gross breaches of trust and were repeated with Dr Chawdhry’s patients over a sustained period of offending,” the decision said. “These convictions and the nature of the offending undoubtedly reflect adversely on Dr Chawdhry’s fitness to practise as a medical practitioner.” The report said there was a “significant power imbalance”, where Chawdhry took advantage of his position and his victims lack of knowledge of the examination. Only one victim understood Chawdhry was doing something wrong at the time. Although Chawdhry continued to deny there was any sexual motivation in the offending, he accepted he caused “immense harm” to his victims, the report said. “He attributes this to his own self-image and the power imbalance in the doctor-patient relationship, and he accepts that his behaviour was wrong. “He admits he failed to adequately upskill himself as to New Zealand clinical practice.” The tribunal found cancellation and censure were necessary sanctions to mark its condemnation of Dr Chawdhry’s conduct and the gravity of the offending, the report said. Chawdhry indicated he had no intention of reapplying for registration, but if he changed his mind would have to take a sexual misconduct assessment test at his own cost. He had to pay 30 per cent of the tribunal costs, which amounted to just over $10,500.
January 20, 2020
Lik Loh, a GP who spent his formative years working in a free clinic, is South Canterbury’s new primary care chief medical officer.
