Australian journal of general practice
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In a medical negligence claim, courts must consider whether a doctor acted in accordance with the required standard of care. Experts may disagree on what should have been done, particularly in light of knowledge that a patient has been harmed. In Australia, the law gives further guidance on the standard of care, providing that doctors will not have breached their duty if they acted in a manner that, at the time the service was provided, was widely accepted by peer professional opinion as competent professional practice. ⋯ In two recent cases, courts in different states have considered the role of professional guidelines in establishing what was widely accepted as competent professional practice.
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Ensuring compliance with privacy law is not just a matter of respecting patient confidentiality. The past year has seen the introduction of new legal requirements including data breach notification, and higher penalties for breaches of the Privacy Act 1988 (Cwlth). Disturbingly, the first reporting period shows that the health sector has the highest number of data breaches of any sector. ⋯ The absence of a privacy compliance program can itself be a breach of the Privacy Act, even if no personal information was lost or misused in any way. Health service providers need to place a fresh focus on their legal compliance.