This information sheet outlines the options available to people who wish to make a complaint – or take legal action against – Dr Richard Reid.
If you have suffered an injury or experienced poor or inappropriate care from Dr Reid, we urge you to get in touch to make an appointment for one of our specialist health lawyers to come and see you. Our female health lawyers are based in regional NSW and are experts in dealing with obstetric and gynaecological cases sensitively and effectively.
Time limits apply to personal injury cases in NSW so it is important that you get legal advice promptly.
Dr Richard Reid
Serious complaints have been made by former patients about gynaecological procedures, including the incorrect use of pelvic mesh (vaginal mesh), performed by Dr Reid.
The Health Care Complaints Commission (HCCC) brought complaints against Dr Reid primarily for his treatment of 16 former patients at a Sydney private hospital. In September 2018, The NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal (NCAT) found Dr Reid guilty of professional misconduct. Dr Reid had retired at the time of the hearing but NCAT ordered he be disqualified from seeking registration as a medical practitioner for five years from September 2018.
NCAT found Dr Reid:
- failed to implement individualised care plans
- made clinical errors of judgment often without appropriate warnings and information to patients
- failed to follow the Royal Australian College of Obstetrician and Gynaecologist’s guidance on offering non-mesh repair to patients
- made some inappropriate post-surgery recommendations, for example, telling a patient to self-catheterise for life or to undergo repeat surgery shortly after the initial surgery
- breached his registration conditions to refer patients for urodynamic testing or to a colorectal surgeon
- failed to provide a patient with a modesty sheet, inappropriately patted and made comments about one woman’s body and appearance
- generally failed to fully inform patients before surgeries including about surgical risks, that the approach he was taking was not widely followed in Australia, and that he had a hospital imposed supervision restriction
- failed to obtain any consent to use the TFS device in one case
- inappropriately concealed his overseas disciplinary past from a hospital
- concealed and mislead the Medical Council of NSW & HCCC about his hospital restrictions & TFS surgeries
- misused academic titles ( “Associate Professor”) in his advertising and communication with patients.
Seeking compensation for medical negligence
We need to establish that your treatment fell below the standard of care that could be expected from a reasonably competent obstetrician or gynaecologist and that you have suffered a physical and/or psychological injury as a result of that sub-standard treatment to be entitled to compensation for your injuries.
Take action
People wishing to make a complaint or take action against Dr Reid , should confidentially talk to an independent medical lawyer to better understand their rights and avoid falling foul of time limits that apply to legal action. Catherine Henry Lawyers has accredited specialists in personal injury as well as an in house nurse. If you need assistance regarding a medical negligence matter, contact us on (02) 4929 3995.
This information is of a general nature. You should obtain specific legal advice for your circumstances.
