Part 3 Conduct of private health facilities
33 Unlicensed private health facility
A person must not conduct a private health facility unless:(a) the private health facility is licensed, and(b) the person is the licensee.Maximum penalty: 5,000 penalty units.
34 Executor or administrator regarded as licensee
If the only licensee of a private health facility dies, the executor of the will or administrator of the estate of the licensee is taken to be the licensee for a period not exceeding 2 months or such longer period following the death as the Director-General may, in any particular case, approve.
35 Purposes for which facilities may be used
The licensee of a private health facility must not cause or permit the licensed premises to be used for any purpose other than the following purposes:(a) a private health facility of the class specified in the licence,(b) a pharmacist’s shop or dispensary,(c) a purpose permitted by the licence,(d) a purpose permitted by the regulations.Maximum penalty: 1,000 penalty units.
(1) The licensee of a private health facility must not cause or permit the number of patients accommodated at any one time in a ward of the facility to exceed the number of patients specified in the licence in relation to that ward of the facility.Maximum penalty: 1,000 penalty units.
(2) The licensee is not guilty of an offence under this section in respect of anything done in an emergency.
37 Nursing requirements for private health facilities
(1) The licensee of a private health facility must:(a) ensure that a registered nurse is on duty at the facility at all times during which there is a patient at the facility, and(b) ensure that a registered nurse is appointed as a director of nursing of the facility, and(c) ensure that any vacancy in the position of director of nursing of the facility is filled within 7 days (or such other period as may be prescribed) after the vacancy occurs.Maximum penalty: 1,000 penalty units.
(2) The regulations may prescribe the minimum necessary qualifications for a registered nurse to be appointed as a director of nursing at a facility.(3) The licensee of a private health facility must, except as may be provided by the regulations, notify the Director-General in accordance with this section of the name and qualifications of the person appointed as director of nursing of the facility.Maximum penalty: 50 penalty units.
(4) A notification under subsection (3) must:(a) be in writing, and(b) be given before the person is appointed as director of nursing or, if that is not practicable, immediately after that time, and(c) be accompanied by any particulars that may be prescribed.(5) Nothing in this Act prevents a licensee, if qualified, from carrying out the duties of director of nursing.(6) It is a defence to a prosecution for an offence arising under this section if the defendant proves that the defendant took all reasonable steps to avoid being guilty of the offence.(7) In this section:director of nursing of a private health facility means the registered nurse responsible for the care of patients at the facility.
(1) The licensee of a private health facility must cause a register of patients to be kept at the facility.(2) The register of patients is to be kept in a form approved by the Director-General subject to any requirements that may be prescribed by the regulations.(3) The following particulars must be entered in the register of patients:(a) the name, age and residential address of each patient at the facility,(b) the date when the patient was received at the facility,(c) the date when the patient left the facility or, in the event of the patient’s death, the date of death,(d) the name of the practitioner attending the patient,(e) any other particulars that may be prescribed.(4) The particulars must be entered in the register of patients by the persons, at the time, and in the manner, prescribed for the purposes of this subsection.(5) A person must not:(a) enter in the register of patients any particular that the person knows or has reason to believe to be false or misleading in a material particular, or(b) wilfully fail to enter in the register of patients any particular that the person is required to enter.Maximum penalty: 1,000 penalty units.
(1) The licensee of a private health facility must appoint, in accordance with any requirements prescribed by the regulations, a medical advisory committee for the facility consisting of at least 5 medical practitioners (each of whom holds general or specialist registration in the medical profession under Part 7 of the Health Practitioner Regulation National Law) and such other health practitioners as the licensee considers appropriate.Maximum penalty: 1,000 penalty units.
(2) The medical advisory committee is to be responsible for:(a) advising the licensee on the accreditation of practitioners to provide services at the facility and the delineation of their clinical responsibilities, and(b) advising the licensee on matters concerning clinical practice at the facility, and(c) advising the licensee on matters concerning patient care and safety at the facility, and(d) any other matter that may be prescribed by the regulations.(3) The medical advisory committee may include nominees or representatives of other health care providers, learned colleges or other relevant professional organisations.(4) It is a duty of a medical advisory committee of a private health facility to report to the Director-General any repeated failure by the licensee of the facility to act on the committee’s advice on matters specified in subsection (2) where that failure is likely to adversely impact on the health or safety of patients.(5) A licensee of a private health facility may be a member of the medical advisory committee for the facility, but must not chair the committee and must not, with other licensees of the facility, comprise a majority of the committee.(6) The licensee of a private health facility must, as soon as is reasonably practicable, notify the Director-General in writing:(a) of the name, contact details and qualifications of each person who becomes a member of a medical advisory committee for the facility, and(b) of the date on which each such person ceases to be a member of the committee.(7) Despite any other provision of this section, the licensee of a private health facility is responsible for the safety of patients at the facility and for clinical governance of the facility.
40 Act and regulations to be readily available
The licensee of a private health facility must, at all times while the facility is being conducted, ensure that the director of nursing of the facility has ready access to a copy of this Act and the regulations.Maximum penalty: 50 penalty units.