farmdoc's blog post number 130

Back on 29 May 2008 I wrote that the Medical Council of Tasmania was investigating a complaint against me. Now, almost three months later, the investigation still hasn’t been completed. So I am feeling frustrated. And to compound the situation, last week I received an annual registration renewal notice from the from the Medical Practitioners Board of Victoria, and among the mandatory information the Board requires is an answer to the question: ‘Are you the subject of an investigation by a medical registration authority?’ When I received this notice, I phoned the Tasmanian Council to inquire about when it would likely finalise its investigation. I was told in no uncertain manner that the Council is handling this complaint expeditiously, and its timetable is not my business. Well thank you, sir, but because I am an interested party in this matter, its timeframe is most definitely my business. I fully appreciate and respect the need for all complaints against medical practitioners to be investigated thoroughly and fairly, but if this complaint can’t be finalised within three months then the system is broken. Therefore due to what I regard as the Tasmanian Council’s laggardness, I look like having no option but to respond to the Victorian Board’s question in the affirmative. My dictionary defines frustration as ‘A feeling of annoyance at being hindered or criticised’. Uh-huh.