Full list: Dodgy health care providers banned as complaints hit new high

The number of complaints of unscrupulous health carers preying on vulnerable South Australians has hits record levels, and a growing number are being banned. See the full list.

Complaints about health and community services providers are set to reach record levels this year, fuelled in part by practitioners making false claims about Covid-19 and vaccines.

The state’s Health and Community Services Complaints Commissioner Grant Davies has received 50 complaints this year.

They relate to practitioners including physical trainers, counsellors, massage therapists and naturopaths.

Nine cases relate to claims of health workers being unregistered.

If complaints continue at the same rate, the annual tally will hit 70, compared to 53 for all of last year.

The highest on record was 67 in 2018.

Health and Community Services Complaints Commissioner Associate Professor Grant Davies has been busy since taking over the roll three-and-a-half years ago. Source: supplied

Associate Professor Davies has issued two prohibition orders and three interim prohibition orders this year, compared to four in 2020 and three in 2019.

“Lately, there have been a number of complaints that we’ve received that have required us to issue interim prohibition orders and it has seemed like there is one after the other for the last couple of months,” he said.

“I think that points to a broader set of circumstances for us in that we have done a lot of promotion of the code (of conduct for practitioners) over the last couple of years and I think we are starting to get some traction from that.

“The code exists for us to protect the South Australian public and I take that role very seriously, so anyone that describes itself as a health services is something we can act upon.”

While the nature of complaints varied, Associate Professor Davies said Covid-19 was a “hot topic”.

“Covid has provided us with another arm of health services that we’re able to ensure are provided in a safe and ethical way,” he said.

“So some of the IPOs (interim prohibition orders) that we have issued lately have related to Covid vaccination information.”

Norman Low has been banned from claiming he is an accredited dietitian. Pictures: Facebook

Gawler-based massage therapist Monika Milka was suspended from practising in August over claims of anti-Covid vaccine misinformation.

Mount Barker naturopath Wayne Liebelt was also suspended from practice last month after he allegedly authorised an anti-Covid vaccination article published in an Adelaide Hills newspaper.

Both practitioners were issued with 12-week interim prohibition orders, a temporary ban imposed while investigations are ongoing.

Associate Professor Davies said “unethical” providers “pray on people’s hopes”, while others “fundamentally believe in what they are doing”, even it is unsafe.

He urged people to ask questions about their practitioners’ training and qualifications and to think critically about promises they make about their services that “on the surface seem too good to be true”.

To make a complaint visit www.hcscc.sa.gov.au or call 1800 232 007.