Dr Daryl Stephens addresses controversy in wide-ranging interview

A controversial “nose-blow” surgeon with a shocking history of patient complaints claims he is the victim of a “cabal” of colleagues aiming to bring him down. WATCH INTERVIEW

The controversial “nose blow” surgeon with a shocking history of patient complaints claims he is the victim of a “cabal” of colleagues aiming to bring him down, and has warned that his suspension from Mackay hospitals could have fatal consequences for patients because of a shortage of specialists.

In a comprehensive and at times bizarre 90-minute interview with The Sunday Mail, Daryl Stephens revealed he is not ready to resign, likening himself to a “jilted lover” hoping for a phone call reinstating him.

The urologist defended his surgical record of more than 3000 cases, including operating on women whose surgery had been botched by Mackay colleagues, admitted he was “theatrical” and at times “flew off the handle”, and insisted he never blew his nose during surgery because he doesn’t like blowing his nose in public.

As the only urology public specialist at Mackay Base Hospital, he even compared himself to Liam Neeson in the movie Taken, as “I have skills that I have put together over many years” that makes him a very “useful person”.

The surgeon also provided photos he claims were taken by theatre staff, against his knowledge, that show his scrub pants falling down around his ankles on numerous occasions.

He claims they repeatedly fell down because “I’ve got no hips” and that the photos were sent to bosses to discredit him, including a fake one “taken from the internet”.

“This was quite clearly somebody who was aiming to get me in trouble,” he said.

“You may have noticed I’ve got no hips. Everyone has their times when their trousers fall down when they are operating.

“There is a colour version (of the fake photo). It’s got blue socks, I only wear black, I’m a bachelor. I get up at five in the morning.

“It’s got hairy legs and I haven’t got a single hair on my legs.”

Dr Daryl Stephens speaks to The Sunday Mail. Picture: Tara Croser

Dr Stephens is suspended from Mackay Mater Private Hospital and Mackay Base Hospital, which last week extended his suspension on full pay by another month.

Just days after he was suspended from the Base for allegations relating to patient safety, he was under investigation at the private hospital after an alleged mishap on September 21 that left a man critically ill.

“That case was a rare complication, appropriately treated,” he said.

Dr Stephens has faced dozen of complaints during his time in Mackay and was found to have engaged in professional misconduct by the Medical Board in Western Australia in 2018.

He claims he has been wronged and has “nothing to be ashamed of”.

He argues against findings by the Medical Board Tribunal, AHPRA and an extensive Mackay HHS external investigation. His only admission of poor conduct is temper problems pre-2020.

“I think there is a group of people who decided at some point to hammer me but I’m not particularly a suspicious, sensitive guy. I have just kept working away,” he said.

He also has a theory that he has been harshly treated by Mackay HHS bosses as a deflection from the obstetric and gynaecology scandal.

Dr Stephens said he loved working at the coalface of the hospital and would dearly love to return to work “for the patients”.

But he is aware that his latest suspensions and subsequent media spotlight on his career both in WA and in North Queensland had left him in a difficult place professionally.

“I’m unemployable. Any employer who googles me will walk away,” he said.

Dr Stephens said that while he was still under investigation in Mackay, he feared there would be an “enormous” backlog for urology services in the region.

“I’m concerned that people’s cancers will progress ... That they may undergo fatal consequences,” he said.

Dr Daryl Stephens speaks to The Sunday Mail. Picture: Tara Croser

Among the Mackay HHS allegations are that he blew his nose on a drape covering a patient during surgery, blew his nose on a gauze during an operation, threw a gown into bodily fluids in theatre and broke Covid protocols.

Dr Stephens said he “would never blow his nose in public”.

On the allegation that he used a “pack” or gauze to blow his nose during surgery, he said he simply used the pack to dab his face as he wears a mask, a headlight and glasses.

“I threw the gauze at the bin but missed,” he said.

Dr Stephens said surgeons often used gauze to clean up. He said he was unsure of why there was an allegation that he blew his nose on the surgical drape covering a patient.

“I believe I was leaning over the patient’s leg and I don’t know what the person saw,” he said.

Dr Stephens said he had yet to meet with Mackay HHS to discuss allegations and was only aware of the drape nose-blow allegation after reading The Sunday Mail.

“I have never sat down to discuss the suspension. The hospital has a lot on its mind and they don’t want me turning up,” he said.

Dr Stephens claims he was used as a distraction away from the Mackay Base obstetric and gynaecology scandal. He said he was called in, sometimes in the middle of the night, to operate on six women who had been injured in the gynaecology or obstetric unit.

Dr Stephens called obstetrician George Du Toit, who was himself suspended as a result of the scandal, “a grumpy bastard who was impossible to work with”.

He said his motivation for speaking out now was to put the record straight.

“It doesn’t matter what I’m doing in the next few years, sailing around the coast or working somewhere, I will regret not making the effort to clear my name,” he said.

Dr Daryl Stephens speaks to The Sunday Mail. Picture: Tara Croser

A total of 18 complaints were substantiated in 2021 by the Mackay HHS external probe. It has also been alleged that Dr Stephens was involved in an operation in 2019 that ultimately resulted in a man having to have his penis shortened. The patient was paid compensation by Mackay HHS. Dr Stephens said he was unaware of the payout. “If you want to get yourself unhappy patients, do cosmetic surgery,” he said.

He denied he had a history of problems with hygiene, but he did admit wearing his scrubs to sleep in his car.

“I went in to do a case. Got into my scrubs,” he said.

“They said the patient was not ready so come back. So I went out to the car park. I had an old two-door Land Rover which had the most beautiful layback seats … and when I came in to the theatre again in the scrubs I couldn’t get changed.”

In relation to widow Kate Drake’s allegations that her husband would still be alive if Dr Stephens had investigated his cancer more thoroughly, he said the hospital had been told there was no legal case to answer.

He said after performing a procedure on Mr Lang he wanted to discuss his case further, fearing there was a cancer, but that Mr Lang left the hospital without discussing a plan.

He denied Ms Drake’s claim that her husband was told he did not have cancer.

“The idea that I mistreated him is entirely wrong and it is not how I roll,” he said.

Dr Stephens said if his career ended, he was “really going to miss medicine”.

“It’s like that song rock and roll ‘I gave you all those best years of my life’,” he said.

Dr Daryl Stephens speaks to The Sunday Mail. Picture: Tara Croser