Full list of Victorian allied health workers banned in past year

A sexually inappropriate physio and a pharmacist who “exploited” lonely patients are among Victoria’s banned health workers. See the full list of names and their workplaces here.

A physiotherapist was handed the longest ban by VCAT out of all allied health workers barred from seeing patients last year.

A paramedic who failed to perform CPR, a physiotherapist who sexually touched a patient and an “exploitative” pharmacist who accepted expensive gifts, including a car, from lonely patients she befriended are among Victoria’s banned healthcare workers.

The Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal barred 12 healthcare workers in 2023 across multiple health professions — including psychology, dental and paramedicine — from seeing patients.

The longest ban was given to former physiotherapist Imad Nasser, who was handed an eight year disqualification for touching a female patient for a “sexual, inappropriate and non-clinical purpose” in 2019.

Some workers on the list were suspended, meaning they can return to work once the suspension ends, such as paramedic Christopher Pickard-Clark, who used a ‘doctored’ certificate that did not mention the conditions on his registration to try and gain work.

Other were found to have committed conduct so serious their registration – if it had not already been surrendered or allowed to lapse – was cancelled by the panel and they were hit with a disqualification period.

This means they will need to reapply for their registration, but only once the disqualification period ends, and there is no guarantee they will be successful.

If they cannot prove to the regulator they have grown to be a ‘fit and proper’ person, they will not be granted their registration and may never treat patients again.

The list was based on legal records from the tribunal and includes workers from any profession — aside from medicine and nursing — which requires them to be registered healthcare practitioner.

It does not include those banned by the regulator while under investigation as these bans – a temporary measure known as an immediate action order – can be issued by the watchdog without going through a tribunal in cases where the investigation remains ongoing.