Woman reveals she lied over plastic surgeon sex romp claim

A woman who had sex with a Geelong plastic surgeon admits she lied to medical regulators about the affair because she felt “hard done by” when he cut contact with her.

Plastic surgeon Dr Ian Holten. Picture: Ian Currie

A woman who had sex with a Geelong plastic surgeon has admitted lying to medical regulators when she made a complaint to them about the romp.

The woman — known by the pseudonym Sally Porter — claimed she felt “hard done by” when plastic surgeon Ian Holten cut contact with her following their one-time sexual encounter on-board his yacht in 2014.

In 2016, Ms Porter made a complaint to The Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA) alleging she was in an 18-month relationship with Dr Holten and they met while she was his patient.

Plastic surgeon Dr Ian Holten.

She also claimed the affair led to the loss of her marriage, children and family home.

But on Thursday she told the County Court her statement was false, admitting she met Dr Holten before she was his patient, they only slept together once and she was separated from her husband at the time.

“It is completely wrong,” she said.

Ms Porter said she made the complaint over the phone to an AHPRA investigator who wrote a statement for her.

She claimed she misread the statement but signed it anyway, prompting a grilling from defence barrister Gautam Mukherji.

“You didn’t get it wrong, you lied,” Mr Mukherji said.

“Your words, not mine,” Ms Porter replied.

“Obviously I didn’t read it properly … it’s not a lie, it’s just incorrect wording.”

But Ms Porter eventually answered “yes” when asked if her statement was a lie.

Ms Porter’s admission was revealed during the second week of Dr Holten’s lawsuit against his former colleague and friend, anaesthetist Eoin Fehsenfeld.

Dr Holten is suing his former St John of God colleague for allegedly spreading falsehoods and making defamatory statements about him, including encouraging Ms Porter to complain to AHPRA.

On Thursday, Ms Porter said Dr Fehsenfeld had an “obsessive hatred” for Dr Holten and he encouraged her to make a complaint about him.

“He was egging me along all the way,” she said.

Dr Fehsenfeld allegedly told Ms Porter that she was another “victim” of Dr Holten’s and he had sex with many other female patients.

Dr Ian Holten’s yacht, the Akatea.

Dr Holten, who is the founder of Australian Skin Face Body Clinics, was banned from practising for three months in 2019 after AHPRA found he had breached professional boundaries by having sex with Ms Porter.

The romp happened on-board a yacht — named the Akatea — he co-owned with Dr Fehsenfeld. The friendship between the pair soured in mid-2015 after the anaesthetist was suspended for carrying scheduled drugs in his briefcase.

Dr Holten claimed Dr Fehsenfeld was suspicious he was the one who made a complaint.

Dr Holten’s alleges his former friend engaged in a campaign to ruin his reputation including telling other physicians the plastic surgeon deliberately left cancerous cells after operating on his own wife and severed a nerve on another patient.

The trial continues.