By Aisha Dow and Caroline Schelle
A surgeon named in a coronial inquest into a man’s death in NSW carried out procedures on more than 2000 Victorian and NSW patients whose cases will now have to be reviewed, according to Safer Care Victoria (SCV).
The patients all had colonoscopies at Albury Wodonga Health, Albury Wodonga Private Hospital and Insight Private Hospital in Albury between 2018 and 2022.
The recall impacts residents in the Albury-Wodonga region in Victoria and NSW. Credit: Getty
In a media release, the healthcare watchdog said an independent panel of experts reviewed procedures performed by Dr Liu-Ming Schmidt since 2018, finding evidence that some colonoscopies performed or supervised by Schmidt were “incomplete” or lacked thoroughness.
A recent coronial inquest in NSW heard that Schmidt performed surgery on the wrong end of a man’s colon in 2019. The man in his 70s died from complications of peritonitis (inflammation of the membrane lining the abdominal wall and covering the abdominal organs) following the error.
It is expected many of Schmidt’s patients will now need to undergo new colonoscopies as a precautionary measure.
A colonoscopy is a procedure that uses a tiny camera to look in the bowel, for patients who have bowel problems or other symptoms, or have done a bowel screening test that has returned a positive result.
Almost 2000 public and private patients have been impacted by what SCV is describing as a recall.
Schmidt is not currently practising in the Albury-Wodonga region.
As of 7.30pm Thursday, the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA) showed she was still free to practise medicine, without any conditions, undertaking or reprimands.
Her principal place of practice is listed as Albury.
An AHPRA spokesperson said the national regulator did not have “any jurisdiction to examine allegations concerning registered health practitioners based in New South Wales, nor can it order conditions on their registration to protect the public while such investigations are carried out”.
In NSW, the state’s Civil and Administrative Tribunal has the power to deregister doctors.
SCV chief executive Professor Mike Roberts said while the risk for most patients was expected to be low, this would be distressing news for patients and their families.
“We’ll ensure each patient is supported and offered counselling throughout this recall, with those impacted to be contacted directly over the coming days and then individually assessed, with any follow-up care to be completed as quickly as possible.”
SCV said each patient would be assessed “by a highly skilled independent clinician”, with urgent cases to be seen within 30 days, and other patients within six to 12 months. Patients will receive an SMS on Thursday, and later a letter and phone call to address next steps. Transport and accommodation costs for follow-up treatment will be covered, including for those who prefer to travel to Melbourne.
Roberts said the recall of colonoscopies was an “exceptional circumstance”.
“It is clear that something has gone wrong in this situation.
“Not every patient will need a follow-up colonoscopy, but it is important we assess cases individually to ensure those affected are getting the care and support they need.”
Dr Iain Skinner, the Royal Australian College of Surgeons deputy chair of the surgical gastrointestinal endoscopy committee, said surgeons could undergo training to complete colonoscopies.
Trainees are supervised and undertake 200 colonoscopies, must complete a logbook and a supervised report goes to a panel of experts, he said. There is also a recertification process for surgeons to continue to carry out the procedure, and they must complete at least 50 per year.
He said the situation was “an aberrance” and millions of such procedures were carried out every year.
The Medical Council of NSW is expected to hold a hearing on Thursday afternoon, Roberts said.
A spokeswoman for the Medical Council of NSW said immediate action panels are held when a complaint or notification prompts serious concern about risk to public safety.
The panels are not public, but if delegates make a formal decision the details are published on the AHPRA site.
The spokeswoman would not comment further on Schmidt.
AHPRA said the register of practitioners would only be updated “if and when” it received notice of any action taken by the Medical Council of NSW.
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