Report finds doctor breached law when signing death certificate for patients he hadn’t seen

A senior medical officer at the Launceston General Hospital acted outside the law by signing death certificates for patients he had not seen, an independent inquiry has found.

Launceston General Hospital. Picture: Supplied/Rob Burnett

A senior medical officer at the Launceston General Hospital acted outside the law by signing death certificates for patients he had not seen, an independent inquiry has found.

A total of 29 deaths at the Launceston General Hospital will be referred to the coroner after an independent review found a “serious and sustained departure from expected standards” by the doctor.

The final report of the Reportable Deaths and Death Reporting Processes led by Adjunct Professor Deb Picone was released by the Department of Health on Friday.

It examined records relating to 86 deaths at the hospital.

Peter Renshaw, Launceston General Hospital's former director of clinical services.

The Department established the review in February to investigate allegations the hospital’s former Director of Clinical Services Peter Renshaw failed to report deaths at the hospital as required under the Coroner’s Act.

“The Review identified significant issues in death reporting practices, particularly concerning a former staff member of the LGH,” the final report said.

“The panel has found that a former staff member engaged in a repeated pattern of acting outside the scope of Section 35 of the Registration of Births, Deaths and Marriages Act 1999 and has repeatedly inaccurately represented their standing to certify Medical Certificates of Cause of Death (MCCDs) in the relevant attestation on those MCCDs.

“The Panel considers this a serious and sustained departure from the expected standards of knowledge, skill, and judgment.”

“The panel has therefore recommended that the former staff member be notified to the Medical Board of Australia on the basis that there is a consistent pattern of cases in which they have certified deaths which prima facie they were not qualified to certify and incorrectly attested as a medical practitioner who attended the patient in their last illness.”

In February, Launceston General Hospital nurse Amanda Duncan told a parliamentary committee Dr Renshaw routinely falsified death certificates and failed to report deaths to the coroner as required by law.

Dr Renshaw came under adverse notice from the Commission of Inquiry for misleading his superiors about information relating to prolific pedophile and LGH nurse James Geoffrey Griffin — and for misleading the Commission itself.

He has since retired. He has not been charged with criminal misconduct.

Acting state health commander Dale Webster speaks to the media at Franklin Square in Hobart on Wednesday, July 13, 2022.

Department of Health acting secretary Dale Webster thanked the inquiry members for their work.

He said the report had not found any hospital-wide issues.

“The Panel has confirmed that it has not observed any practices or evidence that there is a systemic issue,” he said.

“The Panel has also advised it has been provided with sufficient evidence from staff that both junior and senior clinical staff are aware of the relevant policies and are adhering to them.

“The Department of Health accept the recommendations and will immediately begin the process of ensuring the relevant actions are taken, including notifying the Registrar of Births, Deaths and Marriages of the anomalies that the panel found.

“The Department will also refer the report to Tasmania Police, the Integrity Commission and AHPRA for assessment. The additional information will also be provided to AHPRA.” 

The Panel has recommended the referral of inaccurately attested MCCDs to Crown law officers and the Registrar of Births, Deaths, and Marriages.

Health minister Guy Barnett said the report was disturbing.

“I’m very disturbed by what I read and I take it very seriously and as a result, the department likewise has taken it very seriously.

“This is a big concern and that’s why those matters have been referred to the police and APHRA and the relevant authorities.”