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Appendix B – Mr Peter Leck
Commissioner (Mr Antony J. H. Morris, QC): you knew that Dr Patel wasn’t registered as a surgeon, didn’t you? — No, I didn’t.
I see. No-one told you that? — As – as far as I was aware, he was registered as a surgeon.
I see. And you just didn’t bother to find out? — Well, the responsibility in relation to registration and employment of doctors lies with the Director of Medical Services.
So it was Dr Keating’s fault, was it? — As I indicated earlier, I think Dr Kees Nydam was actually acting as the Director of Medical Services at that time.
Now, Dr Patel’s resignation took effect on the 31st March of this year? — Yes.
And the following day you approved a payment to him in respect of airfares to the United States and accommodation in Brisbane? — Well, I can’t…
Is that right? — I can’t remember the actual process of approval.
Would you have a look at this document and tell me whether it’s your signature on it. Is that signed by you? — Yes.
Thank you. Hand that back. Now, this only took place six weeks ago. You’re not going to suggest this has gone out of your memory are you? — I recall Dr Kees Nydam…
Are you going to suggest it’s gone out of your memory? — I don’t specifically recall signing the document if that’s what you’re asking, but…
You’re not suggesting the signature is a forgery? — No.
So is it your evidence to this inquiry that you might have signed this document but it’s gone completely out of your mind in the last six weeks? — I sign a number of things every day…
I’m sure that’s right. Is it your evidence to this inquiry that having signed this – at the time when this document was generated? — Yes.
Dr Patel was the subject of considerable controversy wasn’t he? — Yes.
He had been named in the state parliament? — Well, there was certainly publicity around him.
Yes. Dr Molloy had gone on television and spoken about him. He was a very controversial man at the time, wasn’t he? — There – there was publicity.
And yet you’re telling us that you can’t remember signing off on a form to approve over $3,500 worth of air travel for him on the 1st of April? — I don’t remember specifically signing it, no.
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All right. Who checked Dr Patel’s contract to ascertain that he was entitled to this three and a half thousand dollars? — I don’t know. I didn’t.
You didn’t. Well, you’ve signed the document as a “Certificate of Authorised Expenditure. Approving Officer: I certify (1) that the charge is one which was necessarily required in the provision of an approved departmental service and is cost justified; (2) that the itinerary was approved by the appropriate senior officer; (3) funds are available and voucher is approved.” Do you realise that you certified those things to the Department of Health? — I authorised the expenditure, yep.
And you certified those things as being true to the Department of Health? — Look…
Do you wish to look at your signature again? — No.
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Commissioner: By April you’d been aware for at least six months of serious concerns about Dr Patel, hadn’t you? — Well, I’d had correspondence from Toni Hoffman in late October 2004.
And that raised very serious concerns about Dr Patel, did it not? — Yes, which were under investigation.
When did that investigation start? — The initial correspondence relating…
No. When did the investigation start? I’m not interested in bureaucratic correspondence going back and forth. When did anyone actually start investigating? — I presume that Gerry Fitzgerald started when he received the correspondence, which would have been around mid-January, and he arrived on site on the 14th of February.
And why did it take from October to mid-January for Dr Fitzgerald to start investigating? — We had been through a process of attempting to identify somebody to conduct the investigation. We’d – there had been several telephone calls. We were then interrupted by the tilt train accident in – on the 16th of November. So, for a period of a few weeks, myself and all of the executive were tied up in doing that…
What! Were you down sort of wrapping the wounds or helping out these patients? — No, there was…
No, I didn’t think so. So why weren’t you able to find someone to conduct this investigation in less than three months? — Because we were busy doing that. Couldn’t find somebody or…
Doing what? — I was talking to Queensland Rail… There was discussions with staff and how they were coping and what they were doing.
Which staff did you discuss how they were coping? — Sorry?
With what staff did you discuss how they were coping? Did you go down to the wards and speak to the nurses and doctors and ask “How are you getting on?” — For a time, over a period of time, I visited night shift and afternoon shift to talk to staff about how they were doing…
What, two trips to the wards?
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Apart from Dr Patel, who was the leading clinician in your hospital at the time? The most senior doctor who was actually seeing patients? — What – what the structure is, we…
No. No, just answer the question. Who was the most senior doctor who was seeing patients? — There isn’t one. There’s like, several.
Okay, there were several. Who were they? — So, we had – if we’re asking for the directors…
Yes. Who were they? — You’ve got the Director of Medicine, Dr Peter Miach.
All right. Did you ask Dr Miach about the concerns raised by Nurse Hoffman? — No.
Why not? — Because that isn’t my role.
I see. It doesn’t worry you that patients might be dying or that 15-year-old boys might be losing their legs. It’s not your role to see whether there might be some truth in these allegations? — It’s the role of the Director of Medical Services in terms of clinical issues. I’m not a clinician.
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