A man from Queanbeyan in southern New South Wales has been permanently banned from providing medical assistance to members of the public after he attended a car accident and posed as an ambulance officer.
The prohibition is the result of a NSW Health Care Complaints Commission (HCCC) investigation into the conduct of 61-year-old John Robert Cook, a self-employed Senior First Aid Officer.
The commission found on March 21 last year, Mr Cook attended the scene of a car accident in Royalla NSW in a modified vehicle, wearing a fake NSW Ambulance uniform.
Mr Cook was approached by an off-duty ACT police officer at the scene who spoke to him about the legality of his vehicle, a white Nissan Patrol modified to look like an official emergency vehicle.
Mr Cook's vehicle was covered in red and silver chequered pattern and yellow high-visibility stripes, and was fitted with a roof light bar as well as dash board lights and front grill lights that flashed blue and red in a manner similar to an emergency vehicle.
It also contained the words "medical ambulance" and "paramedic" on both sides, the rear of the vehicle had a tyre cover stating "emergency vehicle", and "medical response unit" was printed on the rear window.
Later that day, Mr Cook was charged by NSW Police over the improper display of an organisation's insignia and using a vehicle that does not comply with standards.
Mr Cook pled guilty to the offences, and the charges were dismissed.
'Intentionally' misleading the public
The investigation was initiated by the HCCC after the incident, which found Mr Cook had "intentionally posed as an ambulance officer and attended an incident where the public could have mistakenly believed him to be a fully trained and qualified paramedic able to render assistance".
"He also failed to co-operate with the Health Care Complaints Commission's investigation or express any insight into the seriousness of his conduct," the commission noted.
The HCCC said its investigation confirmed Mr Cook posed a risk to the health and safety of members of the public, and the following prohibition order was made:
"Mr John Cook, a Senior First Aid Officer, is permanently prohibited from providing any health services, either in paid employment or voluntarily, to any member of the public."
The HCCC's investigation revealed Mr Cook was previously a volunteer with St John Ambulance NSW. However, his membership was terminated in November 2015.
Mr Cook held four relevant para medicine qualifications while volunteering with St John Ambulance, including Senior First Aid (including CPR), Advanced Life Support and Advanced First Aid.
The commission recognised Mr Cook's previous experience in their decision to issue the prohibition notice, but also noted no records could be found to verify whether he still held the qualifications.
If Mr Cook does not comply with the prohibition order, he faces a penalty of a fine up to $55,000 and three years' imprisonment.
