Graeme Stephen Reeves
Encyclopedia
Graeme Stephen Reeves is a deregistered former surgeon
from New South Wales
, Australia
, dubbed the Butcher of Bega in the press. Reeves was deregistered in 2004 for performing obstetric
procedures at Pambula and Bega
hospitals despite being banned from obstetrics, and in September 2008 was charged in relation to alleged sexual
and indecent assault
s and genital mutilation
at Bega, Pambula and Richmond
between 2001 and 2003. He was sentenced in relation to assaults in 2011.
hospitals in obstetrics from 1985 until 1997 when his obstetrics practice was restricted, and in gynaecology until 2000.
Reeves was first appointed as a visiting medical officer in obstetrics and gynaecology at Hornsby Ku-ring-gai Hospital
on 20 December 1985. 35 complaints were made about him over a fifteen year period starting in June 1986 by other doctors, nurses and patients, and included complaints of bullying other staff and patients and failing to offer adequate pain relief. In 1995 two attending midwives and a paediatric registrar
complained that Reeves had bullied a patient delivering a non-viable foetus, had not offered adequate pain relief and had declined their offers to resuscitate
her. In May 1996 a patient of Reeves' at The Hills Private Hospital died of septicaemia after he refused antibiotics, and that hospital suspended his privileges as a medical officer there. The Hills Hospital also noted his aggressive conduct and observed that similar problems were known from both Hornsby Ku-ring-gai and Sydney Adventist Hospital
.
By January 1997 a hospital advisory committee had made an adverse finding about Reeves and a Professional Standards Committee handed down a decision in August placing limits on Reeves' practice in obstetrics. The hospital suspended him from the gynaecology clinic on 14 December 2000 after midwives
refused to work with him and his position was never restored.
Psychiatric
reports dating from as early as 1996 and continuing until 2004 report that Reeves has been variously identified as having a personality disorder
, narcissism
and depression.
Reeves was hired as an obstetrician and gynaecologist by GSAHS in 2002, beginning work in April. Reeves' application for the position provided partial information about restrictions on his registration, but not the Professional Standards Committee's order that he not practice obstetrics. GSAHS did not verify with the Medical Board that Reeves was allowed to practice in the specialties he was hired for. The restriction on his practice was revealed during a reference check in April, but not acted on. His hiring was promoted by local papers as a boon for women in the area.
By the end of 2002, complaints and memos were prepared about difficult working relationships between Reeves and staff at Pambula Hospital. In November, discussions between the Medical Board and GSAHS revealed that Reeves was not allowed to practice as an obstetrician, and as a result from 14 November Pambula Hospital did not provide obstetric services. In 2003 there were complaints that Reeves had provided obstetric services to a patient at Bega Hospital on 3 January, and GSAHS became aware that, Reeves' undertaking to the contrary, he had not applied to the Board for a review of the restriction on his obstetric practice. On 10 January further complaints about Reeves' conduct towards other staff became known to Bega Hospital management, but as they were pursuing his unauthorised practice of obstetrics, these complaints about conduct were not pursued.
After the complaints about unauthorised obstetric practice at Bega Hospital, GSAHS continued to allow Reeves to practice as a gynaecologist, uncertain as to whether they had the power to suspend him. On 18 February 2003, the Medical Board ordered that Reeves' ban from obstetric practice continue and on 7 April GSAHS notified Reeves of the forthcoming termination of his contract, although Reeves continued to provide gynaecological services up to 11 July, the last day of his contract.
Jon Mortimer, the GSAHS Deputy Director of Medical Services, was suspended on full pay in May 2008 for failing to act on the information about Reeves' obstetrics ban revealed in the April 2002 reference check.
. Reeves' former patient Carolyn Dewaegeneire alleged that in 2002 Reeves had conducted a clitoridectomy
rather than remove a small genital lesion
, and had informed her that he was going to do so seconds before anaesthesia took effect. Expert witnesses in an earlier civil case surrounding this procedure noted that the procedure Reeves performed on Dewaegeneire was old-fashioned, that informed consent was not given and that Reeves should have sought a second opinion on her rare diagnosis.
The media began to report additional complaints by Reeves' patients in February 2008, such as Marilyn Hawkins' allegation that he both sexually assaulted
her and botched her operation. By 25 February private lobbying group the Medical Errors Action Group reported that they had complaints related to 185 separate incidents. By 26 February Reeves, who had been living in Castle Hill
, had gone into hiding.
while practising and large violations of professional standards of care.
's claims that the GSAHS had done no background checks on Reeves. The State Government was criticised for not releasing the report until 28 May.
s in Bega complained that the press had created an unfair suspicion surrounding the local medical community and maintained that they had not been aware of any dissatisfaction with Reeves during his employment by GSAHS.
s from both the Child Protection and Sex Crimes Squad and the far south coast local area command. By May, they were investigating deaths of ten babies and seven women under Reeves' care, with most of the babies classified as stillborn
, which did not require a coronial
inquiry into their deaths.
On 31 July 2008, Garling handed down his findings on the Reeves case and concluded that his "intentional and calculated dishonesty" was the main reason he was employed by GSAHS. Garling recommended that the case be referred to the Director of Public Prosecutions. The report also found that Jon Mortimer and Robert Arthurson of GSAHS should have carried out greater background checks of Reeves.
lawyers sought an adjournment of his Downing Local Court
trial in order to familiarise themselves with the case and in August 2009 he was ordered to stand trial after waiving a committal hearing. In December 2009 Reeves was arrested on additional charges to those laid in 2008.
On March 10, 2011 a NSW District Court found him guilty of maliciously inflicting grievous bodily harm on Carolyn DeWaegeneire, whose genitals he removed without her consent. On July 1 he was sentenced for a two to three-and-a-half year period for the assault on DeWaegeneire and other patients, together with the financial deception involved in practicing obstetrics in Bega without registration. The Director of Public Prosecutions announced an intention to appeal the sentence later that month.
Surgeon
In medicine, a surgeon is a specialist in surgery. Surgery is a broad category of invasive medical treatment that involves the cutting of a body, whether human or animal, for a specific reason such as the removal of diseased tissue or to repair a tear or breakage...
from New South Wales
New South Wales
New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, dubbed the Butcher of Bega in the press. Reeves was deregistered in 2004 for performing obstetric
Obstetrics
Obstetrics is the medical specialty dealing with the care of all women's reproductive tracts and their children during pregnancy , childbirth and the postnatal period...
procedures at Pambula and Bega
Bega, New South Wales
Bega is a town in the south-east of New South Wales, Australia in the Bega Valley Shire. It is the economic centre for the Bega Valley.-Place name:One claim is that place name Bega is derived from the local Aboriginal word meaning "big camping ground"....
hospitals despite being banned from obstetrics, and in September 2008 was charged in relation to alleged sexual
Sexual assault
Sexual assault is an assault of a sexual nature on another person, or any sexual act committed without consent. Although sexual assaults most frequently are by a man on a woman, it may involve any combination of two or more men, women and children....
and indecent assault
Indecent assault
Indecent assault is an offence of aggravated assault in many jurisdictions. It is characterised as a sex crime.Indecent assault was an offence in England and Wales under sections 14 and 15 the Sexual Offences Act 1956...
s and genital mutilation
Female genital cutting
Female genital mutilation , also known as female genital cutting and female circumcision, is defined by the World Health Organization as "all procedures that involve partial or total removal of the external female genitalia, or other injury to the female genital organs for non-medical reasons."FGM...
at Bega, Pambula and Richmond
Richmond, New South Wales
Richmond is a town in New South Wales, north-west of Sydney, in the Local Government Area of the City of Hawkesbury. It is located at a latitude of 33° 35' 54" South and a longitude of 150°45' 04" east, 19 metres above sea level on the alluvial Hawkesbury River flats, at the foot of the Blue...
between 2001 and 2003. He was sentenced in relation to assaults in 2011.
Northern Sydney
Reeves worked in several northern SydneySydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
hospitals in obstetrics from 1985 until 1997 when his obstetrics practice was restricted, and in gynaecology until 2000.
Reeves was first appointed as a visiting medical officer in obstetrics and gynaecology at Hornsby Ku-ring-gai Hospital
Hornsby Ku-ring-gai Hospital
Hornsby Ku-ring-gai Hospital is a hospital in Sydney, Australia, located on Palmerston Road in Hornsby. It is a teaching hospital of the University of Sydney....
on 20 December 1985. 35 complaints were made about him over a fifteen year period starting in June 1986 by other doctors, nurses and patients, and included complaints of bullying other staff and patients and failing to offer adequate pain relief. In 1995 two attending midwives and a paediatric registrar
Specialist registrar
A Specialist Registrar or SpR is a doctor in the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland who is receiving advanced training in a specialist field of medicine in order eventually to become a consultant...
complained that Reeves had bullied a patient delivering a non-viable foetus, had not offered adequate pain relief and had declined their offers to resuscitate
Cardiopulmonary resuscitation
Cardiopulmonary resuscitation is an emergency procedure which is performed in an effort to manually preserve intact brain function until further measures are taken to restore spontaneous blood circulation and breathing in a person in cardiac arrest. It is indicated in those who are unresponsive...
her. In May 1996 a patient of Reeves' at The Hills Private Hospital died of septicaemia after he refused antibiotics, and that hospital suspended his privileges as a medical officer there. The Hills Hospital also noted his aggressive conduct and observed that similar problems were known from both Hornsby Ku-ring-gai and Sydney Adventist Hospital
Sydney Adventist Hospital
Sydney Adventist Hospital, commonly known as the San, is a large private hospital in Sydney, Australia, located on Fox Valley Road in Wahroonga. Established on January 1, 1903, as a not-for-profit organisation, it was originally named the Sydney Sanitarium from which its colloquial name was derived...
.
By January 1997 a hospital advisory committee had made an adverse finding about Reeves and a Professional Standards Committee handed down a decision in August placing limits on Reeves' practice in obstetrics. The hospital suspended him from the gynaecology clinic on 14 December 2000 after midwives
Midwifery
Midwifery is a health care profession in which providers offer care to childbearing women during pregnancy, labour and birth, and during the postpartum period. They also help care for the newborn and assist the mother with breastfeeding....
refused to work with him and his position was never restored.
Psychiatric
Psychiatry
Psychiatry is the medical specialty devoted to the study and treatment of mental disorders. These mental disorders include various affective, behavioural, cognitive and perceptual abnormalities...
reports dating from as early as 1996 and continuing until 2004 report that Reeves has been variously identified as having a personality disorder
Personality disorder
Personality disorders, formerly referred to as character disorders, are a class of personality types and behaviors. Personality disorders are noted on Axis II of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders or DSM-IV-TR of the American Psychiatric Association.Personality disorders are...
, narcissism
Narcissism
Narcissism is a term with a wide range of meanings, depending on whether it is used to describe a central concept of psychoanalytic theory, a mental illness, a social or cultural problem, or simply a personality trait...
and depression.
Greater Southern Area Health Service
Despite the restrictions on his practice, Reeves practised obstetrics in Greater Southern Area Health Service (GSAHS) hospitals in the South Coast region of New South Wales from April 2002 until January 2003, and gynaecology until the termination of his contract in July 2003.Reeves was hired as an obstetrician and gynaecologist by GSAHS in 2002, beginning work in April. Reeves' application for the position provided partial information about restrictions on his registration, but not the Professional Standards Committee's order that he not practice obstetrics. GSAHS did not verify with the Medical Board that Reeves was allowed to practice in the specialties he was hired for. The restriction on his practice was revealed during a reference check in April, but not acted on. His hiring was promoted by local papers as a boon for women in the area.
By the end of 2002, complaints and memos were prepared about difficult working relationships between Reeves and staff at Pambula Hospital. In November, discussions between the Medical Board and GSAHS revealed that Reeves was not allowed to practice as an obstetrician, and as a result from 14 November Pambula Hospital did not provide obstetric services. In 2003 there were complaints that Reeves had provided obstetric services to a patient at Bega Hospital on 3 January, and GSAHS became aware that, Reeves' undertaking to the contrary, he had not applied to the Board for a review of the restriction on his obstetric practice. On 10 January further complaints about Reeves' conduct towards other staff became known to Bega Hospital management, but as they were pursuing his unauthorised practice of obstetrics, these complaints about conduct were not pursued.
After the complaints about unauthorised obstetric practice at Bega Hospital, GSAHS continued to allow Reeves to practice as a gynaecologist, uncertain as to whether they had the power to suspend him. On 18 February 2003, the Medical Board ordered that Reeves' ban from obstetric practice continue and on 7 April GSAHS notified Reeves of the forthcoming termination of his contract, although Reeves continued to provide gynaecological services up to 11 July, the last day of his contract.
Jon Mortimer, the GSAHS Deputy Director of Medical Services, was suspended on full pay in May 2008 for failing to act on the information about Reeves' obstetrics ban revealed in the April 2002 reference check.
Deregistration
Reeves was struck from the register of doctors (forbidden to practice medicine) in 1999, on the grounds that he had breached the Medical Board's 1997 ban on his practicing obstetrics, and had thus been guilty of gross misconduct.Media reports
The first public media report alleging further serious misconduct by Reeves' while employed by GSAHS was in 17 February 2008, in a broadcast of the Sunday programme on the Nine NetworkNine Network
The Nine Network , is an Australian television network with headquarters based in Willoughby, a suburb located on the North Shore of Sydney. For 50 years since television's inception in Australia, between 1956 and 2006, it was the most watched television network in Australia...
. Reeves' former patient Carolyn Dewaegeneire alleged that in 2002 Reeves had conducted a clitoridectomy
Clitoridectomy
Clitoridectomy is the surgical removal of the clitoris. It is rarely needed as a therapeutic medical procedure, such as when cancer has developed in or spread to the clitoris...
rather than remove a small genital lesion
Lesion
A lesion is any abnormality in the tissue of an organism , usually caused by disease or trauma. Lesion is derived from the Latin word laesio which means injury.- Types :...
, and had informed her that he was going to do so seconds before anaesthesia took effect. Expert witnesses in an earlier civil case surrounding this procedure noted that the procedure Reeves performed on Dewaegeneire was old-fashioned, that informed consent was not given and that Reeves should have sought a second opinion on her rare diagnosis.
The media began to report additional complaints by Reeves' patients in February 2008, such as Marilyn Hawkins' allegation that he both sexually assaulted
Sexual assault
Sexual assault is an assault of a sexual nature on another person, or any sexual act committed without consent. Although sexual assaults most frequently are by a man on a woman, it may involve any combination of two or more men, women and children....
her and botched her operation. By 25 February private lobbying group the Medical Errors Action Group reported that they had complaints related to 185 separate incidents. By 26 February Reeves, who had been living in Castle Hill
Castle Hill, New South Wales
Castle Hill is a suburb in the north-west of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Castle Hill is located 31 kilometres north-west of the Sydney central business district, in the Hills District of the Greater Western Sydney region...
, had gone into hiding.
Political response
In June 2008, the Medical Practice Amendment Bill 2008 obliged doctors in New South Wales to report serious misconduct on the part of their colleagues, specifically intoxication while practising, sexual abuseSexual abuse
Sexual abuse, also referred to as molestation, is the forcing of undesired sexual behavior by one person upon another. When that force is immediate, of short duration, or infrequent, it is called sexual assault. The offender is referred to as a sexual abuser or molester...
while practising and large violations of professional standards of care.
NSW Health Department review
On 2 May 2008, retired judge Deirdre O'Connor reported to the NSW Health Department on procedural aspects of Reeves' appointment and was satisfied that changes made to Health Department hiring policy since Reeve's appointment at Southern Area Health Service were sufficient to end the practice of doctors like him much earlier in future. The report contradicted Health Minister Reba MeagherReba Meagher
Reba Paige Meagher is a former Australian politician who was a member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly, representing the electoral district of Cabramatta. She was a minister in various portfolios from 2003 to 2008. On 6 September 2008 Meagher announced that she would not be seeking a...
's claims that the GSAHS had done no background checks on Reeves. The State Government was criticised for not releasing the report until 28 May.
Medical community response
The Medical Board stated that the allegations had not been raised at the time of his de-registration, and as Reeves was no longer allowed to practice, there was no further sanction that the Board was capable of making. In late February 2008 the NSW Department of Health established counselling services for former patients of Reeves. General practitionerGeneral practitioner
A general practitioner is a medical practitioner who treats acute and chronic illnesses and provides preventive care and health education for all ages and both sexes. They have particular skills in treating people with multiple health issues and comorbidities...
s in Bega complained that the press had created an unfair suspicion surrounding the local medical community and maintained that they had not been aware of any dissatisfaction with Reeves during his employment by GSAHS.
Police investigations
The NSW Police established Strike Force Tarella on 27 February 2008, comprising 12 detectiveDetective
A detective is an investigator, either a member of a police agency or a private person. The latter may be known as private investigators or "private eyes"...
s from both the Child Protection and Sex Crimes Squad and the far south coast local area command. By May, they were investigating deaths of ten babies and seven women under Reeves' care, with most of the babies classified as stillborn
Stillbirth
A stillbirth occurs when a fetus has died in the uterus. The Australian definition specifies that fetal death is termed a stillbirth after 20 weeks gestation or the fetus weighs more than . Once the fetus has died the mother still has contractions and remains undelivered. The term is often used in...
, which did not require a coronial
Coroner
A coroner is a government official who* Investigates human deaths* Determines cause of death* Issues death certificates* Maintains death records* Responds to deaths in mass disasters* Identifies unknown dead* Other functions depending on local laws...
inquiry into their deaths.
Garling Commission
In May 2008 Reeves made a statement to a Special Commission of Inquiry into the public health system stating that he had worked illegally at the GSAHS hospitals because he felt his help was badly needed. He also expressed regret for his actions. The Commission, headed by Peter Garling, was convened in January 2008 and its scope is to investigate the standard of patient care in public hospitals.On 31 July 2008, Garling handed down his findings on the Reeves case and concluded that his "intentional and calculated dishonesty" was the main reason he was employed by GSAHS. Garling recommended that the case be referred to the Director of Public Prosecutions. The report also found that Jon Mortimer and Robert Arthurson of GSAHS should have carried out greater background checks of Reeves.
Extortion attempt
In June 2008, three people were charged in Bega Local Court with an extortion attempt against an unnamed former colleague of Reeves'. They had threatened to make the connection between Reeves and the colleague public. Two of the three, mother and son Kathryn and Nathan Fisher, pleaded guilty in May 2009 and were placed on good behaviour bonds. Charges against Benjamin Fisher were withdrawn.Criminal charges and trial
In September 2008 police announced that they were laying 17 criminal charges against Reeves, relating to 10 alleged victims at Bega, Pambula and Richmond between 2001 and 2003. He was arrested the morning of 10 September and refused bail, to reappear in court in November. In April 2009 his Legal AidLegal aid
Legal aid is the provision of assistance to people otherwise unable to afford legal representation and access to the court system. Legal aid is regarded as central in providing access to justice by ensuring equality before the law, the right to counsel and the right to a fair trial.A number of...
lawyers sought an adjournment of his Downing Local Court
Downing Centre, Sydney
The Downing Centre is a major courthouse complex in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It features Local Courts, the District Court of New South Wales and a law library known as the Downing Centre Library....
trial in order to familiarise themselves with the case and in August 2009 he was ordered to stand trial after waiving a committal hearing. In December 2009 Reeves was arrested on additional charges to those laid in 2008.
On March 10, 2011 a NSW District Court found him guilty of maliciously inflicting grievous bodily harm on Carolyn DeWaegeneire, whose genitals he removed without her consent. On July 1 he was sentenced for a two to three-and-a-half year period for the assault on DeWaegeneire and other patients, together with the financial deception involved in practicing obstetrics in Bega without registration. The Director of Public Prosecutions announced an intention to appeal the sentence later that month.