ACT Health staff have welcomed the findings from an audit into bullying in the department but say the issues run far deeper.
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Staff speaking anonymously to The Canberra Times said they would be too scared to make complaints as it often led to being "performance managed out" or investigations launched into them.
Meanwhile the union representing salaried doctors said most members would not feel confident to report bullying.
It comes as Health Minister Meegan Fitzharris maintains there are appropriate channels to safely report bullying.
The Auditor-General’s ACT Health management of allegations of misconduct and complaints about inappropriate workplace behaviour was released on Thursday.
The report found former director general of ACT Health Nicole Feely and the then deputy director general corporate instigated a misconduct investigation into two senior staff without following the appropriate protocol.
The two senior staff members were suspended but no adverse findings were found against either of them at the conclusion of the five month investigation.
The launch of the investigation came weeks after one of the duo made a complaint regarding an incident involving the two of them and the deputy director general.
The audit found the misconduct inquiry was improperly started.
It also found allegations of bullying levelled against Ms Feely and the then deputy director were not appropriately handled.
Australian Salaried Medical Officers' Federation secretary Stephen Crook said staff believed there were a few "protected species" who could not be pursued.
He said most members would not be comfortable to report bullying or inappropriate behaviour for fear of the repercussions.
Mr Crook said the processing of complaints took too long, during which time management would sometimes try to find “dirt” on the person.
He said one of the biggest problems was that investigations were conducted by a small pool of people within the ACT with possible conflicts of interest.
ACT Health staff speaking to The Canberra Times anonymously said it was astounding the lengths some senior staff went to "protect their own".
One staff member said she would be happy to come forward if there was an independent investigation into bullying and she knew she was protected.
She claimed some staff were groomed for higher roles, with the criteria being they would not be likely to rock the boat.
"If you're not in the 'in crowd' you're screwed really," she said.
"They will try to performance manage you out, or do things like refuse roster requests and make you work every public holiday and weekend."
Ms Fitzharris rejected the opposition's push for a board of inquiry into bullying within ACT Health saying it would likely cost tens of millions of dollars.
"What they are calling for is serious and significant and they have not thought through what it would involve," she said.
Ms Fitzharris said she also did not think a "lower level inquiry" was warranted, with a range of steps already being taken to address cultural issues within ACT Health.
She said there were many avenues, including the ACT Health Services Commissioner, the ACT Ombudsman, the Auditor General and the Public Sector Standards Commissioner, and the Public Interest Disclosure process, staff could safely air their concerns.
Opposition health spokeswoman Vicki Dunne said the audit "put a lie" to the claims there were avenues ACT Health staff could safely report bullying.
“Clearly, the processes and procedures for investigating serious complaints are not up to scratch," she said.
“Staff are either not trained properly or are ignoring standard operating procedures in relation to bullying and harassment.
