A senior cardiologist who is suing the ACT government after he was suspended because of misconduct allegations has retained the services of the barrister representing former soldier and Victoria Cross recipient Ben Roberts-Smith in his defamation case.
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Canberra Hospital's Dr Muayad Alasady in late July began Federal Court action against the government after he was stood down in March as an investigation was launched into him allegedly engaging in inappropriate behaviour or misconduct since 2018.
These allegations included him saying he "didn't give a shit about the pacemaker" for a patient, repeatedly acting in an unreasonable manner towards cardiology unit staff, and leaving a patient anaesthetised on a table for half an hour before he attended the procedure.
In August, Dr Alasady failed to stop further investigations and sanctions against him in relation to the allegations.
He has now retained the services of Arthur Moses SC, who also represents Mr Roberts-Smith in his defamation case against three newspapers, including The Canberra Times. Mr Moses is also the partner of former NSW premier Gladys Berejiklian.
In his statement of claim, Dr Alasady argues the investigation of him is biased, has denied him procedural fairness under his enterprise agreement, and has caused him reputational harm.
He also argues the investigation has been mishandled and the allegations against him are historical, vague in nature, unparticularised, and previously deemed not to be worth pursuing because they were not in the public interest.
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Dr Alasady's advisers, in a recent statement, said he had "always been devoted to providing the best care to his patients".
Among the orders he is seeking is the suspension being revoked and an order to stop the investigation.
The cardiologist, who specialises in electrophysiology, is also suing the Canberra Health Services' chief executive David Peffer and the territory's Public Sector Standards Commissioner Ian McPhee.
The respondents have not yet filed defences in court. The matter is listed for a case-management hearing on Monday.
The Canberra Times in April revealed some senior cardiology staff were stood down in relation to bullying allegations.
It came after Mr Peffer first put senior staff on notice last November, issuing a warning that the health services would part ways with staff who had consistently shown poor behaviour.
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