New South Wales Consolidated Acts

HEALTH CARE LIABILITY ACT 2001 - SECT 4

4 Definitions

(1) In this Act:
"approved professional indemnity insurance" means professional indemnity insurance that is approved for the time being under an insurance approval order.
"claimant" means a person who makes, or is entitled to make, a health care claim.
"court", in relation to a health care claim, means any court by or before which the claim falls to be determined.
"damages" includes any form of monetary compensation.
"fault" includes an act or omission.
"health care" means any care, treatment, advice, service or goods provided in respect of the physical or mental health of a person.
"health care claim" means a claim, in any civil action, for damages against a health care provider in respect of an injury or death caused wholly or partly by the fault of the health care provider in providing health care.
"health care provider" means:

(a) a medical practitioner:

(i) who is covered by approved professional indemnity insurance or, until such time as Part 3 commences, by any kind of professional indemnity insurance, or

(ii) who is of a class of medical practitioner prescribed by the regulations for the purposes of this definition, or

(b) a public health organisation, or

(c) subject to subsection (2), the licensee of a licensed facility,

and includes:

(d) in respect of an injury or death occurring before the date of assent to this Act that gives rise to a health care claim-a person:

(i) who was a medical practitioner at the time of the injury or death, and

(ii) whose civil liability for that injury or death is covered by any kind of professional indemnity insurance, or

(e) in respect of an injury or death occurring after the date of assent to this Act that gives rise to a health care claim-a person:

(i) who was a medical practitioner at the time of the injury or death, and

(ii) whose civil liability for that injury or death is covered by approved professional indemnity insurance or, until such time as Part 3 commences, by any kind of professional indemnity insurance.

Note: Section 21 (1) of the Interpretation Act 1987 provides that the expression “medical practitioner” means a medical practitioner registered under the Medical Practice Act 1992 .

"health practitioner" means a person (other than a medical practitioner) who provides health care.
"injury" means personal or bodily injury, and includes:

(a) pre-natal injury, and

(b) psychological or psychiatric injury, and

(c) disease.

"insurance approval order" means an order under section 20.
"insurance regulation order" means an order under section 22.
"licensed facility" means a private hospital or day procedure centre that is licensed under the Private Hospitals and Day Procedure Centres Act 1988 .
"non-economic loss" means any one or more of the following:

(a) pain and suffering,

(b) loss of amenities of life,

(c) loss of expectation of life,

(d) disfigurement.

"practice company" means:

(a) in the case of a medical practitioner-a corporation (however incorporated) that is controlled or conducted by the medical practitioner and by means of which the medical practitioner conducts his or her medical practice, or

(b) in the case of a health practitioner-a corporation (however incorporated) that is controlled or conducted by the health practitioner and by means of which the health practitioner conducts his or her health practice.

"professional indemnity insurance" means insurance against civil liability arising out of the provision of health care, and includes an agreement or arrangement for discretionary indemnity in respect of that liability.
"public health organisation" has the same meaning as in the Health Services Act 1997 .
"registration" includes enrolment or any other means by which a health practitioner is entitled to practise.

(2) The licensee of a licensed facility is a health care provider for the purposes of this Act:

(a) only if the regulations so provide, and

(b) only to the extent that the licensee conducts the licensed facility.

(3) In this Act:

(a) a reference to a medical practitioner includes, if the medical practitioner conducts his or her practice by means of a practice company, a reference to the medical practitioner’s practice company, and

(b) a reference to a health practitioner includes, if the health practitioner conducts his or her practice by means of a practice company, the health practitioner’s practice company, and

(c) a reference to a public health organisation includes a reference to a person for whose acts the public health organisation is liable, and

(d) a reference to the licensee of a licensed facility includes a reference to a person for whose acts the licensee is liable (but only to the extent that those acts are related solely to the conduct of the licensed facility).

(4) A reference in this Act to the provision (however expressed) of health care includes a failure to provide health care.

(5) A reference in this Act to the provision (however expressed) of professional indemnity insurance includes a reference to the offering or renewing of any such insurance.

(6) Notes included in this Act do not form part of this Act.