New South Wales Consolidated Acts

HEALTH SERVICES ACT 1997 - SECT 116G

116G Miscellaneous provisions relating to civil liability

(1) A reference in this section to a public health organisation does not include a reference to an affiliated health organisation unless it is a declared affiliated health organisation.

(2) Part 5 of the Workers Compensation Act 1987 applies to work injury damages recoverable from the Government of New South Wales, and to work injury damages recoverable from a public health organisation, by or in respect of a person employed in the NSW Health Service to enable the public health organisation to exercise its functions. That Part so applies as if the public health organisation:

(a) were an employer of the person in addition to the Government, and

(b) were an employer liable to pay compensation under that Act.

(3) A policy of insurance may be issued to the Government of New South Wales under the Workers Compensation Act 1987 that is limited to workers employed in connection with a particular public health organisation.

(4) If:

(a) a person is employed in the NSW Health Service to enable a public health organisation to exercise its functions, and

(b) the Government of New South Wales is, as the person’s employer, proceeded against for any negligence or other tort of the person (whether the damages are recoverable in an action for tort or breach of contract or in any other action), and

(c) the public health organisation is entitled under a policy of insurance or indemnity to be indemnified in respect of liability that the organisation may incur in respect of that negligence or other tort,

the Government is subrogated to the rights of the public health organisation under that policy in respect of the liability incurred by the Government arising from that negligence or other tort.

(5) For the purposes of Division 2 of Part 9 of Chapter 2 of the Industrial Relations Act 1996 :

(a) if a person who is member of the NSW Health Service is appointed (otherwise than on an acting basis) to another position in the NSW Health Service in connection with a different public health organisation or a different division of that Service, the person is taken to have entered into a new contract of employment in respect of that other position, and

(b) the cessation of a person’s appointment (whether by way of dismissal, resignation, transfer or otherwise) to a position in the NSW Health Service is taken to terminate the person’s contract of employment in respect of that position.

(6) However, a person who holds an appointment to a position that is abolished does not, for the purposes of subsection (5) (b), cease to be appointed to that position until:

(a) such time as the person is appointed to another position in the NSW Health Service, or

(b) such time as the person’s employment in the NSW Health Service is terminated,

whichever occurs first.

(7) In this section:
"work injury damages" means damages recoverable from a public health organisation or the Government of New South Wales in respect of injury to or the death of a person employed in the NSW Health Service to enable the public health organisation to exercise its functions caused by the negligence or other tort of the public health organisation or the Government and arising out of the employment of the person by the Government, whether the damages are recoverable in an action for tort or breach of contract or in any other action, but does not include motor accident damages to which Chapter 5 of the Motor Accidents Compensation Act 1999 applies.