New South Wales Consolidated Acts

HUMAN TISSUE ACT 1983 - SECT 4

4 Definitions

(1) In this Act, except in so far as the context or subject-matter otherwise indicates or requires:
"blood product" means a product or extract derived or extracted from blood by any process of manufacture.
"child" means a person who has not attained the age of 18 years and who is not married.
"designated officer" means:

(a) in relation to a hospital, a person appointed for the time being under section 5 (1) (a) to be a designated officer for the hospital, or

(b) in relation to a forensic institution, a person appointed for the time being under section 5 (3) to be a designated officer for the forensic institution.

"designated specialist", in relation to a hospital, means a person appointed for the time being under section 5 (1) (b) to be a designated specialist for the hospital.
"Director-General" means the Director-General of the Department of Health.
"donor", in relation to blood, means the person from whom the blood has been removed.
"exempt supplier":

(a) in relation to the supply of blood or a blood product, means:

(i) the Australian Red Cross Society, or

(ii) the governing body of a hospital, or

(iii) any other body declared by the regulations to be an exempt supplier for the purposes of this Act, or

(a1) in relation to the supply of blood products that are therapeutic goods within the meaning of the Therapeutic Goods Act 1989 of the Commonwealth and that are registered goods within the meaning of that Act-a body that supplies those goods, or

(a2) in relation to the supply of blood products that are therapeutic goods within the meaning of the Therapeutic Goods Act 1989 of the Commonwealth and that are exempt goods for the purposes of Part 3-2 of that Act-a body that supplies those goods in compliance with the conditions (if any) of the relevant exemption.

"exercise" a function includes perform a duty.
"forensic institution" means:

(a) an institution that is under the control of a public health organisation (within the meaning of the Health Services Act 1997 ), or

(b) an accredited pathology laboratory under the Health Insurance Act 1973 of the Commonwealth,

at which post-mortem examinations of human bodies are carried out, but does not include a hospital.
"function" includes a power, authority or duty.
"governing body" means:

(a) in relation to a hospital:

(i) in the case of a public hospital that is controlled by a public health organisation within the meaning of the Health Services Act 1997 -the public health organisation, or

(ii) in the case of a public hospital within the meaning of the Health Services Act 1997 that is controlled by the Crown (including the Minister or the Health Administration Corporation)-the Crown, or

(iii) in the case of a private health facility within the meaning of the Private Health Facilities Act 2007 -the licensee of the facility, or

(b) in relation to a forensic institution:

(i) in the case of a forensic institution that is controlled by a public health organisation within the meaning of the Health Services Act 1997 -the public health organisation, or

(ii) in the case of an accredited pathology laboratory under the Health Insurance Act 1973 of the Commonwealth-the person in charge of the laboratory (however designated).

"hospital" means:

(a) a public hospital within the meaning of the Health Services Act 1997 , or

(b) a private health facility within the meaning of the Private Health Facilities Act 2007 .

"inspector" means a person appointed as an inspector under Part 7A.
"medical, dental or surgical treatment" means any medical, dental or surgical treatment carried out by, or under the supervision of, a medical practitioner or dentist with respect to a living person in the interests of the health of the person.
"next of kin" means:

(aa) in relation to a child who is living-a person referred to in paragraph (aa) of the definition of "senior available next of kin", and

(a) in relation to a deceased child-a person referred to in paragraph (a) of the definition of "senior available next of kin", and

(b) in relation to any other deceased person-a person referred to in paragraph (b) of that definition.

"non-regenerative tissue" means tissue other than regenerative tissue.
"premises" includes any means of vehicular transport.
"prescribed contaminant" means an organism or substance declared by the regulations to be a prescribed contaminant for the purposes of this Act.
"record" includes book, account, deed, writing, document and any other source of information compiled, recorded or stored in written form, or on micro-film, or by electronic process, or in any other manner or by any other means.
"regenerative tissue" means tissue that, after injury or removal, is replaced in the body of a living person by natural processes of growth or repair.
"regulation" means a regulation made under this Act.
"senior available next of kin" means:

(aa) in relation to a child who is living:

(i) a parent of the child, or

(ii) if no person referred to in subparagraph (i) is available-a person who is a guardian of the child, and

(a) in relation to a deceased child:

(i) a parent of the child,

(ii) where a parent of the child is not available-a brother or sister of the child, being a brother or sister who has attained the age of 18 years, or

(iii) where no person referred to in subparagraph (i) or (ii) is available-a person who was a guardian of the child immediately before the death of the child, and

(b) in relation to any other deceased person:

(i) a person who was a spouse of the deceased person immediately before the deceased person’s death,

(ii) where the deceased person, immediately before death, had no spouse or where the deceased person had a spouse but the person who was then the deceased person’s spouse is not available-a son or daughter (if any) of the deceased person, being a son or daughter who has attained the age of 18 years,

(iii) where no person referred to in subparagraph (i) or (ii) is available-a parent of the deceased person, or

(iv) where no person referred to in subparagraph (i), (ii) or (iii) is available-a brother or sister of the deceased person, being a brother or sister who has attained the age of 18 years.

"spouse" means:

(a) a husband or wife, or

(b) a de facto partner,

but where more than one person would so qualify as a spouse, means only the last person so to qualify.

Note: “De facto partner” is defined in section 21C of the Interpretation Act 1987 .

"supply" means supply by way of sale, exchange or gift, and includes receive, keep or store for the purpose of supply.
"tissue" includes an organ, or part, of a human body and a substance extracted from, or from a part of, the human body.

(2) In this Act:

(a) a reference to a parent of a person includes a reference to the following:

(i) a step-parent of the person,

(ii) an adoptive parent of the person,

(iii) the Minister administering the Children and Young Persons (Care and Protection) Act 1998 , if the Minister has sole parental responsibility in respect of the person (whether under that Act or otherwise),

(b) a reference to a son or daughter of a person includes a reference to any person of whom the person is a parent,

(c) a reference to a brother or sister of a person includes a reference to any person who is a son or daughter of a parent of the person, and

(2A) In this Act, except in so far as the context or subject-matter otherwise indicates or requires, a reference to tissue includes a reference to:

(aa) blood,

(a) ova and semen, and

(b) foetal tissue.

(3) In this Act, a reference to the transplantation of tissue includes a reference to:

(a) the transplantation of any part of the tissue, and

(b) the transplantation of any substance obtained from the tissue,

and, without limiting the generality of the foregoing, includes a reference to the transfusion of blood.

(4) In this Act, a reference to the removal of blood (however expressed) for any specified purpose includes a reference to the removal of blood so that a product to be derived or extracted from that blood may be used for that purpose.

(5) In this Act, a reference to tissue removed from the body of a living person in the course of medical, dental or surgical treatment includes:

(a) tissue expelled from the body of the person in the course of the treatment, and

(b) all tissue removed or expelled from the body of the person in the course of the treatment, even if the person dies during the course of the treatment.

(6) In this Act, a reference to medical or scientific purposes includes educational purposes connected with medicine or science.

(7) For the purposes of this Act, a child is "in the care of the State" if:

(a) a Minister administering the Children and Young Persons (Care and Protection) Act 1998 has sole parental responsibility in respect of the child (whether under that Act or otherwise), or

(b) the Director-General under the Children and Young Persons (Care and Protection) Act 1998 has sole parental responsibility in respect of the child (whether under that Act or otherwise).

(8) For the purposes of this Act, the "principal care officer", in relation to a child in the care of the State, means the principal officer of a designated agency that has the supervisory responsibility for the child under the Children and Young Persons (Care and Protection) Act 1998 .