Macrossans Lawyers Brisbane law firm

By Belinda Weir

The Queensland Ambulance Service (QAS) has successfully appealed a Supreme Court decision that awarded
over $500,000 to a Queensland ambulance offi cer for a psychological injury.

The plaintiff, Mr Hegarty, worked as an ambulance offi cer in rural Queensland. After 15 years, he was diagnosed with
post-traumatic stress and obsessive compulsive disorder, brought about by exposure to traumatic events that often
involved people he knew.

He sued the QAS, alleging it failed to provide him with sufficient debriefing or psychological treatment. He argued
that if a sufficient system had existed, his senior offi cers would have recognised the early signs of psychological
dysfunction in time for him to obtain appropriate treatment.

The Court of Appeal disagreed. It found that while the plaintiff complained about the traumatic nature of his duties and
requested a transfer to a larger town, his complaints were equivocal, were not made to the same officer and he did not
tell anyone he was suffering nightmares, flashbacks and other symptoms. Also, his performance did not decline and he was awarded a medal for exemplary service shortly before ceasing work.

The court confirmed that employers in the health industry have a duty to ensure that appropriate systems are in place for
recognising signs of workplace stress in employees exposed to traumatic events. However, based on the circumstances,
the court held that even if senior officers received more training, there was insufficient evidence to alert them to the
plaintiff’s psychological problems.

This decision warns of the dangers of ‘litigation hindsight’. An employer will only be liable for an employee’s loss if
the employee can identify when and why they developed a psychiatric condition, what steps the employer ought to have
taken, and can demonstrate that those steps would have avoided the loss.