The Australian Health Practitioners Regulation Agency ('AHPRA') works with the National Boards to ensure that health practitioners in Australia are properly trained, qualified, and safe to practice.
What types of complaints can you make?
You can make a complaint to AHPRA if you are worried about the safety or behaviour of a registered health practitioner, student, or someone pretending to be a practitioner.
Complaints may include:
- Unsafe care: Concerns about the quality of care you received.
- Unprofessional behaviour: Concerns that a practitioner has accepted gifts from patients or has acted in a way that is not allowed.
- Practitioner health: Concerns that a practitioner’s health condition makes it unsafe for them to treat patients.
- Students and criminal offences: Concerns about a medical student’s criminal history or ability to practise; people pretending to be practitioners.
- Falsely using a protected health title: It is illegal for someone to call themselves a doctor, nurse, psychologist, physiotherapist, or another protected title if they are not registered.
- Misleading or unsafe advertising: Advertising that is false, misleading, or could cause harm, such as fake reviews or miracle cure claims.
Jurisdiction:
AHPRA can deal with complaints about registered health practitioners, students, and people falsely acting to be health practitioners in Australia. Note that NSW and QLD have different processes.
Time Limits:
There is no strict time limit for complaints. However, it is better to raise concerns as soon as possible. Waiting too long may make it harder to investigate.
AHPRA will not deal with complaints about:
- Incidents outside Australia as AHPRA cannot investigate care provided overseas.
- NSW or Queensland practitioners.
Who can you make a complaint against?
You can make a complaint against:
Registered health practitioners or students:
You can complain about a practitioner or student if their actions could put people’s safety at risk. This could be:
- A serious one-off incident that wasn’t properly dealt with.
- Repeated unsafe or concerning behaviour.
Unregistered people claiming to be health practitioners:
It is against the law to pretend to be a registered health practitioner. AHPRA can investigate if someone:
- Uses a title such as, doctor, nurse, psychologist, without being registered.
- Falsely says that they are qualified or registered.
- Claims to be a specialist without holding specialist registration.
False or unsafe advertising of health services:
AHPRA can act if a person or business advertises health services in a way that is unsafe or misleading, such as:
- False or dishonest claims.
- Gifts or discounts without clear conditions.
- Use of people’s reviews.
- Promises of guaranteed results.
- Encouraging people to use services they don’t need.
AHPRA will not deal with complaints about:
- Hospitals, clinics or community health centres.
- Aged care providers (unless it’s about a registered individual working there).
- Disability services (unless it’s about a registered individual).
- Health workers in jobs that are not registered with AHPRA (like massage therapists, dietitians, social workers, counsellors, personal care workers).
Additional Information:
If your complaint is about a health organisation, you should contact your state or territory health complaints body instead.
Who can make a complaint?
Anyone can make a complaint to AHPRA.
You can complain in your own name, or anonymously (without giving your details).
If you stay anonymous, AHPRA may use a false name (pseudonym) for you.
Before you lodge a complaint:
Before reaching out to AHPRA, you may want to raise your problems with your practitioner (e.g. doctor, nurse, dentist) or speak with the health service (e.g. hospital, clinic) where you received treatment. If you still don’t get answers or things go wrong, you can complain to AHPRA.
Is there a better organisation to handle your complaint?
AHPRA can only act on concerns about safety which is about registered practitioners, students, or people pretending to be practitioners.
Can you complain on behalf of someone else?
Yes, you can make a complaint for another person, or have someone represent you during the process (with your written consent). This ensures AHPRA can share health records or personal information with your chosen representative.
Additional Information:
The complaints process is free, you don’t need a lawyer, but you can seek legal advice.
What can this body do to help?
When you make a complaint, AHPRA and the National Boards have different options depending on the seriousness of the issue.
- No further action: AHPRA may decide not to act if there is no ongoing risk to the public, or the issue has already been managed.
- Your concern will still be recorded and may be used in the future if similar complaints arise.
- AHPRA will explain their decision and may refer you to another organisation that can help.
- Referral: If AHPRA is not the right body to deal with your concern, it can refer the matter to another agency, such as the police, Medicare, the Coroner’s Court, or a state/territory health complaints body.
- Undertakings: A practitioner may agree to limit or change their practice (for example, not performing certain procedures) to protect the public. This agreement is legally binding and published on the public register.
- Conditions: A National Board can place conditions on a practitioner’s registration, with or without their agreement. Conditions may restrict what the practitioner can do or require them to do extra training or supervision. Conditions are listed on the public register until the Board decides to remove it.
- Caution: A formal warning given to a practitioner, usually not published on the register unless the Board decides it should be.
- Suspension: The practitioner’s registration is suspended, meaning they cannot practise until the suspension is lifted. Suspension can happen if there is a serious and immediate risk to the public, or if it is necessary.
- Reprimand: A formal warning from the Board or a tribunal. Reprimands are published on the public register.
- Cancellation of registration: Only a tribunal or court can cancel a practitioner’s registration. A cancelled practitioner cannot work in that profession anywhere in Australia. Cancelled practitioners appear on the public register of cancelled health practitioners.
Important to note: AHPRA and the Boards can act in situations where a practitioner or student:
- Gave care that was below professional standards.
- Didn’t have the knowledge, skill, or judgement to practise safely.
- Was not suitable to hold a registration.
- Had a health issue that was a risk to the public.
- Broke the National Law, registration conditions, or undertakings.
- Did not get their registration properly.
If your complaint does not meet these grounds, AHPRA cannot proceed.
How to prepare your complaint:
Format:
Complaints can be lodged by phone, online, email or mail.
Personal details:
- Provide your name, email, and phone number.
- You can complain anonymously, but this must be done by phone (not the online form).
- If making an anonymous complaint, explain why when you first contact AHPRA.
Respondent’s details:
Provide the name of the practitioner or service provider you are complaining about.
Relevant facts:
Provide details about what happened, with supporting documents if you have any, and what result you would like to achieve.
Additional Information:
You will need to give AHPRA permission to share your complaint and personal information with the relevant organisation.
Lodging your complaint and next steps:
General concerns:
Call 1300 419 495 or use AHPRA’s online complaint form HERE. Interpreters and translators are available free of charge.
Criminal offences:
Fill out the offence complaint form and send it by email(offence.complaints@ahpra.gov.au) or mail (Attention: Offence Assessment Team, GPO Box 9958, Melbourne VIC 3001).
Receipt and Acknowledgement:
- AHPRA aims to acknowledge your complaint within 3 working days.
- Most complaints are closed within 90 days.
Initial assessment:
Will take around 60 days.
Possible outcomes:
After reviewing your complaint, AHPRA or a National Board may:
- Close the complaint (e.g. if low risk, resolved, or better handled somewhere else).
- Take regulatory action (e.g. conditions on practice, caution, undertaking).
- Refer the matter for investigation.
- Send the practitioner for a health or performance assessment.
- Refer the complaint to another agency (e.g. police, Medicare, health complaints bodies).
- Health or performance assessment
- A health assessment checks if a practitioner has an illness or impairment that may be a risk (may involve medical, psychiatric, or psychological testing).
- A performance assessment checks if the practitioner’s skills or practice are unsafe or below standard.
- Assessors are independent experts in the same field.
- Investigations: If a complaint moves to investigation, AHPRA will collect evidence and may decide to suspend the practitioner for some time to keep the public safe while the investigation happens
More information:
Refer to the factsheet provided below for more information.
