A South Coast doctor who indulged his shoe fetish with a prescription drug-dependent patient has had his medical registration cancelled for two years.
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Police charged Cedric Schmaman, 61, with indecent assault after a woman reported he had inappropriately touched her genitals while she attended Bermagui Medical Centre in 2016.
Schmaman pleaded guilty to the charge and was handed an 11-month suspended prison sentence in Wollongong District Court in mid-2017.
The court heard at the time that the woman had an illicit drug history and was dependent on pain medication for an injury sustained in a road accident.
She turned to Schmaman after numerous other South Coast doctors refused to write her scripts.
At the end of the first meeting, Schmaman requested the woman wear high heels or boots to her appointments, and led her to believe her supply of medication would be cut off otherwise.
Schmaman admitted he began sitting too close to the woman and touching her leg in subsequent consultations.
He gave her his mobile phone number and more than $1500 in cash. He hugged her, and told her he loved her. He once placed a $50 note down her shirt. He went to kiss her but she would turn her head away.
Dr Schmaman has grossly abused his position of authority by indecently assaulting [the patient] in his surgery.
Schmaman was administering an injection in the woman's buttock when he interfered with her clothing - a corset - and touched her intimately. The woman reported the assault to her partner and later to police.
Schmaman had his medical licence suspended in May 2017 and has not practised since, however the NSW Health Care Complaints Commission applied to the the Civil and Administrative Tribunal late last year to have Schmaman's registration cancelled for 3-5 years.
Schmaman opposed his de-registration during a hearing in February this year, saying he wanted to continue working as a GP and believed he could make a "valuable contribution" to the community given his long experience, care and compassion.
He suggested his registration should only be suspended for six months and then he be allowed to continue practising subject to conditions, including that he not see any female patients aged 12 to 70 unless a chaperone was present.
However, in a decision handed down late last week, the tribunal found Schmaman should be prevented from practising for two years.
"Dr Schmaman has grossly abused his position of authority by indecently assaulting [the patient] in his surgery," tribunal members wrote.
"This assault took place after five months of inappropriate interactions....[the patient] was a vulnerable person with complex physical and mental conditions".
The tribunal noted a psychiatrists who had seen Schmaman in late 2018 said he would need intense psychotherapy lasting between nine months and three years to understand his behaviour and how to prevent it.
"All the circumstances lead us to the conclusion that we should cancel Dr Schmaman's registration and prevent him from applying for re-registration for two years," the tribunal concluded.
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