NT Health has said it will not comment on NT Work Safe charges over the death of a mental health patient who had a history of volatile substance abuse, was considered at risk of self-harm, and died after inhaling the contents of a deodorant can purchased from a Royal Darwin Hospital pharmacy.
In a statement on Monday, NT WorkSafe executive director Grant Hastie alleged that in January 2022 the patient was involuntarily admitted into the care of a health organisation he did not name. He said the patient had a recorded history of volatile substance abuse and was at risk of self-harm, and was able to get a can of deodorant.
Without delving into the actual incident, what exactly is the point of one government department spending time and money prosecuting another government department and seeking for the latter to pay a monetary penalty from its deficit budget to the same governments treasury?