Venod Skantha at an earlier court appearance. Photo / File
Venod Skantha at an earlier court appearance. Photo / File
A hospital that employed killer doctor Venod Skantha hasn't made changes after he lied to avoid being sacked - saying the "unique event" mustn't destroy trust with staff.
Southern DHB was set to fire Skantha for serious misconduct, including turning up to work smelling of alcohol but allowed him tokeep working after he lied and said his mother had died.
Skantha went on to murder 16-year-old Amber-Rose Rush after she threatened to tell his bosses and police about inappropriate behaviour by him, including allegedly providing minors with alcohol and offering minors money for sex.
The Herald on Sunday sought information under the Official Information Act (OIA) from Southern DHB, including what changes had been made after the tragedy. In response, Chris Fleming, SDHB chief executive, said documentation about changes didn't exist.
"This event has been distressing for all staff involved, however, we need to remember this is a unique event and we still seek to operate a high trust environment with staff who are experiencing distress," Fleming wrote.
"The despicable actions of one staff member should not jeopardise the important values we seek to hold of trust in our staff. Evaluating any request for leave involves judgment from those dealing with this."
Amber-Rose Rush was murdered in February 2018 by Venod Skantha after she threatened to derail his career. Photo / File
Fleming declined to release other requested information, including copies of legal advice relating to Skantha and the murder trial and his employment file, saying this could prejudice the maintenance of law.
"We note that Mr Skantha is still awaiting sentencing and will then have a statutory appeal period."
Skantha was found guilty in November. He had worked as a house officer at Invercargill Hospital in May 2016 but later transferred to Dunedin Hospital and worked in the emergency department.
However, Skantha's lawyer wrote to the DHB and asked it to take into account the recent death of the doctor's mother. Skantha's lie worked and he kept working.
He killed Amber-Rose on February 2 2018, and will be sentenced next month.
