KEY POINTS:
A top sex doctor has been charged with drink-driving with nearly double the legal limit of alcohol - and if convicted could face disciplinary action from health authorities.
Dr Christopher Bevan Paltridge, 38, faces drink-driving, dangerous driving and driving while forbidden charges and appeared in North Shore District Court last week for a depositions hearing, which has been adjourned.
The director of the New Zealand Men's Clinic, which specialises in male sex-related problems, Dr Paltridge told the Herald on Sunday he regretted the 2005 incident and plans to enter a guilty plea at his appearance later this month.
A conviction would be his third for drink-driving.
"There was a lot of stress on my life at the time, a lot of travelling, long hours," Dr Paltridge said.
"I've made a lot of changes to my life, a better work-life balance and I've been having counselling with the Salvation Army."
Dr Paltridge allegedly recorded a blood-alcohol level of 149mg per 100ml, nearly double the limit, when he was pulled over by police for crossing the centre line near his Paremoremo home in June 2005.
Forbidden to drive for the next 12 hours, Dr Paltridge was then caught behind the wheel only six hours later.
He was found guilty on the drink-driving charge and pleaded guilty to the two other charges in 2005. He was disqualified from driving for one year, fined $1000 and sentenced to 200 hours' community service.
However, Dr Paltridge successfully appealed the drink-driving conviction on a technicality on the advice of his lawyer and the convictions were quashed.
The case went back to the North Shore District Court as a defended hearing earlier this year but Dr Paltridge regrets the decision to appeal, and has changed his mind.
"I should never have appealed in the first place, I've already served my time. I lost my licence for a year, I just got it back six weeks ago," he said.
"I'm pretty certain it will be a plea of guilty. If we go to court and the evidence is such, and I plead guilty, nothing happens as the sentence has been done.
"If I plead not guilty, then all it would mean is I don't have the conviction."
Dr Paltridge has completed the community service - and trespassed himself at Sky City to prevent him from entering the bars, where he would drink.
He said his other two drink-driving convictions happened in the 1980s.
Dr Paltridge could appear before the health committee of the Medical Council of New Zealand.
Spokesman George Symmes said convictions were taken seriously and would be referred to the Health Committee that decides if performance assessments or monitoring is necessary.
If the misconduct is deemed serious, medical professionals can appear before the Professional Conduct Committee or the Health Practitioners Disciplinary Tribunal.
Doctor heal thyself - all 39 of you
Last year, 39 doctors practising in New Zealand were being monitored for alcohol or drug-related problems.
However, Dr Edwin Whiteside, president of the Doctors' Health Advisory Service, a confidential referral service, says the evidence shows rates aren't any higher in doctors than in the wider population.
All medical practitioners are legally bound to report colleagues they think may be unsafe to the relevant authority. Some practitioners self-report. For doctors that authority is the Medical Council's health committee which will arrange a specialist assessment and, if necessary, put patient safeguards in place.
