The NSW Ambulance service has admitted to failing in its duty of care regarding policies and procedures around restricted drugs, following the suicide of Lake Macquarie paramedic Tony Jenkins.
The state agency pleaded guilty in Sydney District Court on Tuesday to breaching section 19 of the Work Health and Safety Act 2011, which calls for employers to ensure the health and safety of their workers "so far as reasonably practicable".
The Newcastle Herald previously reported that Mr Jenkins, a paramedic with almost three decades of experience, took his own life in 2018 after he was called into a meeting with two managers - and no independent support person - and questioned about allegations he had misused Fentanyl taken from the ambulance station where he worked.
An autopsy showed there were no traces of the synthetic opioid - a painkiller more potent than morphine - in the 54-year-old's body when he died.
The summons to which NSW Ambulance pleaded guilty on Tuesday related to duty of care regarding policies and procedures meant to ensure the responsible administration, storage, disposal, and recording of restricted drugs like Fentanyl - for example, ensuring a witness records a paramedic returning restricted drugs to the ambulance station safe at the end of a shift.
Defence counsel told the court that the guilty plea was not a result of failure to have necessary procedures in place, but that they were not properly implemented.
The prosecution argued the offence sat in the mid-range on the scale of seriousness while defence said it was low range.
NSW Ambulance pleaded guilty to an amended summons filed on February 10, which had changed since SafeWork first launched legal action in 2020 following Mr Jenkins' death.
Mr Jenkins' wife, Sharon, told the Newcastle Herald after the sentencing hearing the family attended court "as a reminder to everyone that behind these processes and after so many years there is a real family who has suffered real loss".
"Unfortunately, today's sentence hearing doesn't carry a lot of weight for us as a family," she said less than a week from the fifth anniversary of her husband's death.
"It is merely a reminder of how many times we, as a family, have been let down by these drawn-out SafeWork proceedings and how Tony was let down by a failure of processes and management by NSW Ambulance."
Judge Wendy Strathdee said Mr Jenkins' family was "incredibly brave" for sitting in court for the hearing.
She has reserved her judgement to a later date.
- Support is available for those who may be distressed. Phone Lifeline 13 11 14; beyondblue 1300 224 636.
To see more stories and read today's paper download the Newcastle Herald news app here.
