‘Three strikes': Demands for answers over repeat Monash IVF bungles

Sydney Morning Herald

a day ago

'Clearly at some point in time, management is responsible because they are approving budgets and systems and everything else.'
Victorian Health Minister Mary-Anne Thomas said she was open to reforms that would better safeguard patients as wider concerns over the regulation of Australia's fertility industry will be discussed by Australia's health ministers in Melbourne on Friday.
'We have recently reformed the way in which we regulate fertility services, including Monash IVF, and an investigation has commenced into what went wrong here in Melbourne,' Thomas said.
'When we're thinking about fertility care, it's such an emotional rollercoaster for so many families and people seeking to either start or grow a family, and I want to ensure that we've got regulation that's fit for purpose, and that people can have confidence in these private fertility services in which they invest so much money.'
The Victorian Health Regulator has launched an investigation into the embryo mix-up at Monash IVF's Clayton clinic.
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But Swinburne University senior lecturer in corporate law Helen Bird said the sharemarket might deliver a far quicker verdict.
'The signs aren't good that they [Monash IVF] took this seriously at the start,' she said.
'They all point to poor risk management, but they also point to poor oversight by the board.
'The board may have its justifications, but after you've done it three times, with three major issues across two states at least, then you've got more than just the odd mistake going on here. You've got a systemic issue to deal with.'
Monash IVF Group's board refused to provide a statement of confidence in the company's management when asked to do so by The Age on Wednesday, saying it would not comment beyond information already released to the ASX.
Australian Shareholder Association chief executive Rachel Waterhouse said Monash patients would have concerns, while investors will be asking questions about the company's oversight.
'It's a concern, because you've got to trust in management, you've got to trust in the board, and mistakes in other organisations could have quite different outcomes, but this has a huge effect on trust,' Waterhouse said.
While Monash IVF Group's price increased slightly to 62¢ on Wednesday, it is still a long way from its $1.42 value in August 2024, as well as the $1.09 at which it was trading before news broke of the Brisbane embryo error on April 11.
'The price has dropped because the market lacks confidence in the current management and governance of the company. The market reacts very quickly, it's much more powerful than the law in this regard,' Swinburne's Helen Bird said.
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'So what the major investors are doing, I imagine, is knocking on the door and saying, 'please explain, please give us some confidence that you can get on top of these issues going forward'.'
Head of medical negligence at Maurice Blackburn Tom Ballantyne said the string of issues at Monash IVF demanded stronger action by regulators.
'It's three incidents in a couple of years and all of them raise concerns about the fundamental processes in the organisation,' he said.
'Fertility treatments are provided commercially, but it's a health service and a public good and needs to live up to that, and the government and Safer Care Victoria need to ensure it does live up to that.'
Compensation is typically only awarded in medical negligence cases when permanent harm can be proved, which is not the case where a person is denied the chance to have a child, or potentially when they give birth to an unintended child.
Rather than result in compensation, Ballantyne said most cases are resolved by offering patients replacement or free IVF cycles, with little public accountability.
'The provider can avoid the scrutiny of an actual court case that occurs in other areas,' Ballantyne said.
'It's all done behind closed doors. And, you know, the deterrence or accountability the compensation otherwise provides, is lost.'