Queensland Consolidated Acts

CRIMINAL CODE 1899 - SECT 282

282 Surgical operations and medical treatment

(1) A person is not criminally responsible for performing or providing, in good faith and with reasonable care and skill, a surgical operation on or medical treatment of a person or unborn child if performing the operation or providing the treatment is reasonable, having regard to all the circumstances of the case.

(1A) A person is not criminally responsible for performing or providing, in good faith and with reasonable care and skill, a surgical operation on or medical treatment of a person or unborn child in an emergency if it is necessary to perform the operation or provide the treatment to save the mother’s life or the life of another unborn child.

(2) If the administration by a health professional of a substance to a patient would be lawful under this section, the health professional may lawfully direct or advise another person, whether the patient or another person, to administer the substance to the patient or procure or supply the substance for that purpose.

(3) It is lawful for a person acting under the lawful direction or advice, or in the reasonable belief that the advice or direction was lawful, to administer the substance, or supply or procure the substance, in accordance with the direction or advice.

(4) In this section—

"health professional" see the Hospital and Health Boards Act 2011 , schedule 2 .

"medical treatment" , for subsection (1) , does not include medical treatment provided by an unqualified person that is intended to adversely affect an unborn child.

"patient" means the person or unborn child on whom the surgical operation is performed or of whom the medical treatment is provided.

"surgical operation" , for subsection (1) , does not include a surgical operation performed by an unqualified person that is intended to adversely affect an unborn child.

"unqualified person" see section 319A (3) .