Doctor appeals damning inquest findings over prison death of Veronica Nelson
Dr Sean Runacres wants coronial findings overturned in relation to his care of the Indigenous woman in custody, hears the Supreme Court of Victoria.
A doctor is appealing findings against him over the death of an Aboriginal woman in custody, saying the coroner ignored key evidence and unfairly sullied his reputation.
Dr Sean Runacres was referred to AHPRA back in January by the Victorian state coroner Simon McGregor, who said the death of his patient Veronica Nelson could have been prevented if she had been sent to hospital.
She had been brought to the Dame Phyllis Frost Centre in Melbourne on New Year’s Eve 2019 but died in her cell on 2 January after two days of severe opioid withdrawal symptoms, including projectile vomiting.
In his findings, the coroner said that Dr Runacres failed to physically examine Ms Nelson when he completed her initial medical assessment.
