A geriatrician has been awarded $115,000 in compensation for “retaliatory” discrimination that saw her overlooked for a new position despite being the only suitable candidate.

The South Australian Employment Tribunal ordered the state health department pay Dr Renuka Visvanathan $75,160 in economic loss and $40,000 for emotional distress after finding she was bullied between 2014 and 2018 by her line manager.

According to the tribunal decision, Dr Visvanathan first raised concerns about Associate Professor Chris Zietz’s bullying behaviour towards in her in 2009, when she was head of unit at Queen Adelaide Hospital Specialist Geriatric Medicine Service. 

This was when she perceived Dr Zietz was trying to reduce bed numbers and services in the newly created geriatric evaluation and management unit.