Royal Commission demands ban on court-ordered sterilisation of non-consenting patients
The threshold for court intervention is variable, says Associate Professor Linda Steele.
Australian courts ordered the sterilisation of 14 adults last year, but for most cases, the clinical details were kept secret.
Now, the Royal Commission into Violence, Abuse, Neglect and Exploitation of People with Disability says legalised non-consensual, non-therapeutic sterilisation should end by 2024 except in circumstances where a patient’s life is at risk.
The Australian Guardianship and Administration Council has been reporting approved applications for adult sterilisations since 2016 but with minimal data on age, gender and the clinical justification made.
Of the few cases made public, common reasons have been dysmenorrhoea, menorrhagia and distress related to menstrual blood.
