Prominent surgeon Dr Reza Adib, the partner of former Queensland premier Annastacia Palaszczuk, has had his medical registration suspended, as he faces allegations of rape and sexual assault.
The Queensland Health Ombudsman issued the notice on Tuesday for the 65-year-old, saying it was effective immediately.
“The suspension of registration means that Vahid Reza Adib is prohibited from practising as a medical practitioner for the duration of the suspension,” it said.
Adib stands accused of detaining a woman against her will in his Gold Coast apartment on March 30, and allegedly raping and sexually assaulting her.
His charges include three counts of rape, two counts of deprivation of liberty, and one count of sexual assault.
The sexual assault charge states he allegedly “unlawfully and indecently assaulted [the woman] and the indecent assault included bringing into contact part of [the woman’s] genitalia with the mouth of Adib”, according to court documents.
Following his charges being laid last month, his lawyer said the surgeon maintained his innocence. The case will return to court next month.
Adib, a surgeon who specialises in obesity procedures, was regularly pictured at high-profile events with Palaszczuk since they began their relationship in 2021, such as the Logies and movie premieres.
The charges were laid as Palaszczuk was promoting her autobiography The Politics of Being Me. She subsequently cancelled two book tour stops as news unfolded about her partner’s case.
Adib, who established his own obesity clinic in Brisbane in 2004, was nominated as the co-chairman of the Wesley Hospital’s Centre of Excellence in Bariatric Surgery in 2017.
Uniting Care, which runs the Wesley Hospital, told this masthead last month Adib was not currently accredited to perform operations at the hospital.
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