Russell Hoyle, Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital psychiatrist, suspended and under investigation by AHPRA

A Perth psychiatrist who works at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital has been suspended by the medical regulating body. Russell Simon Hoyle was on Tuesday barred from treating patients by the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA). It has not yet been revealed why Dr Hoyle is under investigation, however he cannot practise in Australia. On a since deleted LinkedIn page, Dr Hoyle said he had been working for the Health Department since January 2018 as a consultant psychiatrist at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital, where he was responsible for the treatment of inpatients with acute psychiatric illness. A North Metropolitan Health spokesman confirmed Dr Hoyle was on leave without pay while under investigation. On the HotDoc and HealthShare registries, Dr Hoyle has listed his “special interests” and areas of specialisation as “general adult”, post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), mood disorders and anxiety. He has also worked at the Marian Centre in Wembley since July 2015 and the Perth Clinic since 2008. Dr Hoyle rented a room for his own private practice through the organisation, but is not employed by the Marian Centre, a spokesperson confirmed. Dr Hoyle has listed being employed at the Empire Clinic in Leederville and providing outpatient and day hospital psychiatric treatment at Sentiens. He also did an 11-year stint at the Health Department after graduating from the University of Western Australia in 1995 with a Bachelor of Medicine and Surgery. AHPRA lists his registration as beginning in 1996, and told The West Australian immediate action was taken against Dr Hoyle by the Medical Board of Australia. An AHPRA spokesperson said they could not comment further because their enquiries with the practitioner were still ongoing. People who claim to be patients of Dr Hoyle’s have described him on the RateMDs website as “always late”, “hard to contact” and “a friend”. One anonymous poster last year said: “I have been Russell’s patient since 18, he saved my life, he is absolutely always late, but so worth it ... over the years he has been a friend and an excellent doctor”. Another in 2018 said: “he is very good at listening (to) his clients and makes them feel comfortable”. A third claimed Dr Hoyle “dropped his fees” when their appointment took longer. A North Metro Health Service spokesman said “as this is part of an ongoing AHPRA investigation, with the outcome yet to be determined, it is not appropriate for NMHS to comment any further at this time”. The West Australian attempted to contact Dr Hoyle for comment. Have more information? Email journalist Briana Fiore at briana.fiore@wanews.com.au