Northern Territory Consolidated Acts Northern Territory Consolidated Acts(1) Subject to subsections (3) and (4), a health practitioner must not administer or supply a Schedule 8 substance to a relevant patient unless a person other than the practitioner or the patient witnesses the administration or supply of the substance.
(2) Subject to subsections (3) and (4), if a health practitioner administers or supplies a Schedule 8 substance to a relevant patient and the administration or supply of the substance is witnessed by another person, the health practitioner must record the name of at least one person who witnessed the administration or supply of the substance in the record prescribed by regulation (the prescribed record ).
(3) Subsections (1) and (2) do not apply to a health practitioner if:
(a) the health practitioner is an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health practitioner, a nurse, a midwife or a pharmacist (the practitioner ); and
(b) another person is not reasonably available to witness the practitioner administer or supply the Schedule 8 substance to the relevant patient because of:
(i) the remote location of the place where the substance is administered or supplied; or
(ii) other special circumstances; and
(c) the practitioner records the reason why the administration or supply of the substance was not witnessed in the relevant patient's clinical record.
(4) Subsection (1) and (2) do not apply to a health practitioner if:
(a) the health practitioner is a pharmacist; and
(b) the Schedule 8 substance that is administered or supplied to the relevant patient by the pharmacist is a restricted Schedule 8 substance; and
(c) the relevant patient is taking part in a pharmacotherapy program conducted at the hospital, residential facility or declared place.
(5) A health practitioner commits an offence if:
(a) the health practitioner administers or supplies a Schedule 8 substance to a relevant patient; and
(b) the administration or supply of the substance is required to be witnessed under subsection (1); and
(c) the administration or supply of the substance is not witnessed by a person other than the health practitioner or the relevant patient.
Maximum penalty: 20 penalty units.
(6) A health practitioner commits an offence if:
(a) the health practitioner administers or supplies a Schedule 8 substance to a relevant patient; and
(b) the administration or supply of the substance is witnessed by a person other than the health practitioner or the relevant patient; and
(c) the health practitioner is required to record the name of at least one of the persons who witnessed the administration or supply of the substance in the prescribed record under subsection (2); and
(d) the health practitioner fails to record the name of at least one of the persons who witnessed the administration or supply of the substance in the prescribed record.
Maximum penalty: 20 penalty units.
(7) An offence against subsection (5) or (6) is an offence of strict liability.
(8) In this section:
"relevant patient "means a person who is:
(a) a patient of a hospital; or
(b) a resident of a residential facility; or
(c) receiving medical treatment at a declared place.