THE Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA) has suspended the registration of a Kalamunda dentist at the beginning of March.

AHPRA has confirmed that Peter Terzi, of Terzi Dental in Kalamunda, had his dental registration suspended on March 8, with an AHPRA spokesperson stating that the agency cannot discuss individual cases beyond what is publicly available.

“Speaking generally, a national board can suspend a practitioner’s registration using immediate action powers if it reasonably believes that the practitioner poses a serious risk to the public, or the national board believes it is otherwise in the public interest,” the spokesperson said.

“Reasons for immediate action decisions are not public.”

The AHPRA spokesperson said immediate action decisions can be appealed to a responsible tribunal.

The AHPRA spokesperson said under national law, practitioners are advised of decisions which affect their registration, and dental practitioners who have had their registration suspended must not practise as a dentist.

“In some circumstances, such as where the practitioner is a practice owner with responsibilities for the day-to-day operations of the practice, the practitioner may still be physically present at the practice location,” the spokesperson said.

The AHPRA spokesperson said once suspended, dental practitioners should immediately cease practice from the date the suspension takes effect.

“They must not undertake any dental practise after the date the suspension commences,” they said.

“In some circumstances where other registered dental practitioners practise at that practice location the practice may continue to operate dental services.”

A seek job advertisement placed on Tuesday, March 12, stated that Terzi Dental in Kalamunda was looking for a dental associate – with an immediate start – to “pick up a full book of patients while the dentist recovers from a hand injury.”

Mr Terzi received his Doctor of Dental Medicine from the University of Western Australia (UWA) in 2018.

He also holds a Bachelor of Nursing from Monash University, which he obtained in 2010.

AHPRA still has Mr Terzi registered as a nurse.

After Mr Terzi graduated, he served in the Royal Australian Navy as a dental officer, according to the Terzi Dental website.

While studying, Mr Terzi was a recipient of a Western Australian Dental Foundation (WADF) hardship grant, with Australian Dental Association of WA (ADAWA) publishing a story about the difficulties Mr Terzi faced in becoming a dentist.

The ADAWA piece details how Mr Terzi grew up in foster care and had to go through university without financial support from family.

“My journey into dentistry was not an easy road; most of my peers throughout childhood had dropped out of school well before year 10,” he said in the ADAWA piece.

The ADAWA piece details how Mr Terzi was at risk of burning out during his studies due to working nights at a hospital to make ends meet, and it was with the help of the WADF grant that he was able to focus on his studies full time.

“As a foster child, it can be hard to fit in and feel accepted at university.

"The grant gave me confidence to go back to the community I came from and provide care to people in the foster-care environment, ” Mr Terzi said in the ADAWA piece.