She continued driving before being stopped by police shortly after. Officers noticed her front right tyre was punctured.
The doctor returned a blood alcohol level of 221mg, equivalent to more than 1100mcg. The blood legal limit is 50mg.
“You told police that you had drunk half a bottle of cider, but clearly to have a reading that you did, it was much more than that,” Judge Kim Saunders said to the doctor at her sentencing.
Lawyer Hayden Bell acknowledged the doctor’s breath alcohol level was high and said while she crashed into a parked car, it was her first time before the court on that charge.
She had since taken “extreme measures” to get herself back on track in the hope of successfully applying for a Section 106 discharge without conviction application.
“She’s had three different counselling services, all with slightly different advantages.”
Her main reason for applying for the discharge was the consequences on her ability to continue to do GP work, which she hoped to return to in the future, Bell said.
“Her current employer believes it will be a hindrance,” Bell said of the boss, who was the head at a medical research organisation she was currently working at.
The Medical Council was already aware of the court proceedings, but the conviction would likely affect her current ability to win more projects to work on.
It would also affect her ability to travel overseas, especially the United States, which was her most common area to work.
The woman had last worked as a GP in April last year and had taken a “step away” from that role while sorting out her mental health difficulties.
Bell said the doctor had already had “some issues with the Medical Council which were not particularly positive for her”.
That made her feel the conviction would not leave her in a “great position” to reapply for her practising certificate in the future.
Police prosecutor Maddie Kingma opposed the application and agreed that while it was out of character, the overall gravity of her offending did not warrant a discharge.
“She was almost three times the limit of blood alcohol. Given there was also the careless driving, the damage to the stationary car, it’s concerning and drink driving is always a concern for police, nationwide.”
Kingma agreed the doctor’s mental health status should be given some weight but it shouldn’t tip the balance.
Judge Saunders said the woman’s offending “wasn’t just a bad judgment call”.
“[She] has drunk much more than what she has admitted to.”
The woman was someone who chose to drink and drive which posed a real risk to the public, not because of a medical emergency, Judge Saunders said.
“It was simply a decision that you made.”
The Medical Council was entitled to know whether she was someone who was fit to practise and said it was “speculative at best” whether the conviction would hinder her travel to the US.
However, her mental health was in such a state that it warranted the application.
“If it were not for the consequences to your mental health I would not be persuaded that a S106 should be granted here.”
On the charges, though, she was disqualified from driving for 28 days and ordered to install an alcohol interlock device on her car.
She would then be subjected to a three-year zero alcohol limit before being able to reapply for her licence.
