Wood v Calvary Health Care Act Ltd

Wood v Calvary Health Care Act Ltd involved an appeal against a Federal Magistrate's decision that the appellant, who had a history of intravenous drug use, was not discriminated against by the Calvary Hospital when they refused to treat her at home under their Calvary at Home program. The appellant argued that the hospital's refusal to provide home treatment was discriminatory because she was treated less favourably because of her disability. The hospital argued that the refusal was not discriminatory as the program was closed due to staff shortages and not because of the appellant's disability. The court was required to decide whether the hospital's refusal to provide home treatment constituted discrimination under the Disability Discrimination Act 1992 and whether the hospital's defence of unjustifiable hardship could be made out.

The court found that the Federal Magistrate did not err in his findings that the Calvary at Home program was closed at the time the appellant sought to participate in it due to staff shortages. The court found that there was no evidence to suggest that a nurse would have been available to treat the appellant at her home on the afternoon following her initial visit to the hospital. The court also found that the appellant was not treated less favourably because of her disability as the hospital had other reasons for refusing to provide home treatment, such as occupational health and safety risks to nurses and the appellant's poor intravenous access.

The appeal was dismissed and the appellant was ordered to pay the hospital's costs.