Understanding Failure To Diagnose In Reid v Hanafi [2026] TASSC 46

The Supreme Court of Tasmania recently delivered a medical negligence decision in Reid V Hanafi [2026] TASSC 46. The case considers whether general practitioner Dr Robina Hanafi failed to diagnose or refer for investigation symptoms that were later recognised as manifestations of multiple sclerosis.

The decision illustrates the difficulty of identifying serious neurological disease when a patient presents over time with a range of symptoms that, viewed individually, may appear common and non-specific. It also reinforces that the standard of care is assessed by reference to the information available to the practitioner at the time, rather than with the benefit of hindsight.

Background

The plaintiff, Ms Wendy Reid, first attended Dr Hanafi’s practice on 22 April 2014. Over the following 16 months she attended the practice on 12 occasions before ultimately being diagnosed with MS after a dramatic deterioration in August 2015. A central issue at trial was whether the symptoms