The risk is low but we're encouraging testing as a precautionary measure.
For twenty-five years, patients in Strathfield, Sydney, placed their trust in a dentist whose clinic, it has now emerged, fell short of the sterilization and hygiene standards that make such trust safe to give. An April 2026 audit of William Tam's practice found deficiencies serious enough to prompt NSW Health to urge thousands of former patients to be tested for HIV, hepatitis B, and hepatitis C — a precautionary call that speaks to how quietly systemic failures can accumulate behind closed doors. The risk is considered low for most, but the difficulty of reaching patients through incomplete records is a reminder that the obligations of care do not end when a procedure does.
- An April 24 audit of a now-retired Sydney dentist's Strathfield clinic uncovered sterilization and surface-cleaning failures serious enough to create a theoretical pathway for bloodborne virus transmission across thousands of patients.
- NSW Health has issued a public alert urging former patients of William Tam to be tested for hepatitis B, hepatitis C, and HIV, with those who underwent invasive procedures considered at somewhat higher risk.
- Poor record-keeping at the clinic — flagged separately by the Dental Council of NSW — has made it impossible to contact affected patients directly, forcing authorities to route warnings through GPs and the Health Direct telephone service.
- Tam retired just two weeks after the audit and has since been deregistered, leaving health authorities to manage the fallout without his cooperation or a reliable patient list.
- Officials are urging calm alongside action: all three viruses have effective treatments, and the overall risk to most patients is assessed as low — but early detection is the reason the precautionary push is happening now.
William Tam operated a dental practice on Albert Road in Strathfield for roughly twenty-five years before retiring abruptly — just two weeks after an audit conducted by NSW Health on April 24 found troubling deficiencies in how his clinic sterilized instruments and cleaned surfaces. Those findings have since escalated into a public health alert reaching thousands of former patients.
The concern is rooted in basic infection control logic: in a dental setting where instruments enter the mouth and bleeding is common, improperly sterilized equipment can carry bloodborne viruses from one patient to the next. NSW Health is now urging anyone who visited the clinic to be tested for hepatitis B, hepatitis C, and HIV. Public health specialist Zeina Najjar described the overall risk as low but said precautionary testing was warranted, particularly for patients who had undergone more invasive procedures.
The audit itself was triggered by a complaint. Beyond the sterilization lapses, the Dental Council of NSW identified a separate but compounding problem: Tam's patient records were incomplete and poorly organized. That has made it difficult for authorities to identify and directly contact the thousands of people who may have been affected, forcing them to rely on general practitioners and the Health Direct telephone service to spread the word — a slower and less certain approach.
Tam is now retired and deregistered. He did not respond to requests for comment. Health authorities are keen to emphasize that effective treatments exist for all three viruses and that early detection is the goal of the testing push. The deeper uncertainty is how many of his former patients will hear the alert in time to act on it.
William Tam ran a dental practice in Strathfield for a quarter-century before retiring two weeks after an audit. That audit, conducted on April 24 by NSW Health, found something troubling: the sterilization of equipment and the cleaning of surfaces at his clinic on Albert Road fell short of required standards. The discovery has now triggered a public health alert affecting thousands of people who sat in his chair over those 25 years.
NSW Health is urging former patients to get tested for hepatitis B, hepatitis C, and HIV. The concern is straightforward: if instruments weren't properly sterilized and surfaces weren't properly cleaned, bloodborne viruses could have passed from one patient to another. Zeina Najjar, a public health specialist with Sydney Local Health District, acknowledged the risk is low overall, but said testing is warranted as a precaution. Those who underwent more invasive procedures face somewhat higher risk than those who had routine cleanings or checkups.
The audit itself was triggered by a complaint. When inspectors arrived, they documented deficiencies in sterilization protocols and cleaning practices—the kinds of lapses that, in a dental setting where instruments enter the mouth and can cause bleeding, create a pathway for viral transmission. The Dental Council of NSW also identified problems with how Tam kept patient records, which has created a practical headache for authorities trying to warn people.
That record-keeping problem is significant. Thousands of patients were treated at the clinic, but because the records were incomplete and poorly organized, NSW Health has struggled to contact them directly. The agency is now working through general practitioners and Health Direct, a government telephone service, to reach people and encourage them to seek testing. It's a slower, less certain way to get the message out than a direct mailing would be.
Tam is now retired and deregistered as a dentist. The ABC reached out to him for comment but did not receive a response. What remains is the task of finding his former patients and getting them tested. The good news, health authorities emphasize, is that all three viruses—hepatitis B, hepatitis C, and HIV—have effective treatments available. Early detection matters, which is why the precautionary testing push is happening now, even though the actual risk to most patients is considered low. The question now is how many of those thousands of people will learn about the audit and act on the advice.
Citações Notáveis
The audit identified deficiencies in sterilization of equipment and cleaning practices, raising concerns about bloodborne virus transmission. The risk is low but we're encouraging testing as a precautionary measure.— Zeina Najjar, Sydney Local Health District public health specialist
A Conversa do Hearth Outra perspectiva sobre a história
Why did it take an audit to find these problems? Wasn't anyone checking on this clinic before?
There's no routine inspection system for every dental practice. It took a complaint to trigger the audit. That's the gap—practices operate until someone raises a flag.
If the risk is low, why the big public alert?
Because low risk isn't zero risk, and because these are bloodborne viruses. Hepatitis and HIV are serious. You test people not because they're likely to be infected, but because if they are, early treatment changes everything.
The record-keeping problem—how bad is it really?
Bad enough that they can't contact most of his patients directly. They have to go through GPs and a phone line. That means some people won't hear about this at all.
What happens to Tam now?
He's already retired and deregistered. The regulatory side is done. The focus now is on the patients and whether they get tested.
If someone was treated there, what should they actually do?
Contact their GP, mention they were a patient at that clinic, and ask about testing. It's straightforward—a blood test. The real question is whether they'll know to do it.