(1) The Oregon Board of Dentistry may appoint a consultant or a committee or committees, each consisting of one or more licensed dentists in this state, to study and report to the board the condition of and dental treatment rendered to any person or persons by any licensed dentist or dentists in this state or by any person purporting to practice dentistry in this state. Any person, hospital, sanatorium, professional grievance committee, nursing or rest home or other organization may, subject to the laws governing privileged or confidential communications, provide information, interviews, reports, statements, memoranda or other data relating to the condition and treatment of any person to the consultant or committee or to the board, to be used in the course of any study for the purpose of improving the standards of dental practice or to enable the board to assess the desirability of disciplinary action relating thereto; and no liability of any kind or character for damages or other relief shall arise or be enforced against the person or organization by reason of having provided the information or material, or arise or be enforced against any consultant or member of the committee by reason of having released or published the findings and conclusions of the consultants or committees to advance dental science and dental education, or by reason of having released or published generally a summary of those studies. When used by the board to assess the desirability of disciplinary action, the testimony given to and the proceedings, reports, statements, opinions, findings and conclusions of the consultants and committees and the board shall be confidential as provided under ORS 676.175, but this shall not preclude the use of the subpoena power with respect to the actual records of dentists, patients, hospitals, sanitaria, nursing or rest homes.
(2) There shall be no monetary liability on the part of, and no cause of action for damages shall arise against, any consultant or member of a duly appointed committee for any act or proceeding undertaken or performed within the scope of the functions of that consultant or committee, if the consultant or committee member acts without malice, has made a reasonable effort to obtain the facts of the matter on which the consultant or committee member acts, and acts in a reasonable belief that the action taken is warranted by the facts known to the consultant or committee member after that reasonable effort to obtain the facts. [1965 c.122 §2; 1977 c.192 §9; 1997 c.791 §27]
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