Visiting Medical Officers are essential to our public hospital system: AMA (NSW)

AMA (NSW) welcomes comments by Greens MP, Dr Amanda Cohn highlighting the issues around the use of locum agencies. Dr Michael Bonning, AMA (NSW) President, said the workforce crisis facing our health system is now a global issue.

“Doctors decide to pursue locum opportunities when they become disengaged from the workforce and when the terms and conditions available for working in the public hospital system are not sustainable,” says Dr Bonning.

However, attacks by the NSW Treasurer, Daniel Moohkey, on Visiting Medical Officers showed a lack of understanding of our health system which will undermine confidence and drive doctors out of NSW.

Visiting Medical Officers are a long-standing and essential part of the workforce providing high-quality medical services. Dr Bonning said Visiting Medical Officers are experienced senior doctors appointed to provide services on a contractual basis to NSW hospitals. Visiting Medical Officers are appointed across a range of specialities and in all Local Health Districts, usually for terms of five years, and many are reappointed for successive terms.

Dr Bonning said the Treasurer should be aware of the difference between a Visiting Medical Officer and a locum.

Dr Bonning states that AMA (NSW) was concerned that Local Health Districts may not be appropriately accounting for the costs. Dr Bonning said AMA (NSW) had been seeking to obtain information about locum payments in the Hunter LHD but had been advised in response to the GIPA application that the request was too broad as records did not differentiate between Visiting Medical Officers and locums.

Dr Fred Betros, a Visiting Medical Officer for many years at Blacktown Hospital said, “my colleagues and I were disappointed by the attacks on Visiting Medical Officers by the Treasurer.”

Visiting Medical Officers work with their Staff Specialist colleagues to provide exceptional health services to the people of NSW. The Visiting Medical Officer arrangement is a feature of the NSW health system, attracting and retaining talented and experienced doctors to work within our public hospital system. Dr Betros said to be attacked for the way in which they are engaged to work undermines the value and commitment of doctors to our health system.

“Working in the coal face in Western Sydney, we see the importance of our health system to our communities. My community needs investment in health, they need immediate answers, not a $50million extended inquiry and they need a government to finally do what no government has done and really tackle the drivers of ill health: obesity, alcohol, smoking, and poor access to health services,” said Dr Betros.

Dr Betros states that NSW has the best health system in the country and Visiting Medical Officers are proud to work in it. Making working in NSW Hospitals more attractive is the only strategy that will work to address the locum cost crisis.

Contact  

AMA (NSW) Media: +61 419 402 955 | news@amansw.com.au