NEW ZEALAND MEDICAL ASSOCIATION MEDIA RELEASE

FROM: Dr Ross Boswell, Chairman NZMA

DATE: Wednesday, 28 March 2007

NZMA supports Southland GPs’ concerns

The New Zealand Medical Association is very concerned at the situation which has developed in Southland and led local GPs to seek action.

“Unfortunately, Southland is not the only DHB experiencing workforce problems,” said NZMA Chairman Dr Ross Boswell. “Similar situations have developed in other parts of New Zealand, demonstrating yet again the pressures facing the medical workforce and other clinicians.

“After years of advocacy on these issues, we are frustrated by the continuing lack of a comprehensive national medical workforce strategy.”

The NZMA has been in contact with a number of its members from Southland to discuss the issue, after 45 GPs contacted Southland DHB to express their concerns about the regional situation.

Concerns expressed by NZMA members in Southland include that:

• One quarter of the senior hospital doctors resigned last year, leaving several departments in a critical state.
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• Some patients’ rights to receive appropriate and timely services are being breached by the delays in getting treatment .
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• Some departments face critical staffing issues and are struggling to provide a basic level of service. Patients with serious diseases like cancer are not being seen nor treated in appropriate time frames.
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• More work is flowing back to primary care and the hospital is dealing with sicker and more complex patients later in their illnesses than is desirable.
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• SDHB is chronically under-funded.
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• A gulf between managers and clinical staff is creating frustration, which has contributed to some of the resignations and the expressed intent of other clinicians to take early retirement.
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• From the primary care perspective there is a consistent concern that SDHB managers act in a controlling manner to stifle innovation and thwart progress to implement the Primary Health Care Strategy.
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The NZMA is ready to support the concerns of the GPs and hospital doctors involved.

“The situation in Southland is extremely serious, and action needs to be taken urgently to improve things,” said Dr Boswell. “GPs must have confidence in the regional hospital while the doctors working in the hospital need in turn to have the full support of management.”

ends

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